Three days since the FIBA Basketball World Cup has begun, there are already six teams confirming second-round berths: Poland, Argentina, Russia, Spain, Serbia and Italy.
Group A: Two straight wins make Poland the winner
CGTN Photo by Gao Hongmei
Having defeated Cote d'Ivoire and China in their first and second games, Poland became the first team to make the next stage in this group. Considering that Cote d'Ivoire only have two points and they will challenge Poland in their last game on Wednesday, the Elephants can prepare for 17-32 Classification Round already.
By contrast, China and Venezuela, both of which have three points from one win and one loss, have no other choice but to win in their last game against each other.
Group B: Who will top the group, Argentina or Russia?
CGTN Photo by Gao Hongmei
Both Argentina and Russia have won two games already, confirming that they will be qualified for the next stage. The only question now is who will be there as the No. 1 of Group B and that matters a lot because the team's first-stage record still counts in the next stage and will decide whether a team can enter the quarterfinals.
Nigeria may be the biggest disappointment in the tournament. They recruited multiple NBA players including Al-Farouq Aminu, who just signed a three-year, 29-million-U.S.-dollar contract with the Orlando Magic. Nonetheless, having lost their first two games, the team had to say goodbye to the World Cup elimination stage.
Group C: Spain need to show more dominance
CGTN Photo by Gao Hongmei
Though Spain became the first team that made it out this group by defeating Tunisia and Puerto Rico, their performance was not convincing enough for a champion candidate. The first win over Tunisia was a big one (101-62) but Spain only led by three points in the first half (42-39). In their second game, Spain were never able to leave Puerto Rico behind far enough and only won by 10 points in the end (73-63).
Considering that Spain will meet Serbia and Italy in the second-stage games, head coach Sergio Scariolo may need to figure out how to motivate his players before it's too late.
Group D: At least we can watch Serbia vs. Italy
CGTN Photo by Gao Hongmei
It only took Serbia and Italy two games to make the Philippines and Angola realize that there's no hope for them in this group. Italy scored 108 points, the highest on August 31, to smash the Philippines before Serbia put on that 126-67 slaughter on, again, the Philippines, on Monday.
Serbia and Italy will play against each other on Wednesday, and the only question for that game is: Will we see Nikola Jokic in full power?