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The 2023 FIBA World Cup will gather the best 32 teams, and there are plenty of NBA stars on their rosters. Even though the last three NBA MVP award winners Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Giannis Antetokounmpo, will not play, there are still NBA All-Star players in the tournament. We created a list of the Top 10 FIBA World Cup NBA stars, and we also have our favorite to win the MVP award of the tournament.
10. Patty Mills
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The 35-year-old Australian is past his prime but he is always ready to give his best for the national team. He has made a name for himself as a role player in the NBA, mainly when he was with the San Antonio Spurs, but whoever has seen Mills play for Australia knows that he can score like the best in the game. Mills played in four Olympics and in 2021 in Tokyo, he led his nation to the first-ever basketball Olympic medal scoring 42 points in the third-place win over Slovenia.
9. Dennis Schroder
Schroder never misses an opportunity to play for Germany especially on a big stage like the FIBA World Cup. He has been with the national team from the youth categories which helped him make it to the NBA. Last year, the led Germany to the bronze medal at the EuroBasket averaging 22.1 points and 7.1 assists per game, which put him in the EuroBasket All-Tournament Team. Last season in the NBA, he averaged 12.6 points and 4.5 assists per game for the Los Angeles Lakers and in the offseason, he signed with the Toronto Raptors.
8. Bogdan Bogdanovic
After the reigning NBA Finals MVP Nikola Jokic announced that he will not play at the FIBA World Cup, Bogdan Bogdanovic is the heart and soul of this team. The Atlanta Hawks guard missed the EuroBasket tournament last year, but he was the top scorer at the last FIBA World Cup and was named to the All-Tournament First Team. Bogdanovic is a born-winner and even though he has a supporting role with the Hawks, he has been a real killer while playing in Europe.
Photo by Icon Sport
7. Lauri Markkanen
Markkanen has an impressive year. First, the Utah Jazz forward made his All-Star debut, then won the Most Improved Player award and instead of taking a summer off, he joined the Finish Army. Now, he will lead the national team of his country at the FIBA World Cup. Finland will make their second appearance at the FIBA World Cup after finishing 22nd at their debut in Spain 2014. Last year, they played at the EuroBasket and Markkanen had a great tournament averaging 27.9 points on 54.2 percent shooting, and 8 rebounds over 7 games.
6. Nikola Vucevic
Vucevic signed a contract extension with the Chicago Bulls where he averaged 17.6 points and 11 rebounds per game last season. He is the only NBA player on the Montenegro roster, who is much better than you may think. The two-time NBA All-Star have played in three EuroBasket tournaments and made his debut at the last FIBA World Cup in 2019.
5. Rudy Gobert
Gobert has become the leader of the French Team. The three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year was part of the French teams that won the bronze medals at the last two FIBA World Cups. He also won the silver medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and has a silver and a bronze from the EuroBasket. Gobert averaged a double-double with 13.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per game last year for the Minnesota Timberwolves. He loves to play under the FIBA rules as there is no such a rule as defensive three seconds, meaning that Gobert can stay in the paint on the defensive end as long as he wants.
4. Karl-Anthony Towns
After a tough season, missing a total of 53 games with multiple injuries, Towns is ready to help the Dominican Republic play well at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. The 2016 NBA Rookie of the Year and three-time All-Star averaged 20.8 points and 8.1 rebounds last season and he can easily reach those numbers in the tournament. He is the only NBA player on the team which does not give the Dominican Republic much of a chance, but KAT will be there to put up his numbers.
3. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
In the absence of Jamal Murray, Gilgeous-Alexander will be the leader of the Canadian team, even though he has never played in a major international competition on a senior level. The Oklahoma City Thunder guard was the fourth-leading scorer in the NBA last season, averaging 31.4 points per game in 51% shooting from the field, which is impressive for a shooting guard. He also made his All-Star debut and any team at the tournament will have a tough time slowing him down.
2. Anthony Edwards
The Minnesota Timberwolves forward is the only player from Team USA that truly deserves to be named among the FIBA World Cup NBA stars. He had an impressive season last year, making his debut at the All-Star game and leading the Wolves to the Playoffs. Looking at the Team USA roster, Edwards will have to be on top of his game if they want to go deep in the tournament. Traditionally, Team USA is among the top favorites to win the gold, but it will not be a surprise if they end up losing before even making it to the final four.
1. Luka Doncic
Luka Doncic is on top of our FIBA World Cup best players list and our favorite to win the MVP award of the tournament. The Dallas Mavericks point guard was named to the All-NBA First Team in the last four seasons and is by far the best player to suit up at the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Being still only 24-years-old, Doncic already has an impressive international career. Back in 2017, he was one of the best players for Slovenia when they won the EuroBasket title. At the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Slovenia finished fourth, and Doncic was named the best player of the tournament. In his first game, he scored 48 points in a in a 118–100 victory over Argentina, tying the second-most points in a single game at the Olympics.
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