FIBA World Cup (August 30th – September 14th): By virtue of the fact we’re in an even-numbered year, we are blessed to witness some good ol’ fashioned Team USA basketball. In late August, the world’s best teams will come together for the re-named Basketball World Cup (formerly World Championships). You know what that means: finally, an American team that actually has a chance to win an international competition!
Kevin Durant, Kevin Love and Anthony Davis are already on board to lead Team USA against the world. And by “world”, I mean Spain, because they present the most worthy challenge to Team USA. Spain has given Team USA a scare in the last two Olympic gold medal games, but fizzled out in the 2010 World Championships, failing to medal as Pau Gasol sat out the tournament.
The key for Spain this time around is that they’re playing at home, and the gold medal game is in Madrid. Team USA’s global popularity means it doesn’t face many hostile crowds, but as was the case in the 2010 gold medal game in Istanbul (facing Turkey), this year’s final game very likely will involve a showdown in Spanish capitol.
