Shot at history: Canada Basketball could have 3 medal threats at Paris Olympics
CBC
After clinching an Olympic spot with a win over Spain at the World Cup, Canada Basketball president Mike Bartlett expected the men's team to party.
Not so.
"What do the guys do? They take to the team room and have like a Mario Kart tournament until 4 in the morning," Bartlett recalled to CBC Sports. "They're laser focused on being good people, having fun with each other and getting their job done."
Canada wound up winning bronze — the first time the men's team has ever reached the World Cup podium.
Bartlett said he envisions those future moments as Canadian rallying cries.
"We talk about a lot around the office, working backwards from the moment that we see in our head and quite frankly, winning gold while the world is watching, putting our flag in the ground in the basketball court," he said.
"Internationally, our men, our women, our women's 3x3 team all have that capability. There will be an opportunity for us to make history at the Olympics with our teams."
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While the men's team is already in the Olympics for the first time since 2000, the women's five-on-five team must advance through a pre-qualifying tournament in November, likely in Puerto Rico, per Bartlett. The next step would be Olympic qualifiers in November, where 12 of 16 teams will move on to Paris. Those are set to take place in Brazil, Belgium, Hungary and China.
Despite winning the past two Women's Series Finals, Canada's 3x3 team is still ranked fifth, outside of an Olympic qualifying spot. It has two chances to book its first-ever Olympic berth at separate qualifying events in May and June.
Each of the three teams will take different paths to Paris with about 10 months to go, but a common theme will be continued chemistry.
While the women's squads are forced into qualifiers, most of the men's roster — including head coach Jordi Fernandez — will see each other throughout the NBA season.
Nine of the core 14 players on the men's roster played at the World Cup, but others like Andrew Wiggins, who isn't a member of that group, and Jamal Murray, who is, will likely have more incentive to play at the Olympics.
The dilemma leaves questions of talent vs. commitment for Canada Basketball decision makers.
