Earlier this summer, Tobias Harris of the Philadelphia 76ers declined an invitation to join the USA World Cup roster in training camp. Harris wasn’t the only elite player to do so and it left team USA without much star talent. This lead the one of the worst finishes in the history of Team USA’s international play.
The USA team lost to France first and then was defeated by Serbia, so they place somewhere between 7th or 8th place in the World Cup. Talent was clearly an issue outside of the injuries to Jayson Tatum and Marcus Smart during the tournament, along with injuries to other players prior too the beginning of the World Cup.