By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Dwyane Wade represented USA in various competitions during his career, but now assumes the spectator role ahead of the 2019 FIBA World Cup set to take place at China between August 31st and September 15th. “It’s going to be a very exciting tournament with some very intense games” he told FIBA.
“China is going to be the center of the basketball world and the teams are going to give everything” he went on saying and commented on the upcoming competition for USA mentioning: “Team USA is going to fight to keep their crown after their title in Spain five years ago. The top three spots are going to be tough to reach for every team. The battle is going to be very, very intense.”
“In general, the level of competitiveness has grown a lot in recent years” he said and explained: “You have so many teams building great rosters, like Australia, Canada and Serbia, for example, that can have very good runs. The battle for the medal spots is going to be very interesting. Many teams can reach those last three spots.”
“When you play at this level, you experience the passion of other countries for basketball and their love for their National Team” the 37-year-old American pointed out and added: “China is going to be such a great host and the tournament is going to be so great. The fans, the environment, the love for basketball is very good there, and I’m sure that it’s going to be a huge success both on and off the court. I know everyone in China can’t wait for the start of the tournament and is excited to see their favorite players and teams. The stage is going to be great; the tournament is going to be one of the best ever.”
After third place in the 2006 World Cup at Japan, he helped USA rebound with the Olympic gold medals in 2008 at China. “We wanted to win the world title but we failed on our mission” he remembered and went on: “It was disappointing because we knew we had all the tools to win the title, but we had a tough game against Greece that ended our dream.”
“We were able to bounce back and win the bronze, but this tournament wasn’t the best we had because we didn’t reach our goal” he said looking back and added: “But I think that we all learned from it and that it helped us in the following competitions because we won the gold. We came back two years later at the Olympics with the mindset of ‘We’re going to win and not have the same performance that we had in Japan.”
“You learn from every experience” Wade further explained and also said: “You learn when you win, you learn when you lose. The most important thing is to move on and work hard to win the next one. It was tough to lose in Japan, but we bounced back.”
“Oh yes, absolutely” he replied when asked if he will monitor the 2019 World Cup and added: “I’m looking forward to seeing some games and seeing the most talented guys in the world competing at international level.”