3×3 basketball is a young sport, but it is developing dynamically and winning more and more hearts worldwide every year.
The inclusion of this sport in the Olympic family significantly increased its popularity — this summer in Paris, 3×3 basketball will be presented for the second time at the Summer Olympic Games.
The basketball tournament will be held from July 30 to August 5 at the Place de la Concorde in Paris. Eight men’s and women’s national teams will play there. Currently, three national teams are known, which received tickets to the Olympics due to the world ranking on November 1, 2023 – Serbia, USA, and China for men and China, USA, and France for women.
Everyone else will have to go through the crucible of selection, which will resemble a fierce meat grinder since the level of applicants is simply incredible. Among the contenders on the train for the Olympic Games is the women’s 3×3 team of Ukraine, but for now, it is among the reserves for the third of three qualifying tournaments.
3×3 basketball: Great season is about to go
Who should Ukraine root for at the first of three Olympic qualifying tournaments, which Hong Kong will host this week, April 12-14? Who is the favorite, and who can surprise everyone?
Who will play?
At the first qualifying tournament, eight national teams will each compete for one license for the Paris 2024 Olympics. Previously, Israel was supposed to host the tournament, but FIBA decided to give Hong Kong the right to host the tournament. The hosts and seven national teams from world-ranked countries that were not represented in 5×5 basketball at the two previous Olympics will play there. There is a condition that only four national teams from one continent can play.
MEN: Hong Kong, Netherlands, Mongolia, Latvia, Austria, Switzerland, Egypt, New Zealand
WOMEN: Hong Kong, Hungary, Netherlands, Azerbaijan, Poland, Egypt, Mongolia, Chile
This condition on the limit of the number of national teams from one continent will also apply to the following qualifying tournaments, including the third one. Ukraine is the first reserve among the European national teams, so in Hong Kong, we need the victory of one of the European national teams, which will open the way for Ukrainian women to participate in the third qualifying tournament in Hungary in May.
Who to watch?
There is only first place, and only that is important. Reaching the finals and the second final place is worth nothing and is no different from the eighth. Only victory will bring a ticket to the Olympics, and the teams will do everything so that they are the ones who pose with a plastic sign with the inscription “Qualified” after the end of the tournament on April 14.
Before the start of the competition, who is considered the favorite to receive a license for the Paris 2024 Olympics in 3×3 basketball?
In the men’s category, the Netherlands team with Voortie de Jong won the first seeding number. He had a fantastic last season on the World Tour, scoring an insane 9.3 points per game. His team finished fifth at the last World Cup and reached the quarter-finals of the European Championship, where they lost to the Serbians, who are currently dominating Europe. The main disadvantage of the team is the poor performance of the four who will represent their national team at the tournament.
At the World Championship, Latvia – the bronze medalist of the last European and World Championships- stopped the Dutch national team and Latvia – the current Olympic champion. Two Olympic champions, Carlis Lasmanis and Nauris Miezis, will come to Hong Kong – probably the best duet of players right now. In the world of 3×3, they are known as “Batman and Robin” – if one does not make the decisive throw, the other will. Each of them became the hero of a separate match or tournament more than once, and together, they aim to get a ticket to the Olympics already this week.
In the background on the list of potential winners of the qualifying tournament in Hong Kong is the young Mongolian team with Anand Ariunbold, who practically single-handedly led his team to the bronze medals of the Asian Cup in March. Also, Austria and Switzerland aim at least to get out of the group, which has assembled squads of players who have proven themselves well at the World Tour level. Maybe they won’t play in the finals in Hong Kong, but watch what the Austrian Nico Kaltenbrunner and the Swiss Gilles Martin will do with the ball – the first one is one of the best snipers right now, and the second one was called the “Wizard of Oz” for a reason. Thanks to his tricks.
ASIA CUP 2024: announcement of the first major event in 3×3 basketball of the season
The champions of Africa and the strongest team of the continent, Egypt, the fourth team of the Asian Cup 2024, New Zealand, can produce an upset in one of the matches, but their exit from the group will already be a sensation, although the New Zealander Ty Waniard can give us a few highlights. The Hong Kong national team here is a friendly host who is just happy to be in this company.
If there are two clear favorites in the men’s grid, the dominance of one or more national teams is not visible in the women’s grid. It is worth noting that five of the eight teams that played in Hong Kong at the last World Cup were absent, but they still need to make it to the playoffs.
At the European Championship last year, two national teams from this qualifying Olympic tournament played – Hungary stayed in the group, losing both of its matches. Still, the Netherlands won the gold, and the Dutch woman can be considered No. 1 in the ranking of candidates for an Olympic ticket.
Three of the four European champions will come to Hong Kong. Still, the main thing is that Noortje Driessen will be there, who dominated the continental championship and deservedly won the title of MVP.
Poland and Hungary, which received the first seed, are strong European middlemen who can successfully compete in a separate tournament due to teamwork, but lately, there have not been enough stars in the sky.
FIBA Asian Cup 3×3 2024 – Australia proved the status of the best in the region
The main competitors of the European teams will be Mongolia and Egypt. The Mongolian women travel to Hong Kong after an emotional bronze medal win at the 3×3 Asian Cup in March, and star team Hulan Onolbaatar is ready to make his country happy once again. Egypt has the star of the entire African women’s continent, Soraya Mohamed, but the Egyptian women need more stability, especially under the pressure of responsibility. At last year’s African Cup, when they were expected to win, they unexpectedly lost to Kenya in the final.
Leaving the group will be a joy for the Azerbaijan, Hong Kong, and Chile teams.
Tournament format:
The teams have already been divided into groups according to the received seed number. The two best teams from each quartet will advance to the playoffs – in the semifinals, the winner of Group A will play the second team of Group B, and accordingly, the winner of Group B will play the second team of Group A. The winners of the semifinals will play for a ticket to the Olympics.
Composition of groups:
Men
Group A: Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Hong Kong
Group B: Mongolia, Latvia, Egypt, New Zealand
Women
Group A: Hungary, Poland, Egypt, Hong Kong
Group B: Netherlands, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, Chile
Where to watch? The broadcast of all matches of the first qualification tournament for the Olympics in Paris in 3×3 basketball will be available on the official website of FIBA 3×3 – https://www.youtube.com/@FIBA3x3/streams
