Go, Canada: Stellar Start From Knicks' Barrett Leads to World Cup Advancement
Sometimes, it might actually be about how you start.
A strong opening period from New York Knicks star RJ Barrett at the very least set the tone for one of the most impactful wins in the history of Canada's men's national basketball team, which earned advancement to the knockout round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup with an 88-85 victory over defending champion Spain in Jakarta.
It was a win-or-go-home game for each side, as every team in the second round's Group L, which will also place Latvia, which beat out Brazil for the advancement honor, on the eight-nation knockout bracket. Canada wins the group thanks to a tiebreaking victory over Latvia in preliminary play.
Having previously and publicly realized that he would have to play a major role in a Canadian upset, Barrett set the early tone for an upset by scoring 11 of his team's 21 points in the opening period, hitting four of his first five shots and pulling in three rebounds over in those 10 minutes. He finished the game with 16 points and five boards before fouling out in the final stages.
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The upset victory is a gamechanger for Team Canada (4-1): not only did it secure its first top-eight finish in the World Cup since Toronto hosted in 1994 but it also claimed one of the top two finishing spots among competing groups from the American continent (along with the United States), which lands its first berth in the Summer Olympics since the 2000 Games in Sydney.
Barrett was brought in along with several young, potential-packed True North NBA brethren for what became a fateful World Cup trek. On Sunday, that contingent proved why they earned the national call from Rowan Barrett, the Knicks star's father and Team Canada's general manager who sought a turnaround of the national team's fortunes. The elder Barrett was part of that Australia-bound group in 2000, which featured only two active NBA talents (Steve Nash and Todd MacCulloch).
Newly-minted NBA All-Star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Oklahoma City) closed things out by scoring 13 of his 30 points in the final period, including the stepback double that gave Canada a lead that proved permanent with 44 seconds remaining before following it up with a steal that led to two-possession-lead creating free throws It was perhaps the perfect companion piece or tribute to teammate and All-Defensive member Dillon Brooks (Houston), who also bore an offensive burden with 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting.
Spain, which took home the top honors in the 2019 World Cup in China, held a 12-point lead, its largest of the game, entering the final period. Former Knick Willy Hernangomez led the team with 25 points in defeat. Doomed to a ninth-place finish, best among teams that fell short of the knockout round, La Roja is forced to endure its worst World Cup outing since consecutive 10th-place finishes in 1990 and 1994.
With its tournament spot secured, Canada will now travel to Manila, where a semifinal berth will be on the line against Slovenia at a time to be determined.
