USA Basketball 3-on-3 teams clinch spots in Paris Olympics, making 4 golds possible

The U.S. learned Wednesday that it has clinched spots at the Paris Games in both men’s and women’s 3-on-3 basketball, based on the world rankings updated by FIBA.

REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE: USA Basketball’s goal of winning four gold medals at next summer’s Paris Olympics is a step closer to reality. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES

USA Basketball’s goal of winning four gold medals at next summer’s Paris Olympics is a step closer to reality.

The U.S. learned Wednesday that it has clinched spots at the Paris Games in both men’s and women’s 3-on-3 basketball, based on the world rankings updated by FIBA, the sport’s international governing body. Those rankings mean the Americans can skip next year’s Olympic 3-on-3 qualifying tournaments.

It’s a major step forward for the 3-on-3 men’s program, which didn’t qualify for the Tokyo Games when the sport debuted there in 2021. The U.S. swept the other three golds in Tokyo — women’s basketball winning its seventh straight Olympic title, men’s basketball winning its fourth in a row and the women’s 3-on-3 team winning that sport’s inaugural gold.

“Making it to the Olympics, that’s what it’s been all about for us,” said Jimmer Fredette, the former NBA guard and Associated Press college player of the year — who has played for the U.S. 3-on-3 men’s program extensively to get the ranking needed for Paris qualification. “It means a ton. The opportunity to be able to represent our country at the Olympics would be an amazing experience. I’ve been fortunate enough to represent our country a few times, but the Olympics is a whole different level.”

USA Basketball is the first federation to clinch berths in all four basketball events at the Paris Olympics.

The men’s 3-on-3 team is ranked No. 2 by FIBA, and the women’s 3-on-3 team holds the same ranking. The top three teams in the 3-on-3 rankings released Wednesday have clinched Olympic spots: Serbia is ranked No. 1 and China No. 3 on the men’s list, while China is No. 1 and France is No. 3 on the women’s list.

USA Basketball CEO Jim Tooley said there’s both a sense of accomplishment and relief in knowing that the four berths are secure and that fates won’t hang on an Olympic qualifying tournament.

“It’s a necessary step to the ultimate goal,” Tooley said. “It’s a really proud and rewarding moment because we’ve been at this for a long time. We were one of the first federations to adopt 3-on-3 and embrace it. That goes back to the 2010 Youth Olympic Games when everyone thought this would be a joke. Well, it’s been great — and now we’re going to have a crack at four gold medals.”

The U.S. men’s 5-on-5 team clinched its Olympic berth with a fourth-place finish at the World Cup in Manila this summer, and the U.S. women’s 5-on-5 team got its spot for Paris wrapped up by winning the World Cup in Australia last year. Both of those teams are No. 1 in the FIBA world rankings.

There is no shortage of candidates to fill the four U.S. Olympic basketball rosters this summer — many top NBA players, including Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, LeBron James and Joel Embiid, have expressed interest — but the teams almost certainly won’t be finalized until next spring at the earliest.

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“There’s no doubt there’ll be some tough decisions here,” Tooley said. “We’ll hope everybody stays healthy and then we’ll start selecting and identifying the players in the not-too-distant future.”

The U.S. has won a medal in all 31 of the Olympic competitions it has entered — 26 of those medals being gold, while the rest of the world has eight golds combined. The U.S. men’s team has 16 golds, one silver and two bronzes in 19 Olympic appearances, the U.S. women’s team has nine golds, one silver and one bronze in 11 appearances, and the U.S. women’s 3-on-3 entry won gold in the Olympic debut in 2021.

The 3-on-3 game has a four-person roster and is played on a half court with a 12-second shot clock with nearly continuous play. Baskets are worth one or two points, and the winner is either the first team to 21 points or the leader when the 10-minute clock expires.

“People are starting to understand a little bit about 3x3, what it is, and as they do, they’re like, ‘Oh, this is kind of a cool sport,’” Fredette said. “We’ve been trying to raise awareness, build a program and become the best in the world at it. We’re headed that direction, but we’re not there yet.”