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When Team USA brought a squad full of fresh faces to the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup, the rest of the competition knew they had some surprises up their sleeves. But the world No. 1 team actually surprised themselves.
Uncertainty and drama surrounded Team USA heading into the FIBA World Cup. The Americans' campaign tipped off without Las Vegas Aces’ key players A'ja Wilson, Chelsea Gray and Kelsey Plum, who stayed to play out the WNBA finals.
They are playing without national team legends Diana Taurasi (injured) and Sue Bird, who announced her retirement from basketball. And stalwart Brittney Griner continues to be detained in Russia after being convicted on drugs charges earlier this year.
The new-look three-time defending champions, instead, displayed a masterclass – cruising to a record 27-game winning streak in the FIBA World Cup, resetting a 32-year-old FIBA all-time high points record with a 145-69 win over Korea, where they smashed more stats records – 62 made field goals, 36 assists, and 94 points in the paint.
"This is huge. I don't think I've ever been a part of a team that's just this good at basketball," two-time WNBA MVP A'ja Wilson said.
As the USA moves on to the quarterfinals, they are about to set an example of how a world No. 1 team can continue breaking barriers.
From opponents to teammates
With the World Cup falling right after the WNBA season, members of finalists Las Vegas Aces and Connecticut Sun suddenly needed to work together as a team.
Despite having no time to practice together before the World Cup, team USA managed to develop that familiarity with each other through their league, which ran from March to September.
"We play against each other all year long, so we know each other's games very well, and everyone on this team is a great competitor, we're very familiar so it does not necessarily feel very foreign," said playmaker Plum, who is averaging 15.7 points and 5.3 assists in the group stage.
Connecticut Suns' Brionna Jones has been showing why she is the WNBA's Most Improved player in 2021 – stuffing the stat sheet with an average efficiency of 20.5 points in her first World Cup appearance. She also topscored for USA in the record-setting game with 24 points and 8 rebounds.
"[Jones] is so relentless with the second chances, defensively, she was able to get some bits there and get deflections. So Bri's minutes were excellent, her efficiency, being able to follow A'ja's lead," USA head coach Cheryl Reeves said.
No rest for the squad's key players
Aces' Wilson, Gray and Plum were given a heroines' welcome back in Vegas after leading their WNBA team to its first league title. After the celebration, the trio flew to Australia and starred in the crucial game against China, Asia's No. 1 team.
But it was the desire to represent their country excellently in the World Cup that motivated the whole team to shake off the weariness and have fun as well.
"We don't have much time off but you're working to get better and so it speaks about the group that we have now," Gray said.
"I know that this is a serious time, but you have to look back and reflect that basketball is only for a short period of time and you gotta enjoy it.
"So from the locker rooms, the jokes and even during the game, in the battle, that's how I've always been."
Making room for the next generation
The success of team USA continues on to the up-and-coming players, who have earned their places on the national team.
Kahleah Copper, 28, finally displayed breakthrough performances after numerous heartbreaks. The Chicago Sky forward only cracked into the WNBA All-Star team five years after she was drafted in 2016. She was also cut from the squad's 2021 training camps in preparation for the Olympic Games.
Now, Copper averages 20 minutes for Team USA in the World Cup, making the most out of her role in the squad.
"She clearly, in the last couple of years, has grown in the WNBA, Reeves said.
"So she got off the plane with this level of confidence that she has kept and that's really been fun to see."
More than the records and the pressure of staying on top of the world, Team USA is just looking forward to building relationships with the team in order to continue the legacy of those who came before them.
"We're playing for something that's bigger than us and that's a bit of a thing," Wilson said.
"We came here as teammates, so it's pretty cool to share a locker room with them and get to know them.
"It forms a sisterhood in the WNBA, but it's a lot of meshing from playing against each other, then playing with each other.
"Of course, the flip of the switch is easy because I've been doing it for a while, but with USA Basketball coming together, we know our ultimate goal is to win gold."
Beatrice Go is a freelance journalist and researcher from the Philippines. She was a former Rappler Sports multimedia reporter covering sports governance, national teams and athletes. She is a member of ABC International Development's Women in News and Sport Initiative, funded by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade through the Team Up program.