FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Power Rankings, Volume 2

MUNICH (Germany) - Here we are again with the latest installment of the FIBA EuroBasket 2022 Power Rankings as the countdown continues ahead of the major tournament.

There is minimal movement amongst the top eight as teams have ramped up their preparations with a busy slate of friendlies taking place over the past couple of weeks. There will be one final check-in before the competition begins on September 1, 2022.

Here's the rundown from 24-1:
(change from previous position)

#24 - NETHERLANDS   (-)

The only way to get off the bottom is by winning, and unfortunately, it's been a while since Netherlands did that at international level. To make matters worse, they are set to be without leading scorer Yannick Franke after sustaining a hand injury. They've tested themselves in preparation games with defeats coming against Slovenia, France and Germany.

#23 - BULGARIA   (-1)

A couple of heavy defeats have not seen Bulgaria off to the best of starts in their preparations. After losing 93-60 to Czech Republic, they were beaten 98-68 by Croatia in their final warm-up game having been without key duo Aleksandar Vezenkov and Dee Bost. Next up, the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Pre-Qualifiers.

#22 - GREAT BRITAIN   (-2)

Nothing to report. The last team to announce their preliminary roster, and yet to play a preparation game, so it's very much a case of wait and see when it comes to GB. They might not be the third worst team in the tournament on paper, but they may be having to play catch up when it comes to being ready. The return of Ovie Soko in the squad is a huge boost.

#21 - ESTONIA   (+2)

A small jump for Estonia as they followed two losses against Lithuania - the second of which by just two points - with victories over Belgium and Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their young group impressed on home soil and racked up 63 points in the middle periods in their 13-point success against the Bosnians. Definitely performances to build upon.

#20 - HUNGARY   (+1)

Hungary's winning run in preparation games came to a sudden halt this week as they fell to a 20-point loss at the hands of Croatia. They had opened up their schedule with a double success against Georgia with the welcome return of Adam Hanga to the national team fold important to their chances.  

#19 - BELGIUM   (-1)

The good news: Belgium opened with a strong win over Finland.
The bad news: Belgium have since lost five games in a row.

#18 - UKRAINE   (+1)

Another team with a mixed bag of results in their friendly encounters with a victory over Poland being the highlight so far. They secured a convincing 28-point win in Istanbul having welcomed back Alex Len to the national team setup. Ukraine were also on the receiving end of a 42-point Lauri Markkanen performance in a recent three-point loss.

#17 - GEORGIA   (-3)

It's been a tough preparation run for Georgia with six defeats from six. They opened their slate of friendlies with back-to-back losses against Hungary before the same fate with Israel. Georgia also suffered double-digit losses to Turkey and Greece, but still wait to add Goga Bitadze to the mix and will have home advantage as an additional factor in the Group Phase.

#16 - MONTENEGRO   (+1)

Montenegro have probably won the games they would have expected to, and lost the games they would have expected to, so not too much to gauge from their build-up so far. Their final game was a crushing 89-53 success against North Macedonia even without Nemanja Radovic and John Radebaugh in their lineup.

#15 - BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA   (+1)

Away from the off-court complications, Bosnia and Herzegovina split their double-header at the weekend with victory over Belgium followed by a 13-point loss to Estonia in Tartu, Finland. Jusuf Nurkic is back with the national team and already making a telling contribution with 18 points in their win to bolster what was already an underrated frontcourt.

#14 - POLAND   (+1)

Poland claimed their first win in prep by beating Turkey by a single point on Thursday after a run of three losses on the bounce. They also had the confirmed news that rising star Jeremy Sochan will not be suiting up for the national team at EuroBasket. That keeps the onus on the likes of Mateusz Ponitka and AJ Slaughter, who was absent for their recent victory.

#13 - ISRAEL   (-)

The wins have been flowing for Israel in preparation, albeit with two victories coming against Romania and an opening success against the University of Auburn. However, the first of their two wins against Georgia was without Deni Avdija and his presence with the team takes them to a different level. Winning breeds confidence and isn't a bad habit to get into.

#12 - FINLAND   (-)

42 points. Lauri Markkanen is gearing up nicely for another big run at FIBA EuroBasket as Finland edged out Ukraine for a 97-94 victory in Jyvaskyla. Their star player was absent for successive defeats to Lithuania, but prep had begun with contrasting results against Belgium. Finland were the surprise package five years ago, but now they are a team everyone has their eye on.

#11 - CROATIA   (-)

Win-loss-win for Croatia with successes over Bulgaria and Hungary either side of a defeat to Czech Republic on the road. Jaleen Smith is the newcomer to the group and appears to be settling quickly after a team-high 19 points in Thursday's 20-point victory. Dario Saric is back alongside Bojan Bogdanovic and Ivica Zubac and they will be a team to watch, despite next heading to the FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Pre-Qualifiers.

#10 - CZECH REPUBLIC   (-)

Just the two games for the Czechs, but two wins to set them on their way. They eased to a 33-point victory against Bulgaria before backing it up with a 95-83 success against Croatia in Pardubice with contributions down the roster. They head to Germany this weekend ahead of the August window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 European Qualifiers.

#9 - ITALY   (-1)

On one hand, Italy nearly beat France after losing by a single point in overtime, and then on the other, they suffered a 32-point loss against the same opponents. There's no doubt that Italy have a talented roster that can make a run at FIBA EuroBasket, but there is also that sense that you don't quite know which side will turn up. A test against Serbia follows.

#8 - GERMANY   (+1)

The FIBA EuroBasket co-hosts have made a steady start to their preparations with wins over Belgium and Netherlands. Their quota of Wagner brothers has been cut in half after Moritz was ruled out because of injury. Germany hosts a mini tournament this weekend as they take on Czech Republic then either Italy or Serbia in stronger tests.

#7 - SPAIN   (-1)

Three defeats from four games so far from Spain and they are heading into FIBA EuroBasket with different expectations from previous years. The perennial medal winners have been integrating naturalized guard Lorenzo Brown in amongst a real mix of youth and experience in the squad. Spain defeated Greece - without Giannis - and they have had to be patient on Usman Garuba, who got 20 minutes in on Thursday.

#6 - TURKEY   (+1)

A small jump for Turkey as they pushed the reigning European champions Slovenia close in an overtime loss before splitting games against Poland. Cedi Osman and Furkan Korkmaz have picked up from where they left off with the national team and Alperen Sengun could be one of the breakout stars amongst the EuroBasket debutants. 

#5 - SERBIA   (-1)

Serbia at 5?! We hear you. But make no mistake, there are fine margins between these top teams and fans are in for an absolute treat at EuroBasket. Serbia were not far away from beating Slovenia on the road as Nikola Jokic put up 26 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists with ease. They may have lost a couple of players from their initial squad, but this is still a team that will be fighting for the title.

#4 - LITHUANIA   (+1)

Lithuania are handing out doubles at will. Two wins over Estonia, followed by back-to-back successes against Finland before beating Spain twice for good measure. Ignas Brazdeikis has been a standout performer and top scored in both encounters with Spain, including the game-winner in Thursday's triumph. 

#3 - GREECE   (-)

Giannis and Greece laid down a marker in their 86-70 victory over Spain in front of a passionate crowd. The 'Greek Freak' fired in a national team career-high of 31 points, but sat out the reverse fixture as Spain avenged the defeat. Greece have since beaten both Georgia and Poland on home soil and are building nicely towards competitive action.

#2 - FRANCE   (-)

Vincent Collet's task of reducing the preliminary roster seemed to be done for him as injuries hit the squad including Frank Ntilikina in a blow to the backcourt. However, the team has been rolling in preparation with the highlight of their four wins being a 32-point drubbing of Italy as Elie Okobo put up 18 points. 

#1 - SLOVENIA   (-)

There was one game that dominated the headlines this week. Slovenia v Serbia. Or Luka v Jokic as it was billed. Doncic delivered with 34 points and 9 assists to lead the way in the 97-92 overtime triumph - their second in prep - as Vlatko Cancar hit a huge go-ahead triple in the extra period. And just as they proved last summer, the 'supporting cast' should not be taken lightly as Slovenia look to repeat.

*The power rankings are entirely subjective and is in no way a true, accurate ranking system. All comments are purely those of the author.

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