If we can say for some national team participating in the FIBA World Cup that is ready to give everything for its country, then it is Georgia.
“Basketball Sphere” writes about the contract of one of the best forward players in Europe, but also offers some more details about this proud national team.
And how could they not be? This will be their debut appearance at Mundobasket. They occupy the 32nd position on the FIBA Ranking, and that’s exactly how many teams will compete at this tournament.
FIBA World Cup – Georgia: Previous editions and the best results of the national team
As we have already said, Georgia will debut at the FIBA World Cup. They advanced there through the qualifiers. Georgia have five consecutive appearances at the Eurobasket. Now they come to the Mundobasket as a “dark horse” that has nothing to lose.
FIBA World Cup – Georgia: Road to Mundobasket
In the qualifiers first round, Georgia competed versus Spain, Ukraine and North Macedonia. They ended that phase at 4-2. Later, they played against Italy, Netherlands and Iceland, and they qualified in an incredible way.
It all came down to the last round and the game against Iceland in Tbilisi. It was necessary for them not to lose by four or more points. As usual, there were 15 lead changes and incredible drama in front of 10,000 people in the hall.
In the end, Iceland won with an incredible score – 80:77. They had a shot for a historic trip to the FIBA World Cup. After Toko Shengelia missed both free throws with 10 seconds to go, the Icelanders ran into transition… Elvar Fridriksson was left alone in the corner, but luckily for Georgia, the ball went out of the basket. If he had hit the shot, this article would have written about Iceland. Fortunately for everyone present in the hall then, that was not the case.
FIBA World Cup – Georgia: Roster and focus on those who are most expected
Georgia was pushed through the entire qualifiers by the big trio – Thaddus McFadden, Giorgi Shermadini and Tornike Shengelia.
Along with Shermadini and Kahaber Jintcharadze, McFadden is the only one who played all 12 qualifying games. He spent 36 minutes on the court in average. 18.8 points, 4.3 assists and a little more than three rebounds per game speak about his productivity. He shot from the field with a success rate of 38%.
Experienced Shermadini really confirms that age is just a number. The 216 cm Tenerife center contributed with 16.3 points and 7.5 rebounds. When Shengelia played as the third member of this group, they collectively scored over 50 points every time, which is impressive. That’s why they managed to beat Spain (82:76).
Tornike Shengelia story is unbelievable. In every club he plays for, he has a special clause. It allows him to play for the national team every time, regardless of what his obligations are at the club. That’s how it was at CSKA Moscow, that’s how it is now at Virtus.
Because of that, the famous situation happened. During the EuroLeague season, Shengelia played two games in two days. One for Virtus, another one for Georgia. He changed five planes, traveled a more than 16 thousand kilometers. His averages for the national team are reflected in 19.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game.
Shengelia’s patriotism is best illustrated by a sentence he said a little over three years ago: “I can’t explain to you how horrible it is to watch national team on TV and not be able to help in the best years of my career. I, Tornike Shengelia, was, am and will be the bearer of Georgian soul everywhere and always. Not a single comment from anyone can change that.”
The rest of the gang
“Toko” played 8 out of 12 times and never once disappointed. Neither is Goga Bitadze, whose appearance at the World Cup will be extremely important. Although he played only two qualifying games, 13.5 points and 10 rebounds on average represent a great boost to the already mentioned leaders of this team.
Three names stand out from the players who are worth paying extra attention to: Duda Sanadze, Mikheil Berishvili and Sandro Mamukelashvili. The first of them played an average of 28 minutes in these qualifiers, scoring nine points with three rebounds.
Berishvili made nine appearances and filled all statistical columns as a “role player”. The last of them recorded 43 appearances in the NBA past season with an average of six points and four rebounds.
FIBA World Cup – Georgia: A word more about head coach – Ilias Zouros
Ilias Zouros took over Georgia national team in 2016. He has been working as a coach since 1986, and has a lot of experience in his profession.
The most famous clubs he managed are definitely Olympiacos, Anadolu Efes, Zalgiris, Tofas, Buducnost Podgorica and Aris.
In addition to Georgia, he also led the national team of Greece, but that tenure lasted only one year. Among the trophies, it is worth highlighting the Lithuanian League, the Lithuanian Cup, as well as the Baltic League. He won the Award for the best Coach of the Eurocup in 2010 while leading Panellinios to the Final Four.
![Ilias Zouros](https://basketballsphere.com/en/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/FIBA-Svetsko-prvenstvo-Ilias-Zouros-1.jpg)
FIBA World Cup – Georgia: Expectations
The draw for the World Cup decided that the debutant will compete against Cape Verde, Venezuela and Slovenia. Considerig the quality they possess, Georgia should be able to qualify for the next stage together with Slovenia. Luka Doncic and compariots won’t even get to first place so easily, because Georgia has shown that know how to play against top quality opponents.
Georgian energy and approach to the every game is truly admirable. That’s why you shouldn’t be surprised if “Toko” and the gang disrupt the plans of the best. The pressure and nervousness brought by the World Cup in basketball is something that should not affect the best players of Georgia. By coming here, they already done something special.