The Israeli national basketball team participated during the summer in a pre-Olympic qualifying tournament, and it can be said that it also succeeded in it after Ariel Beit Halachmi's pupils, in a missing lineup, were one victory away from advancing to the Olympic qualifying tournament to be held next summer.
Nevertheless, in the FIBA rankings published last week, the team dropped no less than 8 places, straight to 42nd place. When the neighbors to the south and north also pass us in the ranking, Jordan, the neighbor to the east, is also higher than Israel, having risen one place from the previous ranking, straight to 32nd place in the world.
The Egyptian national team. Bypass Israel, Photo: FIBA
And how did the World Championship affect the rankings?
Despite the failure, Team USA managed to overtake the European champions Spain, mainly because the latter also failed at the World Championships. Germany, which won the tournament, advanced eight places and is immediately behind them.
Rounding out the top ten are Australia, Serbia, Canada, Argentina, France, Latvia and Lithuania. But the main beneficiary, of course, is the Latvian team, the Cinderella of the summer, which jumped no less than 22 places in the rankings, straight to 8th place. But the biggest jump was South Sudan's team, which jumped 32 places, straight to 31st place.
Latvian national team. The Cinderella of Summer, Photo: FIBA
The hottest sports articles and updates on your Telegram
Join
Positives - Israel Hayom Basketball Podcast - Episode 49
Wrong? We'll fix it! If you find a mistake in the article, please share with us
