2002 FIBA World Championship
The 2002 FIBA World Championship opened at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana, on the 29th of August. Sixteen national teams had assembled for the 14th edition of men's basketball's foremost international competition. The United States entered with automatic entry, carrying the status of both host nation and 2000 Olympic champion. That combination freed one qualifying berth, which FIBA redirected to the Americas region as an extra spot. Two venues would host the games: Conseco Fieldhouse, with 18,345 seats, and the vastly larger RCA Dome, which could accommodate 57,980 fans. The fifteen other nations that filled the bracket had arrived through five separate qualifying tournaments held on as many continents.
Ten national teams competed in the FIBA Americas qualifier, held in Neuquén, Argentina, from the 16th to the 26th of August, 2001. Five of those ten would advance.
Europe's path ran through EuroBasket 2001, staged across Ankara, Antalya, and Istanbul from the 31st of August to the 9th of September, 2001. Sixteen nations competed for 5 available spots. Asia's qualifier, the 2001 ABC Championship, took place in Shanghai from the 20th to the 28th of July, 2001. Fourteen teams entered; only 2 would qualify.
Africa gathered 12 nations in Rabat and Casablanca from the 4th to the 12th of August, 2001, with 2 berths on the line. FIBA Oceania ran the smallest qualifying event, with just 2 teams competing for 1 berth. Those games were played across Auckland, Wellington, and Hamilton from the 21st to the 23rd of September, 2001.
Each nation that qualified arrived in Indianapolis with a roster of exactly 12 players.
The preliminary round placed all the competing nations into four groups of four, labeled A through D. Three teams from each group advanced to the second round. The fourth-place finisher in each group was redirected to a classification bracket for positions 13 through 16.
The second round merged the teams from Groups A and B into Group E and the teams from Groups C and D into Group F. Results from preliminary-round matchups between teams that now found themselves in the same second-round group were carried forward intact. Those teams did not play each other again.
From each second-round group, the top four teams advanced to the knockout quarterfinals. The bottom two from each group entered a bracket to determine positions 9 through 12. The final round consisted of quarterfinals, semifinals, a third-place playoff, and the championship game.
One second-round match, played on the 4th of September at the RCA Dome, required double overtime before a winner was found.
Dirk Nowitzki finished as the tournament's top scorer, averaging 24.0 points per game. Victor Díaz ranked second at 22.0, and Yao Ming placed third at 21.0 points per game. Marcelo Machado was fourth at 20.8 points per game, and Paul Pierce ranked fifth at 19.7.
Pau Gasol placed sixth with 19.1 points per game. Peja Stojaković and Larry Ayuso shared the seventh and eighth positions, each averaging 18.7 points per game. Phill Jones ranked ninth at 18.2 points per game, and Fadi El Khatib finished tenth at 17.6.
Nowitzki's 24.0 points per game and El Khatib's 17.6 at tenth place were separated by exactly 6.4 points.
Dirk Nowitzki received the tournament's Most Valuable Player award. The all-tournament team consisted of five players. Manu Ginóbili and Pero Cameron were named as guards, Yao Ming as center, and Peja Stojaković and Nowitzki as forwards.
Three of the five all-tournament selections had ranked within the tournament's top ten scorers in points per game. The other two, Ginóbili and Cameron, did not appear in the top ten scoring list.
The second-place team in the final standings compiled a record of 8-1 across the tournament. The champion's record was 7-2. At 8-1, the runner-up won more games than any other team in the field, including the one that took the title.
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Common questions
Who won the MVP award at the 2002 FIBA World Championship?
Dirk Nowitzki won the Most Valuable Player award at the 2002 FIBA World Championship. He led all scorers in the tournament, averaging 24.0 points per game.
Where was the 2002 FIBA World Championship held?
The 2002 FIBA World Championship was held in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States, from the 29th of August to the 8th of September, 2002. Games were played at two venues: the RCA Dome, with a capacity of 57,980, and Conseco Fieldhouse, with 18,345 seats.
How did teams qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Championship?
Fifteen of the 16 teams qualified through five regional tournaments. FIBA Americas sent 5 teams from a qualifier in Neuquén, FIBA Europe sent 5 from EuroBasket 2001 in Ankara, Antalya, and Istanbul, FIBA Asia sent 2 from the 2001 ABC Championship in Shanghai, FIBA Africa sent 2 from a qualifier in Rabat and Casablanca, and FIBA Oceania sent 1 team from a competition across Auckland, Wellington, and Hamilton. The United States entered automatically as both host nation and 2000 Olympic champion.
Who were the top scorers at the 2002 FIBA World Championship?
Dirk Nowitzki led all scorers with 24.0 points per game. Victor Díaz ranked second at 22.0 points per game, and Yao Ming was third at 21.0 points per game.
Which players were named to the all-tournament team at the 2002 FIBA World Championship?
The all-tournament team consisted of five players: Manu Ginóbili and Pero Cameron as guards, Yao Ming as center, and Peja Stojaković and Dirk Nowitzki as forwards. Nowitzki was also named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.
Why did the United States not need to qualify for the 2002 FIBA World Championship?
The United States received automatic entry because the country was both the host nation and the 2000 Olympic champion. In place of the Olympic qualifying berth the Americans would have occupied, FIBA assigned an extra spot to the FIBA Americas region.