FIBA Basketball World Cup: China must ‘release the dragon’ says coach as first win keeps slim Olympic hopes alive
- Aleksandar Djordjevic’s side haul themselves back into qualifying contention for Paris 2024 with 83-76 win over Angola
- Head coach calls on his players to grab opportunity – ‘I believe in them more than they believe in themselves,’ he says
China head coach Aleksandar Djordjevic urged his players to “release the dragon” after they hauled themselves back into Olympic qualifying contention with their first win at the Basketball World Cup on Thursday.
China cannot win the World Cup after three first-round losses but they can still claim a qualifying spot at next year’s Paris Games if they finish highest among the six Asian teams at the tournament.
An 83-76 win over Angola in the classification round in Manila put them right back in the mix with one more game against the Philippines still to come on Saturday.
Djordjevic called on his players to grab the opportunity.
“I believe in them more than they believe in themselves,” he said. “We just have to continue believing in ourselves – I would love everybody to release the dragon that they have inside, that is needed absolutely.”
Japan went into the classification round as the only Asian team with a win to their name and they had the chance to make it two later on Thursday against Venezuela.