PROSPECT CENTRAL: 2013 USA Basketball U16 National Team!!!

2013 U16 National Team

Written by: Prospect-Central

Say what you want, but the ultimate accomplishment in sports is when your able to represent your country. When it comes to basketball in the United States, the first opportunity to achieve that goal is with the U16 Developmental National Team.

Malik Newman should be USA's top scorer

While the United States has been part of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) since 1934, the U16 National Team has only been in existence for a few years.

Following news that FIBA would hold U17 World Championships every other year, USA Basketball put together its inaugural Men's Developmental National Team Program in 2009. The main goal was to prepare these players for future national teams, and it's looking like it might pay dividends down the road.

The man assigned to lead these players to the promise land was head coach Don Showalter. It's safe to say USA Basketball made the right choice with this hire. Mr. Showlater has led USA men to four gold medals, and undefeated records in both the 2010 & 2012 U17 World Championships, and the 2009 & 2011 U16 FIBA Americas Championships.

The 2009 U16 National Team was the first of its kind for the Untied States, and provided the blueprint for creating a successful basketball program. There were some solid players on that team, but the two who've emerged as possible stars are Andre Drummond & Brad Beal.

Harry Giles might be USA's biggest star

Moving to the 2011 U16 National Team, the future looks just as bright for some of these players. Since they've yet to prove themselves on the college stage, it's hard to call any of them stars, but they're definitely headed in that direction. A few standouts include Jabari Parker (Duke) & Aaron Gordon (Arizona), as well as Class of 2014's Jahlil Okafor & Tyus Jones.

Now it's time for the 2013 U16 National Team to continue USA's dominance in international basketball. Back in October, 46 players from the Class of 2015 & 2016 were invited to Colorado Springs, CO, to compete for 12 coveted spots on the team. After the the mini-camp concluded, 21 players were selected to come back for the 2nd set of tryouts held this past weekend. There was an additional 10 players added to the roster, so the total amount vying for spots was actually 30. (Edrice Adebayo was unable to attend).

Today, following the three-day training camp in Colorado, 16 finalists were announced for the United States 2013 U16 National Team. The roster will be trimmed down to 12 before June 7th, but so far the team looks really strong. Since Prospect-Central's been tracking the development of these players for quite sometime, I had a feeling this squad might be the most talented of the three teams thus far. Apparently I'm not alone in this assumption. Head coach Don Showalter said this is the deepest group he's ever seen.

Ivan Rabb will be USA's force down low

The first task for these hoopers once the final cut is made, competing in the U16 FIBA Americas Championship June 11-15 in Maldonado, Uruguay. No disrespect to any of the other countries in the event, but the United States should run the table.

With only a few months of rest, these players will be back for the USA Developmental National Team mini-camp in the fall, and a chance for a spot on the 2014 U17 World Championship Team. Until then however, you better get used to the names on this list. There's a good chance some of them might be representing USA Basketball for the next decade and a half. * PC's 2013 U16 National Team Predictions.

* = Final 12 Man Roster