Egypt’s national basketball team has been drawn into Group D of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup alongside Mexico, Montenegro, and Lithuania.
The tournament is set to take place in the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia, from 25 August to 10 September 2023, and will feature 32 teams from around the world.
The Pharaohs are one of five teams representing Africa alongside Angola, Cape Verde, Ivory Coast, and South Sudan, having beat Senegal and Tunisia to finish second in group F of the qualifiers.
Ranked 55th in the FIBA World Rankings, Egypt were placed in pot eight for the draw, leaving them getting drawn against three higher ranked teams.
Mexico, currently ranked 31st in the world, will play in its sixth FIBA World Cup and second in 49 years (1959, 1963, 1967, 1974, 2014 and 2023) and will be a force to be reckoned with in Group D.
Montenegro, ranked 18th in the world, is another strong team that Egypt will have to face in the group stage. Led by NBA star Nikola Vucevic, The Black Mountain will be looking to improve on their 25th place finish in the 2019 FIBA World Cup.
However, the biggest challenge for Egypt will come from Lithuania who are regarded as a perennial powerhouse in international basketball, with a history of success in both the FIBA World Cup and the Olympic Games.
Currently ranked 8th in the world, Lithuania boasts a talented roster that includes NBA players Jonas Valanciunas and Domantas Sabonis and claimed the bronze medal back in 2010.
On the other hand, Egypt had finished fifth in the first apperance of the compeition in 1950, before finishing 11th, 13th, 16th, 14th, and 24th, in their other five apperances, with the most recent one coming in 2014.
Full draw:
