Leading Germany to a gold medal in the 2023 FIBA World Cup, veteran guard Dennis Schroder was asked by ESPN's Malika Andrews to settle the viral "World Champion" debate sparked by Noah Lyles.
"I mean, the World Cup is every country representing," Schroder said. "Every country has a chance to win. The Denver Nuggets is a great ball club. They beat us in the Western Conference Finals. Respect to them, but the World Cup is the real - I mean, the Word Cup is where everybody represents their countries. And we take that one, for sure."
Schroder, who lost to the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, clearly has respect for the reigning NBA champions. That said, now being a World Cup champion with Germany, Schroder believes that's who the "World Champion" title truly belongs to.
This has been a viral and very contentious debate, but it's hard to argue with Schroder. That said, some will push back and say because Schroder is in the NBA, and is Germany's best player, that further proves why it's fair to call the NBA Finals a world championship since the best players in the world all play in the league. There are certainly two sides to the debate, but technically speaking, Schroder is correct for his take on Germany being the world champions of basketball.
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