Team USA is returning to the court this week, but the roster will not resemble the star-filled groups Americans usually see at the Olympics or FIBA World Cup.
USA Basketball selected 12 professionals with experience across the NBA, NBA G League and international leagues for two World Cup qualifiers: a road game against Chile on August 27 and a home game against Colombia on August 31.
This is a qualifying-window roster, not an early version of the final 2027 World Cup team. Terry Stotts will coach these two games, while Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra is set to lead the United States at the World Cup itself.
Team USA’s roster for the August 2026 qualifiers
- Jaron Blossomgame
- Pedro Bradshaw
- Garrison Brooks
- Darius Brown
- Kevon Harris
- Mike James
- DeJon Jarreau
- Dillon Jones
- James Nunnally
- Orlando Robinson
- Tyler Smith
- Cole Swider
Eight of the 12 have previous USA Basketball experience. Bradshaw, Harris, James and Robinson also played in the July qualifying window, when the Americans won road games against the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
Blossomgame, Brown, Jarreau and Jones are making their USA Basketball debuts.
Team USA schedule and how to watch
| Matchup | Date and time | Location | Broadcast |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States at Chile | Thursday, Aug. 27, 7:10 p.m. ET / 4:10 p.m. PT | Santiago, Chile | HBO Max; Courtside 1891 on DAZN |
| Colombia at United States | Monday, Aug. 31, 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT | CareFirst Arena, Washington, D.C. | HBO Max; Courtside 1891 on DAZN |
Why aren’t the biggest American NBA stars playing?
The simplest answer is that USA Basketball treats each qualifying window as its own assignment.
The organization did not say why any particular NBA star was absent, so this should not be read as a list of players who declined invitations or were passed over. It also is not a projection of the roster Spoelstra will take to Qatar in 2027.
The evidence is in the turnover between windows. Only four players from the July team are back for August, while other members of this roster last represented the United States in earlier windows or different competitions. Qualifying results belong to the country; the same 12 players do not have to carry the entire campaign through the World Cup.
That arrangement creates a strange but important split. One group performs the work required to qualify, while a substantially different group may receive the call for the tournament itself.
What these two games mean for World Cup qualification
The United States finished the opening round at 5-1, and those results carry into the second round. Team USA now sits in Group E with Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Colombia and Chile.
Brazil enters the round at 6-0. The United States is next at 5-1, followed by the Dominican Republic at 4-2, Mexico and Colombia at 3-3, and Chile at 2-4.
Each team will play six additional games across the August, November and February windows. The top three finishers in each of the two Americas groups qualify for the World Cup, along with the better fourth-place team. That produces seven World Cup berths for the region.
The Americans therefore do not face an immediate win-or-go-home scenario. They have a favorable starting position and multiple windows remaining. But the margin is not large enough to treat these games as exhibitions—especially because every first-round result remains part of the standings.
Why the roster still faces a real test
Team USA won both of its July games by a single point: 82-81 over the Dominican Republic and 94-93 over Mexico. Torrey Craig supplied a late go-ahead three-pointer in each victory.
Those escapes demonstrated the difference between American player depth and automatic dominance. A roster assembled for one short camp must establish roles quickly against national teams that may possess greater continuity and familiarity with FIBA play.
Four returning players give Stotts a starting point, but most of the group must still build timing within days. The most revealing stretches may come when the initial offense stalls: who organizes the next action, which lineups protect the ball, and whether the United States can defend and rebound without relying on a talent advantage to erase mistakes.
Chile has already exceeded expectations by reaching the second round for the first time. Colombia arrives in Washington with the same 3-3 record as Mexico, making the home game relevant to the middle of the group rather than ceremonial.
For Team USA, the goal is less glamorous but more urgent than assembling a future all-star roster. Win the games in front of this group, preserve separation in the standings and leave fewer complications for the final two qualifying windows.