Vintage Fredette in Austria.
There will always be a roster spot for the really good hoopers—if not in the NBA, then in the Euro League, in China, or anywhere else in the world.
In the case of former NCAA fireball Jimmer Fredette, 3x3 hoops found him, and he has not disappointed one bit for his home country. The former Sacramento King has been helping Team USA stamp its presence in the FIBA 3x3 World Cup.
Playing in his first stint in the Worlds no less, the 34-year-old Fredette delivered a vintage Jimmer performance not once but twice in Day 1 of the half-court action.
Fredette, who starred for BYU in the US NCAA, actually had a slow start in Team USA’s first game of the day against perennial 3x3 powerhouse Latvia. But, once the former NBA lottery pick found the bottom of the net, the floodgates just simply opened, with Fredette hitting shot after shot after shot.
A deep 3? Bang!
A stepback middy? Book it.
A turnaround fadeaway? Why, yes, please!
The 6-foot-2 flamethrower punctuated his FIBA 3x3 World Cup by hitting his third turnaround fadeaway that sealed the Americans’ 21-17 win over the 2019 FIBA 3x3 World Cup finalists. Fredette finished with 11 points—half of Team USA’s total—in a game reminiscent of his glorious runs in the NCAA and in the Chinese Basketball League (CBA).
Fredette, who once exploded for 75 points in the CBA, followed up his opening-game masterclass with an 8-point showing in Team USA’s 21-18 win over Australia later in the day. The pair of wins put the Americans on top of Pool B with 42 points—4 points clear of hosts Austria, which also won its first two games in day 1.
Team USA will next play Group B opponents Slovenia and Austria on Friday. And, with a chance to earn an automatic quarterfinal slot on the line, expect Fredette to go flash his fiery, vintage form once more.
(GM)