The FIBA Basketball World Cup kicked off on Saturday with a record 45 current NBA players playing in the tournament, up from the 44 recorded in 2010.
Likewise, there are 75 players who have played in the NBA who will be competing in the tournament which pits 24 countries with the United States as the defending champion.
According to NBA.com, the Basketball World Cup will also feature 17 former league draftees whose rights belong to NBA teams. This means that overall, there are 92 players who have played, are playing, or could play soon in the NBA.
Of the 24 national teams, 22 have at least one current NBA player, ex-NBA player of NBA draftee. Likewise, there are 22 NBA teams that are represented by at least one player on national team rosters.
Leading the way are the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets with each having four current NBA players. The Chicago Bulls, Utah Jazz, Brooklyn Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves each have three. The Memphis Grizzlies, New York Knicks, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers, Toronto Raptors, New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs, Portland Trail Blazers and Golden State Warriors each have two current players in the tournament.
Outside of the United States, the tournament hosts, Spain, have six players with live NBA contracts. France and Australia have four, while Brazil and Greece each have three. Argentina, Croatia, and Lithunia have two current NBA players in the tournament.
The champion of the FIBA World Cup of Basketball will earn an automatic spot in the 2016 Olympics to be held in Brazil.
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