The German Basketball national team made history at the 2023 Fiba World Cup by winning the World Championship, defeating Serbia in the Final 83-77 in Manila and claiming just their second international title ever, 30 years after winning the Eurobasket 1993 in Munich, Germany.
We highlighted Germany in one of our World Cup previews and it was clear going into the tournament that the Germans were a contender for a medal and they went on and outshined a lot of expectations by going undefeated, 8-0.
Our team at AGS took a close look at all German games throughout the tournament, the statistics attached to it and will try to answer the question, how did Germany win the World Cup?
Balanced Offense
- From all teams that played 8 games during the tournament, Germany finished 4th in scoring with 93 points per game. 5 players scored in double digits between 19.1-10.4 PPG, making it very unpredictable for defenses. Any given night someone else could step up and produce offensively.
- Germany´s bench and depth was another factor. Isaac Bonga (7.8 PPG), Johannes Thiemann (7 PPG), Moritz Wagner (11.9 PPG) and Maodo Lo (6.6 PPG). This depth and output gave the team a lot of balance and different options, considering 4 of their starters averaged over 10 Pts per game as well.
- The offensive efficiency was a big part in their overall success. Germany shot 62.1% on 2-pointers, 38.1% from the 3pt line, great numbers as a team. More importantly they averaged 22.5 Assists per game and only 11.3 turnovers.
- Blowing teams out early in the competition helped a lot keeping their players fresh. Franz Wagner led the team in minutes with 29.6 per game followed by Dennis Schröder with 28.6 and no one else having to play more than 24 minutes per game.
Let´s talk Defense
- Out of 8 games total they only allowed over 80 points twice (82 vs Australia and 111 vs USA) and overall gave up just 78.9 per game. Taking the offensive shootout against the USA out of the picture it was only 74.3, which is a great number.
- Length and versatility on defense helped this team a lot. With a lot of tall wings (Franz Wagner, Bonga) as well as bigs who are able to switch onto Guards and move their feet (Theis, Thiemann, Wagner) it was difficult for other teams to get quality shot attempts. Another aspect that is often overlooked here is Dennis Schröder who took on key defensive assignments like Patty Mills against Australia, Arturs Zagars against Latvia and Bogdan Bogdanovic in the Final. His ball pressure led the defense upfront and was something that we saw already in the NBA Playoffs in the Conference Semi-Finals against Golden State, when he was with the Lakers and guarded Steph Curry a lot.
- In the 3 games from quarterfinal to final the rebounding was very good. Germany won the battle on the boards 107-92 and also won the offensive rebound battle, allowing just 25 while re-gaining possession 37 times after their own missed shots.
Team Effort
Coach Gordon Herbert did a very good job making the roles clear from the start of the tournament. Every player knew what he was brought in for and what was expected on the floor. There were very little imbalances throughout the tournament, other than Dennis Schröder taking 26 shots against Latvia. The rotation shortened to just 9 players against Latvia in the quarterfinal and then to basically just 8 in the semis and the final, with Maodo Lo and Niels Giffey also seeing significantly less minutes. Over the course of the tournament their 11th and 12th men, Justus Hollatz and David Krämer, played just a combined 13 minutes per game and weren´t used in each game. This clear structure among the team and coaching staff in distributing clear roles and rotations was a key factor, everyone was on the same page.
The starting five remained the same over most of the tournament, only Isaac Bonga moved into the starting unit for the 4 games since Franz Wagner missed multiple games with an ankle injury that he sustained in the first game against Japan. Schröder, Obst, F.Wagner, Voigtmann and Theis were a very consistent unit together on the court.
As mentioned above the bench played their roles to perfection with Moritz Wagner (more below on Impact Players) chipping in scoring and rebounding, Johannes Thiemann (7 PTs & 4.3 REBs) bringing energy and inside scoring while Isaac Bonga (7.8 PTs, 2.3 REBs & 42.9% 3s) defended and made open shots. Maodo Lo played 16 minutes per game, scoring 6.6 PTs along with 2.5 ASTs and hit 1.8 3-pointers per game and gave Dennis Schröder some well earned rest.
Impact Players
Dennis Schröder:
Led the team in scoring (19.1 PTs) and Assists (6.1) and won tournament MVP. He took the team on his back and was a true leader. Apart from the Latvia game he played an almost perfect tournament and found a very good balance between scoring (28 Pts in the Final and 30 vs Australia in group play) and distributing (3 games between 8-10 Assists) while having just 2 games with 3 or more turnovers. He took over when needed and was a true PG and leader on the court
Andreas Obst:
The shooting guard had his breakout game in the semis vs USA where he scored 24 PTs. Over the course of the tournament he hit 44.7% from the 3pt line, making 2.1 per game. His playmaking improved (2 APG) and his defense also did and just the threat of him coming off screens or spotting up created room for other players.
Daniel Theis:
The 6´8 big played a very well rounded tournament and looked a lot better physically after playing just 7 NBA games with Indiana last season due to injury. He averaged 10.9 PTs, 5.4 REBs and 1.9 ASTs while making 68.5% of his 2-pointers. He had his best game against team USA with 21 PTs and 7 REBs in the semi-final.
Johannes Voigtmann:
Overall it was a rather quiet tournament for the 6´11 big stats-wise, but he does so many little things on the floor that help the team. His versatile style of play shows in his stats (5.4 PTs, 6.3 REBs, 1.9 ASTs & 0.9 STLs). His best game came at the right time in the final with 12 PTs, 8 REBs and 3 ASTs. He was Germany´s 2nd best rebounder and passer in the tournament. He added a passing dimension on the big position that helped the team a lot.
Franz Wagner:
Clearly the head of the snake along with Schröder. Franz was the 2nd best scorer (16.8 PTs), led the team in rebounding (6.5) and was 2nd best creator along Voigtmann with 3 ASTs per game. Playing small forward and being able to handle the ball at 6´10 made him a force attacking the basket, where he shot 60% on 2-pointers and made 3.8 per game. He was also 2nd on the team in plus minus per game with +8.5.
Moritz Wagner:
The most impactful bench player who could’ve started as well. His energy and readiness to play physically and throw his body around changed up the flow of games. Moritz averaged 11.9 PTs, 4.8 REBs & 1.4 ASTs. He led Germany in plus minus per game with +8.8, showing the impact he had once he got on the floor. He was also their 3rd leading scorer and 3rd in efficiency per game while playing just 16.3 minutes per game. Moritz was also super efficient around the basket, converting 60.4% of his 2-pointers while making 4 per game.
