2023 Serbia FIBA Basketball World Cup team

The 2023 Serbia FIBA Basketball World Cup team represented Serbia at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.

Serbia qualified for the World Cup by taking the 2nd place in the European Second Round Group I. The team is coached by Svetislav Pešić, with assistant coaches Oliver Kostić, Marko Marinović, Saša Kosović, Ognjen Stojaković and Nenad Jakovljević. The Serbian team won the fifth place at the previous World Cup.

This was the 4th appearance of Serbia at the FIBA Basketball World Cup; however, FIBA considers Serbia as the successor team of FR Yugoslavia and Serbia and Montenegro who themselves qualified on three occasions. Serbia's best result is 2nd place in 2014; however, FIBA considers Serbia as the successor team of FR Yugoslavia who won 2 World Cups (1998, 2002).

Timeline

 * 24 July: 20-man roster announced
 * 28 July: The players gathering in Belgrade
 * 1 August – 21 August: Exhibition games
 * 24 August : Final 12-man roster announced
 * 25 August – 10 September: 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup

Qualification

 * First round


 * Second round

Earlier candidates
The following were candidates to make the team:

Exhibition games
Before the World Cup Serbia will play eight exhibition games. First set will include three closed games against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Poland in Belgrade on 1 and 3 August, and against Montenegro in Podgorica on 5 August. After them team will move to Greece in order to play in 2023 Acropolis of Athens Tournament against Greece on 8 August and Italy on 9 August. After returning from Greece Serbia will play another exhibition game in Belgrade, on 16 August, against Puerto Rico. At the end of August team will leave for China where they will play their last two exhibition games against China on 20 August and Brazil on 21 August.


 * 2023 Acropolis International Basketball Tournament

Tournament
The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup is the 19th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup championship that is organized by FIBA.

Preliminary round
Serbia was drawn into Group B with South Sudan, China, and the Puerto Rico and will play all of its group phase matches in Quezon City at the Araneta Coliseum from 26 to 30 August.


 * Results by round

China
This will be the first game between Serbia and China in the World Cup. The Serbians won two of the three Olympic Games matches: 1996 as Yugoslavia and 2016 as Serbia. The Chinese won in the 2004 Olympics.

Puerto Rico
This will be the second game between Puerto Rico and Serbia in the World Cup. The Serbians won their last meeting in 2019 and also won in the final of the 2016 FIBA Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament and in the semi-finals of the 2020 edition of the said tournament.

South Sudan
This will be the first competitive game between South Sudan and Serbia.

Second round
Serbia qualified for the Group I where it will play against first two teams from preliminary round group A Dominican Republic and Italy and will play all of its group phase matches in Quezon City at the Araneta Coliseum from 1 to 3 September.


 * Results by round

Quarterfinal
This was the second game between Lithuania and Serbia in the World Cup. The Lithuanians won the first meeting in 2010. The Lithuanians also won in the semi-finals of EuroBasket 2015, which was the last competitive game between the two teams.

Semifinal
This was the first competitive game between Serbia and Canada.

Final
This was the second game between Germany and Serbia in the World Cup. The Germans won the first meeting in 2010. The Germans also went 2–0 in their head-to-head matchups in the first round of the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup European Qualifiers.