Basketball New Zealand

Tall Blacks logo

The Tall Blacks hold steady, but the Tall Ferns drop six spots on the FIBA world rankings after their failed last-ditch attempts to qualify for the London Olympics.

Despite overwhelming injuries and unavailabilities, the NZ men remain in 18th position, despite being passed by Croatia (16th) and Nigeria (17th). The Tall Blacks took advantage of Puerto Rico’s slide from 16 to 19 and Italy’s free fall from 7 to 21.

The top five men’s teams remain unchanged – United States, Spain, Argentina, Greece and Lithuania – after the Olympics, but bronze medallists Russia leap from 11th to fifth, and France (eighth) and Brazil (ninth) also climb into the top 10.

The Australian Boomers slip a spot to 10th.

Because the rankings are based on results over an eight-year cycle, the Kiwi women lose points from their quarterfinal finish at the 2004 Athens Olympics, their best-ever performance at a FIBA event.

They fall from 16th to 22nd, passed by big movers like Turkey (13th) and Croatia (21st).

Near the top of the standings, Australia’s Olympic bronze medal gives them outright second, with Russia slipping to third, while France’s runner-up finish elevates them to fifth. Canada also sneak into the top 10.

FIBA Rankings
Men
1 United States
2 Spain
3 Argentina
4 Greece
5 Lithuania
6 Russia
7 Turkey
8 France
9 Brazil
10 Australia
11 China
12 Serbia
13 Germany
14 Slovenia
15 Angola
16 Croatia
17 Nigeria
18 New Zealand
19 Puerto Rico
20 Iran
21 Italy
22 Tunisia
23 Great Britain
24 Venezuela
25 Lebanon

Women
1 United States
2 Australia
3 Russia
4 Czech Republic
5 France
6 Spain
7 Brazil
8 China
9 Canada
10 Belarus
11 Korea
12 Argentina
13 Turkey
14 Cuba
15 Lithuania
16 Latvia
17 Mali
18 Japan
19 Greece
20 Senegal
21 Croatia
22 New Zealand
23 Angola
24 Great Britain
25 Chinese Taipei