'We don’t really need any extra motivation': 2023 DPOY Jaren Jackson Jr. not haunted by Noah Lyles comment after loss to Germany (Exclusive)
Jaren Jackson Jr. was unfazed after Noah Lyles' recent comment on NBA champs calling themselves "world champions" went viral again following Team USA's FIBA Basketball World Cup semifinal loss to Germany.
For a recall, Lyles, one of the USA's top athletics stars right now, hit out at NBA players for saying that winning an NBA title is equivalent to winning a world championship when they only won an American league.
"You know what hurts me the most is that I have to watch the NBA Finals and they have ‘world champion’ on their head. World champion of what? The United States? Don’t get me wrong. I love the U.S. — at times — but that ain’t the world. That is not the world. We are the world," Lyles said.
Asked by Sportskeeda during Team USA's final practice session on Saturday at Kerry Sports Manila in Taguig, the Memphis Grizzlies center said that he does not care what critics, including Lyles, would say after the stinging loss that dropped the national team to the bronze medal game and just continue playing.
"It's just going out there and hooping again. It's what we do that so we love. We've all been playing basketball since we were very young, so we don't really need any extra motivation to go out there and play. You just go out there and hoop," Jackson said.
Jaren Jackson Jr. needs to step up vs. Canada
Jaren Jackson Jr. had a quiet night against Germany in the FIBA Basketball World Cup semifinals.
He only had eight points, three rebounds and one steal in nearly 19 minutes of action while needing to exert extra effort just to contain Germany's interior.
Germany power forward Daniel Theis tallied 21 points, seven rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal. His teammate and center Johannes Thiemann followed up on his perfect outing against Latvia in the quarterfinals with another 4-of-4 field goal shooting, to the dismay of the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
Jaren Jackson Jr. might need to play way better if he wants Team USA to still win a medal in the FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Team USA battles Canada for the bronze on Sunday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, Philippines.