Some of the biggest names in basketball will play in Sydney this August when North American rivals, USA Basketball Men’s National Team and Canada face off at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia, on Monday, Aug. 26 (7:30 pm local time), while the New Zealand Tall Blacks will take on Canada at the Quaycentre in Sydney on Aug. 20 and 21.

The exhibition games will serve as important preparation for all teams ahead of the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup that will be contested in China Aug. 31 – Sept. 15, with each outfit to feature their final 12-man roster for the World Cup.

The Aug. 26 USA-Canada exhibition will be the first senior national team meeting between the two nations since a 2008 exhibition game in Las Vegas on July 25, a game in which the USA claimed a 120-65 victory.

Presale tickets will be available via Telstra Thanks® from 12 p.m. (AEST), May 3 and the general public on sale commences from 12 p.m. (AEST), May 8 from Ticketek (www.ticketek.com.au).

The announcement of the August 26 USA-Canada exhibition games finalizes the number of announced USA pre-World Cup exhibitions at five games. USA Basketball previously announced that the USA Men’s National team would train Aug. 5-8 in Las Vegas at UNLV’s Mendenhall Center. The USA Men’s National Team will hold a Blue-White intrasquad exhibition game at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Friday, Aug. 9, 7 p.m. (PDT) and will play international rival Spain on Friday, Aug. 16, 7 p.m. (PDT), at the Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.  The USA will also play two exhibition games versus Australia in Melbourne, Australia. With crowds expected to surpass 50,000 for each game, the USA-Australia exhibition games will be played on Aug. 22 and 24 at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne.

"Playing an outstanding opponent like Canada in Sydney is a fantastic way for the USA Men’s National Team to finish out its tour," said USA Basketball Men’s National Team Managing Director Jerry Colangelo. "This game will not just be an opportunity to put the finishing touches on our pre-World Cup preparations, but it will be amazing for USA Basketball to return to Qudos Bank Arena where the USA men and women won Olympic gold medals in 2000. I have no doubt the game and atmosphere around the game will again be very memorable."

"We’re excited to have the opportunity to compete and gain familiarity against some of the top teams in the world in preparation for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019," said Rowan Barrett, Canada Basketball General Manager, Men’s High Performance. "The USA has been the gold standard in FIBA basketball for several years so this will be a great opportunity for our program. In addition, having the chance to play tough road games against Australia and New Zealand will be a valuable experience for our team on the road to the World Cup."

The USA and New Zealand are two of only five nations – joining Serbia, Argentina and Spain – to have advanced out of pool play in each of the past four FIBA Basketball World Cups.

Not since the 2000 Sydney Olympics has Australia seen such high-quality men’s international basketball on its shores, with seven star-studded games to be played inside 11 days.

"As the country’s pre-eminent promoter of international sport, TEG Live is delighted to be bringing the biggest stars in basketball to Australia this August," TEG CEO Geoff Jones said. "With this year’s FIBA Basketball World Cup to be played in the region, it lends itself perfecting to having leading teams prepare for the world championships here in Australia and giving fans the opportunity to see the best in the flesh."

International Basketball Series Schedule

August 16 – Australian Boomers vs. Canada Basketball – RAC Arena, Perth, Australia

August 17 – Australian Boomers vs. Canada Basketball – RAC Arena, Perth, Australia

August 20 – Canada Basketball vs. New Zealand Tall Blacks – Quaycentre, Sydney, Australia

August 21 – Canada Basketball vs. New Zealand Tall Blacks – Quaycentre, Sydney, Australia

August 22 – USA Basketball vs. Australian Boomers – Marvel Stadium, Melbourne, Australia

August 24 – USA Basketball vs. Australian Boomers – Marvel Stadium, Melbourne, Australia

August 26 – USA Basketball vs. Canada Basketball – Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney, Australia

The 32-team 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup competition will be held Aug. 31-Sept. 15 in China. Eight cities will host World Cup games - Beijing, Foshan, Wuhan, Shenzhen, Dongguan, Nanjing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

USA head coach Gregg Popovich (San Antonio Spurs) will be assisted by NBA head coaches Steve Kerr (Golden State Warriors) and Lloyd Pierce (Atlanta Hawks) and Villanova University head coach Jay Wright.

Players selected to represent the USA in 2019 are expected to be NBA players who are part of the 2019-20 USA National Team roster.

The USA Basketball Men’s National Team roster currently includes Harrison Barnes (Sacramento Kings); Bradley Beal (Washington Wizards); Devin Booker (Phoenix Suns); Jimmy Butler (Philadelphia 76ers); Mike Conley Jr. (Memphis Grizzlies); DeMarcus Cousins (Golden State Warriors); Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors); Anthony Davis (New Orleans Pelicans); DeMar DeRozan (San Antonio Spurs); Andre Drummond (Detroit Pistons); Kevin Durant (Golden State Warriors); Paul George (Oklahoma City Thunder); Eric Gordon (Houston Rockets); Draymond Green (Golden State Warriors); Blake Griffin (Detroit Pistons); James Harden (Houston Rockets); Tobias Harris (Philadelphia 76ers); Gordon Hayward (Boston Celtics); Kyrie Irving (Boston Celtics); LeBron James (Los Angeles Lakers); DeAndre Jordan (New York Knicks); Kawhi Leonard (Toronto Raptors); Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers); Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers); Kyle Lowry (Toronto Raptors); CJ McCollum (Portland Trail Blazers); Khris Middleton (Milwaukee Bucks); Victor Oladipo (Indiana Pacers); Chris Paul (Houston Rockets); Isaiah Thomas (Denver Nuggets); Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors); Myles Turner (Indiana Pacers); Kemba Walker (Charlotte Hornets); John Wall (Washington Wizards); and Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder).

Since the formation of USA Basketball’s National Team program in 2006 and led by Colangelo, USA national teams have compiled a spectacular 88-1 record and claimed top honors in six of seven FIBA or FIBA Americas competitions (through 2016 Olympics). Additionally, USA National Teams have compiled a 51-1 record in exhibition games since national team rosters included NBA stars starting in 1992.

The current two-time defending World Cup champion USA men have participated in 17 FIBA World Cups and have collected 12 medals - five gold medals (1954, 1986, 1994, 2010 and 2014), three silver medals (1950, 1959 and 1982) and four bronze medals (1974, 1990, 1998 and 2006). USA Men’s World Cup teams own an overall record of 123-27.

Results from the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 will qualify seven teams for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Additionally, Olympic host Japan automatically qualified, and the final four nations will qualify through four FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournaments that will be held in 2020 in advance of the Olympics.