Basketball 101: Olympic qualifying

United States forward A'Ja Wilson (9) shoots the ball against Japan power forward Monica Okoye (99) during a group phase game at the Tokyo Olympics. (Usa Today Sports, USA TODAY Sports)

Qualifying for basketball at the 2024 Olympics officially kicked off with the FIBA Women's World Cup in 2022 and will conclude in July with four Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournaments. Here's a look at the qualification process and which teams will be in the field for the Paris Games.

How many basketball teams will qualify for the 2024 Olympics?

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The men's and women's basketball tournaments at the Paris Olympics will each have 12 teams.

How do basketball teams qualify for the 2024 Olympics?

The qualification process differs for the men's and women's fields. As the Olympic host nation, France is automatically guaranteed a spot in both tournaments.

On the men's side, the 2023 FIBA World Cup qualified seven nations into the Olympics tournament. Based on final results, two teams from the Americas, two teams from Europe, one team from Africa, one team from Asia, and one team from Oceania earned direct spots to Paris. The final four countries will be determined at a series of four Olympic Qualifying Tournaments to be held in July.

On the women's side, the winning team at the 2022 FIBA World Cup (the United States) automatically qualified for the Olympics, while the other 10 spots in the field were determined by results at four separate Olympic Qualifying Tournaments.

Is USA Basketball qualified for the 2024 Olympics?

Yes, Team USA has already qualified for the men's and women's tournaments thanks to their results at the most recent World Cups.

Which countries have qualified for the men's Olympic basketball tournament?

So far eight countries have qualified for the men's tournament. The final four spots will be decided at Olympic Qualifying Tournaments in July. There are four OQTs total, and only the winner of each one will earn a spot in Paris.

While the U.S. is sure to bring another star-studded roster to Paris, other NBA stars such as Victor Wembanyama (France), Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (Canada) and Nikola Jokic (Serbia) could also be on the court.

South Sudan notably qualified for its first-ever Olympic basketball tournament. The country, which gained independence from Sudan in 2011, is the world's newest nation.

Qualified Men's Teams (8 of 12)
Australia
Canada
France
Germany
Japan
Serbia
South Sudan
United States

Which countries have qualified for the women's Olympic basketball tournament?

On the women's side, all 12 spots in the field have already been decided.

Qualified Women's Teams (12)
Australia
Belgium
Canada
China
France
Germany
Japan
Nigeria 
Puerto Rico
Serbia
Spain 
United States


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