Steve Kerr excited to see US men’s basketball team in action

Steve Kerr wouldn’t point out a specific player who stood out during the United States’ four-day minicamp in Las Vegas.

Instead, the U.S. men’s basketball coach touted the group’s ball movement as it prepares for the FIBA World Cup this month.

“Passing does that in general (bring a team closer together), and we have good passers,” Kerr said. “Teams connect quickly, because when the ball moves, people are touching it, everyone is happy, they start playing hard on defense. That’s the real strength of this team is the passing.”

The U.S. concludes its stay in Las Vegas with an exhibition game against Puerto Rico at 7 p.m. Monday at T-Mobile Arena. It’s the first of a five-game USA Basketball Showcase in preparation for the World Cup and will be the only game in the U.S.

The 12-man U.S. team will be an entirely different roster from the 2019 World Cup team and the group that participated in the 2021 Olympics.

“The whole group has connected, and it’s really fun to watch,” Kerr said. “It couldn’t have been a better four days. The guys handled things beautifully.”

Kerr stressed the importance of moving the ball throughout camp. The Golden State Warriors coach believes the team can attack best offensively through its passing.

Kerr said he’s seen a variety of players — including Los Angeles Lakers guard Austin Reaves, Brooklyn Nets forward Mikal Bridges and New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram — consistently make the right passes that have led to scoring chances.

“It’s fun to get to know them better and get to see things that they can do that maybe they didn’t realize they could do,” Kerr said.

Kerr said New York Knicks point guard Jalen Brunson has emerged as the team’s leader.

“Jalen is a natural leader because he’s a point guard,” Kerr said. “He’s the one who’s leading the ‘1-2-3 USA chant.’ For some guys, it just comes naturally to them.”

Kerr said one of the biggest challenges was helping the team get acclimated to the international rules they will face in the World Cup. The U.S. has used FIBA officials in scrimmages, and Kerr said the team goes over different nuances of the international game daily.

With the group’s short time together, Kerr believes he and his staff found a “happy medium” to get everyone familiar with his system and what to expect in an international event.

“We put in a lot of stuff, but we’re trying to keep it simple at the same time,” Kerr said. “You have to find the balance because you have to prepare them for FIBA (rules), have an offensive and defensive plan, but if you overload them, then it’s just too much.”

The U.S. opens the World Cup on Aug. 26 against New Zealand in the Philippines.

When asked about the starters for Monday’s game, Kerr said he hasn’t given it any thought.

“Nothing is set by any means,” he said. “We’re learning as we go. We learned a lot (these past few days). It’s great to have these things on tape so we can go back and look at stuff, but there’ll be a lot of really interesting combinations because of the skill these guys have.”

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on Twitter.