Team USA's tournament kicks off against New Zealand bright and early today (especially for the West Coasters on here). FIBA works much like soccer tournaments and the new in-season tournament, for that matter. It begins with group play, with the top two teams from each group moving onto a knockout round. The Kiwis, in addition to Jordan and Greece, are the three opponents Team USA will play in Group C.

With Steven Adams out, Haliburton and company won't face any current NBA players in today's matchup. Normally I'd suggest caution in judging a team solely on its NBA talent in a tournament like the World Cup... but, let's be honest, nobody expects New Zealand to put up much of a fight. The oddsmakers, in their infinite wisdom, have Team USA favored by 35.5 points.

If the game is a blowout like everyone expects it to be, I'm not sure we'll get an answer on whether Haliburton has cemented his place in Steve Kerr's crunch time lineup. Nevertheless, I expect a bevy of highlights.

Tipoff is at 8:40 AM ET and it airs on ESPN2.

See you early birds in the comments.

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