Basketball at the 1964 Summer Games: Previous Summer Games ▪ Next Summer Games
Host City: Tokyo, Japan
Date Started: October 11, 1964
Date Finished: October 23, 1964
Format: Round-robin pools advance teams to single-elimination tournament.
Gold: | United States |
Silver: | Soviet Union |
Bronze: | Brazil |
By 1964 the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia had become the dominant forces in European basketball, and Brazil was a South American rival to the United States. In 1963, Brazil won the World Championships with Yugoslavia second, the USSR third, and the United States fourth. At the 1963 European Championships, the Soviet Union won, with Yugoslavia third.
But at Tokyo, the United States again produced the best team in the competition, winning all nine of their games. They were only pushed once, beating Yugoslavia 69-61, in a pool match. The US was led by future NBA stars Bill Bradley, Walt Hazzard, Luke Jackson, and Jeff Mullins. Also playing for the United States was Larry Brown, who would play professionally in the ABA, but earned more fame as a coach at the professional level.