JamRockerz preparing for ‘tough’ FIBA Qualifiers pool
Published:Friday | October 24, 2025 | 12:08 AMGregory Bryce/Staff Reporter
Having been drawn in Pool B for the FIBA Basketball World Cup Americas Qualifiers, Jamaica men’s basketball head coach, Rick Turner, said they now face the toughest pool in the competition.
Jamaica are drawn alongside Canada, Puerto Rico, and The Bahamas for a spot in the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
The JamRockerz are making their first-ever appearance in the FIBA Qualifiers after a historic second-place finish in the pre-qualifiers.
Turner said their achievement is the result of years of hard work to build the national programme since his appointment as head coach in 2019.
“I think that it was many years in the making, and it was a lot of all hands on deck,” he said.
“A lot of people contributed to this ability for us to compete. It is a great testament to the players who came together and understood the importance and what it could possibly mean for the future of Jamaica basketball to have some success.”
With their eyes on a debut appearance at the FIBA World Cup, Turner said they face a tough gauntlet as they are set to face off against several of the world’s top-ranked opponents.
Jamaica are the lowest-ranked team in the pool, being ranked 95th overall in the world.
It is a major improvement for the JamRockerz who had started the year ranked 110th overall.
They will face off against Canada, ranked sixth globally; Puerto Rico, ranked 15th; and The Bahamas, ranked 52nd.
A TOUGH TASK
Turner said that while the team faces a tough task, they are proud to be able to match up with several of the world’s top teams.
“It’s one of those be-careful-what-you-wish-for things because we ended up in, I think, quite easily the most difficult pool in the qualifying round between the four pools,” he said.
“We have our work cut out for us, but this is exactly what we signed up for. We want to compete with the best,” Turner continued.
Turner explained that all three teams would prove a different test for the JamRockerz, with Canada and Puerto Rico bringing their Olympic experience into the qualifiers.
The Bahamas, a fellow Caribbean island, were on the cusp of qualifying for the 2024 Olympics as well but had fallen one game short of becoming the first Caribbean island to do so.
“All three of those teams are great, great basketball teams,” Turner said.
“You look at Canada and Puerto Rico, who both competed in the last Olympics and are a couple of the top-ranked teams in the world.
“Of course, The Bahamas were one game away from qualifying for the Olympics, and they lost a game to Spain right ahead of the Olympic Games that would have put them in and made history for Caribbean basketball.”
QUALIFIERS SCHEDULE
The Americas Qualifiers will take place during the designated FIBA windows, with the first game set for next month with back-to-back games against Puerto Rico.
The qualifiers will be played in a round-robin format, with Jamaica facing each team twice, once at home and once away.
However, due to the unavailability of the National Arena, Jamaica will play away to Puerto Rico twice.
The top three teams from the pool will advance to the second round, where they will be placed in two groups of six.
The top three teams from the second round group will qualify for the 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup.