VENEZUELA will lean on their tried and tested veterans with their 12-man lineup for the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 bannered by eight holdovers from their 2016 Olympic team.

The Venezuelan national team will rely on the leadership of the Vargas brothers Gregory and Jose, Heissler Guillent and Nestor Colmenares while also supported by fellow Olympians Daniel Lewis, Miguel Ruiz, Windi Graterol and Anthony Perez.

Rounding out the lineup are versatile wing players Jhornan Zamora, Michael Carrera, Luis Bethelmy and explosive guard Pedro Churio.

The Venezuelans are experiencing one of the best if not the best stretch of basketball accomplishments in their history since 2014. The South American country have claimed the FIBA Americas Championship 2015 , the 2014 and 2016 editions of the South American Championship, a qualification to the 2016 Summer Olympics and ultimately their return to the biggest stage, the FIBA Basketball World Cup, after 13 years.

Team captain Gregory Vargas will be at the forefront of head coach Fernando Duro’s wards, which relies on their signature team effort in countering star-laden opponents.

Averaging 11.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists while playing in all 12 games of Venezuela’s FIBA World Cup Americas qualifiers campaign, the 2.01m forward will be tasked to carry the leadership role in their World Cup campaign. Another player who will need to support the heavy lifting is workhorse Nestor Colmenares, the 2.03m forward also played 12 games in the qualifiers with averages of 11.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per contest.

Venezuela is pooled together with FIBA Basketball World Cup host China, Poland, and Cote d’Ivoire in Group A.

(FIBA)