Despite American NBA stars: Germany's Schröder has high Olympic hopes

Captain Dennis Schröder believes that world champions Germany can compete for Olympic basketball gold in summer even though the United States are set to send many of their best players to the Paris Games.

Germany beat a US team lacking several NBA stars last year in the World Cup semi-finals and then also beat Serbia for a first ever world title.

The Brooklyn Nets' point guard Schröder told Monday's edition of Kicker sports magazine that another success at the Paris Olympics will be more difficult to achieve but is not out of the question.

"In Paris they will have LeBron James, Steph Curry, Jayson Tatum, Kevin Durant, Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler and other superstars. That will be difficult, but nothing is impossible, and we have a chance," Schröder said.

Schröder reiterated that he would love to be Germany's flag bearer at the July 26 opening ceremony, following in the footsteps of Dirk Nowitzki who had the honour 2008 in Beijing, and preferably together with all his German team-mates.

"If not a basketballer now, when then? We won the World Cup title! I'd love to have all twelve carry the flag, I am dead serious," he said.

Schröder, 30, also said he aims to play for many more years, "easily up to 40.

"In the NBA up to 35 or 36, and then I could return to Germany and shake up the league a little bit," he said, hoping to win a German title with his former club Braunschweig one day.