Norway men's national basketball team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Norway women's national basketball team.

Norway

FIBA ranking	77 4 (25 February 2025) [1]
Joined FIBA	1968
FIBA zone	FIBA Europe
National federation	NBBF
Coach	Matthias Eckhoff
FIBA World Cup
Appearances	None
EuroBasket
Appearances	None
Championship for Small Countries
Appearances	2
Medals	Silver: (1996, 2018)
Home Away
First international
Norway 50–63 Denmark   (Oslo, Norway; 11 February 1967)
Biggest win
San Marino 48–88 Norway   (Serravalle, San Marino; 26 June 2018)
Biggest defeat
Iceland 123–59 Norway   (Reykjavík, Iceland; 15 April 1968)

The Norway men's national basketball team (Norwegian : Norges herrelandslag i basketball) represents Norway in international basketball tournaments. The national team is administered by the Norwegian Basketball Federation.

Norway has never had great success on the international stage in the past. They are one of the few European countries to date to have never qualified for one of the top international basketball competitions, such as the EuroBasket or the FIBA World Cup.

History

Norway's first international match was played on 11 February 1967 in Oslo, where the team lost 50–63 to Denmark. ^[2] The most capped player is Torgeir Bryn, with 111 caps.

In the past, Norway has attempted to qualify for the EuroBasket several times, but have yet to reach the tournament. They have only entered the Olympic basketball qualification twice, for the 1980, and 1988 Olympic Games. Norway is one of Europe's most populous nations to have never qualified for a major international basketball competition. However, they have competed at smaller events such as the European Championship for Small Countries.

The Road to Revival (2012–2017)

In 2012, financial troubles led the Norwegian Basketball Federation to shut down both the men's and women's national teams. The federation simply did not have the funds to keep either the men's or women's teams afloat. Since then, however, the federation has come to realize just how many people from the athletes and teams, to individuals and companies care about the Norwegian basketball community and are willing to provide financial support. The federation also worked to raise money through sponsorships, and eventually signed a major sponsorship agreement with Circle K, in addition to a few smaller sponsors. ^[3]

Norway's return (2018–present)

In 2018, Norway made its return to FIBA competition by playing at the European Championship for Small Countries. The national team finished as the runners-up after losing 75–59 in the final against Malta. ^[4]

In 2021, Norway joined the EuroBasket 2025 qualification.

Competitive record

FIBA World Cup World Cup Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1950 to 1967 No national representative 1970 Did not enter Did not enter 1974 1978 1982 Did not qualify Did not qualify 1986 Did not enter Did not enter 1990 Did not qualify EuroBasket served as qualifiers 1994 1998 2002 2006 Did not enter Did not enter 2010 2014 2019 2023 2027 Did not qualify 8 2 6 Total 0/15 8 2 6 Olympic Games Olympic Games Qualifying Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1936 to 1964 No national representative 1968 Did not enter Did not enter 1972 1976 1980 Did not qualify 4 0 4 1984 Did not enter Did not enter 1988 Did not qualify 3 0 3 1992 Did not enter Did not enter 1996 to 2024 2028 To be determined To be determined Total 0/15 7 0 7 Championship for Small Countries FIBA European Championship for Small Countries Year Position Pld W L 1996 5 4 1 2018 5 4 1 Total 10 8 2

EuroBasket EuroBasket Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1935 to 1967 No national representative 1969 Did not enter Did not enter 1971 1973 1975 1977 1979 Did not qualify 3 0 3 1981 4 1 3 1983 Did not enter Did not enter 1985 Did not qualify 9 5 4 1987 4 3 1 1989 3 0 3 1991 4 1 3 1993 4 0 4 1995 Did not enter Did not enter 1997 Did not qualify 5 0 5 1999 3 0 3 2001 9 3 6 2003 Did not enter Did not enter 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 2015 2017 2022 2025 Did not qualify 14 6 8 2029 To be determined To be determined Total 0/27 62 19 43

Results and fixtures

  Win  Loss

2024

Luxembourg   v   Norway

25 February 2024 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Luxembourg	58–72	Norway	Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
17:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 9–24, 23–19, 20–8, 6–21
	Pts: Rugg 22 Rebs: Vujaković 10 Asts: Rugg 3	Boxscore	Pts: Frey 23 Rebs: Berg 10 Asts: Frey 6	Arena: d'Coque Attendance: 1,800 Referees: Łukasz Jankowski (POL), Armin Mutapcic (GER), Martin van Hoye (BEL)

Norway   v   Romania

21 November 2024 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Norway	62–75	Romania	Oslo, Norway
19:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 20–26, 18–17, 12–12, 12–20
	Pts: Frey 21 Rebs: Ndow 11 Asts: Frey 5	Boxscore	Pts: Olah 16 Rebs: Cățe 13 Asts: Tohătan 5	Arena: Nordstrand Arena Attendance: 2,200 Referees: Elvis Binders-Čoders (LAT), Jan Baloun (CZE), Karol Kowalski (POL)

2025

Norway   v   Luxembourg

20 February 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Norway	68–59	Luxembourg	Oslo, Norway
19:00 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 15–21, 15–17, 22–8, 16–13
	Pts: Frey 27 Rebs: Ndow 9 Asts: Frey 4	Boxscore	Pts: Vujaković 12 Rebs: Rugg 11 Asts:four players 2	Arena: Nordstrand Arena Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Joaquin García (ESP), Ritvars Helmšteins (LAT), Rainis Värv (EST)

Romania   v   Norway

23 February 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Romania	85–71	Norway	Oradea, Romania
19:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:23–22, 18–20, 22–15, 22–14
	Pts: Grasu, Richard 14 Rebs: Cățe 6 Asts: Cățe 6	Boxscore	Pts: Ndow 19 Rebs: Ndow, Nordheim 6 Asts:four players 3	Arena: Oradea Arena Attendance: 2,397 Referees: Nemanja Ninković (SRB), Tolga Edis (TUR), Kirile Tvauri (GEO)

Denmark   v   Norway

2 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Denmark	89–71	Norway	Farum, Denmark
18:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:25–15, 20–21, 20–17, 24–18
	Pts: Jensen 21 Rebs: Erikstrup 8 Asts: Berg, Jensen 5	Boxscore	Pts: Frey 23 Rebs: Nordheim 6 Asts: Odfjell, Savić 4	Arena: Farum Arena Attendance: 1,133 Referees: Gatis Saliņš (LAT), Péter Praksch (HUN), Juozas Barkauskas (LTU)

Norway   v   Croatia

6 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Norway	68–101	Croatia	Bergen, Norway
18:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:21–20, 18–31, 12–27, 17–23
	Pts: Savić 13 Rebs: Savić 7 Asts: Espe, Frey 6	Boxscore	Pts: Hezonja 27 Rebs: Hezonja, Šarić 8 Asts: Šarić 5	Arena: Åsane Arena Attendance: 1,075 Referees: Yener Yilmaz (TUR), Ventsislav Velikov (BUL), Geert Jacobs (BEL)

Norway   v   Denmark

13 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Norway	70–79	Denmark	Bergen, Norway
18:00 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter: 12–15, 15–22, 22–18, 21–24
	Pts: Savić 21 Rebs: Savić 10 Asts: Frey 5	Boxscore	Pts: Erikstrup 32 Rebs: Erikstrup 9 Asts: Heede-Andersen, Jensen 4	Arena: Åsane Arena Attendance: 1,030 Referees: Saverio Lanzarini (ITA), Fernando Calatrava (ESP), Mihkel Männiste (EST)

Croatia   v   Norway

16 August 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 2nd round	Croatia	102–53	Norway	Opatija, Croatia
20:30 (UTC+2)	Scoring by quarter:28–14, 34–8, 22–13, 18–18
	Pts: Hezonja 21 Rebs: Ružić, Šarić 6 Asts: Šarić 8	Boxscore	Pts: Nordheim, Savić 11 Rebs: Savić 10 Asts:four players 2	Arena: Marino Cvetković Sports Hall Attendance: 450 Referees: Martin Horozov (BUL), Andris Aunkrogers (LAT), Zafer Yılmaz (TUR)

Team

Current roster

Roster for the 2027 FIBA World Cup Pre-Qualifiers matches in August 2025 against Denmark and Croatia. ^{[5] [6]}

Norway men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G/F 0 Jørgen Odfjell 24 – (2000-08-03)3 August 2000 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) Gimle F 1 Andrija Blatančić 29 – (1995-11-13)13 November 1995 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) NPC Rieti PG 3 Lars Espe 26 – (1998-09-26)26 September 1998 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Fyllingen PG 7 Harald Frey 28 – (1997-05-27)27 May 1997 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Bilbao SG 9 Sivert Nordheim 19 – (2006-07-12)12 July 2006 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) Centrum Tigers G 11 Stian Mjøs  (C) 36 – (1989-02-27)27 February 1989 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) Bærum C 20 Ludvik Bergseng 18 – (2006-09-28)28 September 2006 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Manresa SG 25 Lars Andreas Nilsen 24 – (2001-06-12)12 June 2001 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) Rotterdam City F 25 Hallvard Staff 23 – (2002-06-18)18 June 2002 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Gimle C 31 Milovan Savić 37 – (1987-10-23)23 October 1987 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) Gimle PF 34 William Kruse 18 – (2006-09-28)28 September 2006 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Penn Quakers F 40 Axel Borg 21 – (2004-04-10)10 April 2004 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Frøya PG 77 Johannes Rydningen 26 – (1998-12-13)13 December 1998 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) Tromsø	Head coach Matthias Eckhoff Assistant coach(es) Milovan Savić Morten Myrvang Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 2 August 2025

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2
C	Sjur Berg	Erik Borg	Marcus Larsson
PF	Karamo Jawara	Johannes Dolven	Axel Borg
SF	Chris-Ebou Ndow	Kristian Sjølund	Jørgen Odfjell
SG	Bouna Ndiaye	Mikkel Kolstad	Tobias Rotegård
PG	Harald Frey	Stian Mjøs	Lars Espe

Head coach position

• Matthias Eckhoff – (2018–present)

Notable players

• Torgeir Bryn – the first Scandinavian, and the only Norwegian who has played in the NBA; and the most capped player for the Norway national basketball team with 111 matches.

Past rosters

2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries: finished 2nd among 7 teams ^[7]

Norway men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. PG 4 Magnus Midtvedt 28 – (1990-04-07)7 April 1990 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) Centrum PG 5 Harald Frey 21 – (1997-05-27)27 May 1997 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Montana State G 6 Stian Berg 27 – (1991-04-04)4 April 1991 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) Asker PG 7 Lars Espe 19 – (1998-09-26)26 September 1998 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Barry Buccaneers G/F 8 Bouna Ndiaye 25 – (1992-10-20)20 October 1992 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) GET Vosges G 9 Nikolas Skouen 28 – (1990-01-29)29 January 1990 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) Frøya F 10 Karamo Jawara 27 – (1991-06-25)25 June 1991 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Palma G 11 Stian Mjøs 29 – (1989-02-27)27 February 1989 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Bærum G/F 12 Eivind Lamo 21 – (1996-10-23)23 October 1996 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) Gimle G/F 13 Alex Dakin 25 – (1993-01-02)2 January 1993 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) Bærum F 14 Sjur Berg 22 – (1996-01-10)10 January 1996 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Alaska Anchorage F/C 15 Johannes Dolven 22 – (1996-05-11)11 May 1996 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Barry Buccaneers	Head coach Matthias Eckhoff Assistant coach(es) Audun Eskeland Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 26 June 2018

See also

• Sports portal
• Norway portal

• Norway women's national basketball team
• Norway men's national under-20 basketball team
• Norway men's national under-18 basketball team
• Norway men's national under-16 basketball team

References

1. "FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 25 February 2025. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
2. "55-årsjubileum mot Danmark". basket.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 3 July 2022.
3. "Norway returns to international basketball". norwegianamerican.com. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
4. "Norway at the 2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries" . Retrieved 1 July 2018.
5. "Senior menn". basket.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 20 July 2025.
6. "Norway during the 2027 FIBA World Cup European Pre-Qualifiers in August 2025" . Retrieved 2 August 2025.
7. "Norway at the 2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries" . Retrieved 1 July 2018.

External links

• Official website (in Norwegian)
• Norway FIBA profile
• Norway National Team – Men at Eurobasket.com