The NBA is gone till November but we still have a lot of basketball to look forward to. International basketball, that is. With the 2012 London Olympics just around the corner, sports fans are in for an exciting barrage of hoop action as the FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament unravels next week.

Nine nations are already set to compete in the 2012 Olympic Games, which means there are still three vacant slots to fill in to complete the twelve teams in the Olympic Men’s Basketball field. The last three nations that will be included in the final lineup for London will be determined in this short competition.  

The FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament will feature twelve nations from each of the five FIBA zone qualifying tournaments held last year. The twelve comprise of: Angola and Nigeria from FIBA Africa; the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Venezuela from FIBA Americas; Jordan and South Korea from FIBA Asia; Russia, F.Y.R. of Macedonia, Lithuania, and Greece from FIBA Europe; and New Zealand from FIBA Oceania.

The teams will be dived in four groups of three with the top two qualifying for the quarter-finals. The winners of the semi-finals will get the first two slots available while the losers of the semis will play another game to determine who will get the last slot for the Olympics.

Don’t expect any team to let up, not when country pride and international glory are at stake. It’s going to be a dog-eat-dog environment in Venezuela next week with all twelve nations eying for a ticket to the London Olympics.

Catch the riveting action of the games before The Games. The 2012 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament will air July 2-9, 2012 late nights or early mornings on BTV.