Costa Rica men's national basketball team

Costa Rica
FIBA ranking88 5 (3 March 2026)[1]
Joined FIBA1969
FIBA zoneFIBA Americas
National federationFederación Costarricense de Baloncesto Aficionado
CoachJose Nicolas Marín
Olympic Games
AppearancesNone
FIBA World Cup
AppearancesNone
FIBA AmeriCup
AppearancesNone

The Costa Rica national basketball team is the national basketball team from Costa Rica.

Team Costa Rica has never qualified for the FIBA World Cup or the FIBA AmeriCup. Yet, the team has shown strong performances at the regional level. At the 2015 FIBA COCABA Championship, Costa Rica finished the 2nd, its best performance so far.

Judged by the 2020 FIBA Ranking, Costa Rica has the 2nd best basketball national team in Central America, coming only behind Panama.

History

The origins of organized basketball in Costa Rica date to the mid-20th century, when the sport began gaining popularity in San José and other major cities. The men's national team was formed to represent Costa Rica in regional competitions throughout Central America and the Caribbean.

Costa Rica became a regular participant in the FIBA Centrobasket Championship, competing against regional powers such as Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, and Panama. While the team rarely advanced beyond the preliminary rounds, it established itself as a competitive presence and one of the stronger national teams within Central America.[2]

The 2000s marked a period of growth for Costa Rican basketball at the regional level. The national team won gold medals at the COCABA Championship—the Central American sub-zone tournament—in both **2007** and **2015**, asserting itself as one of the top teams in the sub-region.[3]

Despite these regional accomplishments, Costa Rica has yet to qualify for a FIBA AmeriCup, a FIBA Basketball World Cup, or the Olympic Games. The national program continues to prioritize the development of local talent through the Liga de Baloncesto Superior de Costa Rica and youth-level competitions.

In recent years, Costa Rica has participated in FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification (Americas), competing against stronger teams from across the continent. Although qualification for major tournaments remains a challenge, the team is regarded as a competitive force in Central American basketball and continues to invest in the sport’s nationwide development.

Competitions

Summer Olympics

Yet to qualify

FIBA World Cup

Yet to qualify

FIBA AmeriCup

Yet to qualify

Pan American Games

Yet to qualify

Centrobasket

See also: Centrobasket
  • 1971-1987 : Did not qualify
  • 1989 : 7th
  • 1991 : 5th
  • 1993 : Did not qualify
  • 1995 : 7th
  • 1997 : Did not qualify
  • 1999 : 8th
  • 2001 : Did not qualify
  • 2003 : 8th
  • 2004 : Did not qualify
  • 2006 : 8th
  • 2008 : 8th
  • 2010 : Did not qualify
  • 2012 : 9th
  • 2014 : 9th
  • 2016 : 9th

COCABA Championship

See also: FIBA COCABA Championship
  • 1999 :
  • 2004 : 5th
  • 2006 :
  • 2007 :
  • 2009 : 4th
  • 2013 :
  • 2015 :

Central American and the Caribbean Games

  • 1926-2002 : ?
  • 2006-2010 : Did not participate
  • 2014 : ?
  • 2018 : Did not participate
  • 2022 : To be determined

Current roster

At the 2016 Centrobasket:[4]

Costa Rica men's national basketball team roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr.
C 4 Juan Rosich 27 – (1988-11-23)23 November 1988 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Coopeservidores Escazu
G 5 Isaac Conejo 22 – (1994-05-22)22 May 1994 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) Coopenae Arba
C 6 Andres Umana 33 – (1982-10-02)2 October 1982 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Super Cable Grecia
G 7 Alonso Sanchez 31 – (1985-03-30)30 March 1985 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) Brenes Barba
PF 8 Daniel Simmons 36 – (1980-06-11)11 June 1980 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Coopenae Arba
SF 9 George Letford 24 – (1991-10-17)17 October 1991 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) Brenes Barba
C 10 Carlos Quesada 30 – (1985-10-12)12 October 1985 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Brenes Barba
PF 11 Daniel Shedden 19 – (1996-08-11)11 August 1996 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
G 12 Kay Martinez 32 – (1984-05-21)21 May 1984 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Brenes Barba
PF 13 Rohel Wilson 26 – (1989-08-25)25 August 1989 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) Brenes Barba
PF 14 Marcos Castrillo 24 – (1992-04-29)29 April 1992 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Coopenae Arba
C 15 Jefny Anderson 32 – (1983-07-13)13 July 1983 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Coopenae Arba
SF Amaurys Ripool 30 – (1986-05-27)27 May 1986 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Coopeservidores Escazu
Head coach
  • Joshua Erickson
Assistant coaches
  • Edgardo Gamboa
Legend
  • Club – describes last
    club before the tournament
  • Age – describes age
    on 19 June 2016

At the 2016 Centrobasket in Panama City, Panama, Carlos Quesada played most minutes for Costa Rica whereas Kay Martinez was the team's top scorer and also recorded most steals for the team.[4]

Depth chart

Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Bench 2 Bench 3
C Carlos Quesada Jefny Anderson Andres Umana Juan Rosich
PF Daniel Simmons Marcos Castrillo Daniel Shedden
SF Rohel Wilson George Letford Amaurys Ripool
SG Kay Martinez
PG Isaac Conejo Alonso Sanchez

Head coach position

  • Luis Blanco – 2006
  • Neil Gottlieb – 2007-2008
  • Luis Blanco – 2009
  • Jorge Arguello – 2010
  • Luis Blanco – 2011-2012
  • Jorge Arguello – 2013
  • Alexis Monge – 2014
  • Joshua Erickson – 2015-2016
  • Alexis Monge – 2017
  • Daniel Simmons – 2018
  • Jose Nicolas Marín – 2021-present

3x3 Team

Costa Rica features 3x3 basketball national teams, from senior level all the way to U12 teams.[5]

Kit

Manufacturer

2018: Nike

See also

References

  1. ^ "FIBA World Ranking Presented by Nike". FIBA. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  2. ^ FIBA Centrobasket – History and teams. FIBA. Accessed 20 August 2025.
  3. ^ Costa Rica campeón de COCABA. La República, 24 August 2015. Accessed 20 August 2025.
  4. ^ a b Costa Rica | 2016 Centrobasket, ARCHIVE.FIBA.COM. Retrieved 24 August 2016.
  5. ^ Costa Rica es campeón latinoamericano de basket 3x3 por primera vez en la historia Walter Herrera (LaRepublica.net), 17 December 2019. Accessed 18 August 2020. (in Spanish)

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