Sabrina B. The level of competition in international basketball has steadily improved over the past 20 years, to the point where various national teams can do pretty well without a big-name NBA star on board. That said, it’s sure a big help for a team to have some of the best players in the world on the roster. So it must have come as something of a shock to Detroit Pistons forward Charlie Villanuevawhen he was cut by national team head coach (and, more famously, Kentucky head coach) John Calipari.