Hoops

Dante Exum withdraws from Olympics

No. Lemanis and Ogilvy have got some personal issues with eachother. I am not sure where it stems from, but Ogilvy has been omitted from every possible team Lemanis has ever made, regardless of performance. That is not about to change.

So if Bogut pulls out, does that leave the possibility of Ogilvy being added to the squad?

He's always apparently "working hard". Then you see him and he looks like he's been working hard at getting banned from the buffet.

I genuinely hope he has been working hard. A fit and lean Jawai would go a long way toward compensating for Bogut.

Jawai is training hard in the CNS heat at the moment, his fitness and weight shouldn't be a problem.

I meant 2020 Olympics in regards to Ingles, he's 28 now so at 32 it's possible he could be in Rio but even then he could be pushed out by better NBA talent

Ogilvy isn't even in the squad, so he won't make the final roster

6'4 Delly/6'2 Lisch
6'0 Mills/6'4 Goulding
6'7 Broekhoff/6'8 Ingles/6'7 Newley
6'11 Anderson/6'9 Bairstow/6'10 Motum
6'10 Baynes/6'11 Ogilvy

I absolutely agree. The Boomers aren't here to foster talent. I think our squad will be fine. I should add that our 1996 team didn't have Luc Longley - our most credentialed player at the time. I think Australia has every chance to do fine this year.

Good news for the Boomers medal hopes, Lemanis would have had to pick Exum with the future in mind but now he can pick the team most capable of success and Dante can come back into the fold when he's fit, further developed and ready to be a real contributor.

Hahaha, I love your blurb at the end of the article ME! Like you, I am also a hack that appreciates the basketball gifts of others!

Good news if both Gasol's are out. There's always a chance the stars align for us and we make the medal round. Like always I hope, but experience has taught me to be disappointed.

Beantown, there will be a lot of teams missing players this year. I think we will have a better shot with this squad than we usually would do to that. I touch on that a little in this article:

http://www.aussiehoopla.com/boguts-injury-mean-boomers/

Disappointing, but probably not surprising really. I can see how Utah wouldn't be keen and Dante probably feels an obligation to them when they have invested so much time and money in him. Hopefully in two years we get a polished NBA starter for the World Championships instead!

We will still have a decent team, though I think we will fall short of the medals again. I feel like Baynes, Ingles and Broekhoff are the only automatic starters. I hope we adjust the other two starters depending on matchups.

Against a more mobile, smaller team, I'd swap Andersen out for Motum or even possibly play Broekhoff at the 4 and start Mills AND Delly.

I like Delly for his defence on the opposing team's point guard and for his steady control of the offence. He also works the pick and roll well with Baynes. So I generally like him in the starting lineup, but there might be times I would go with Mills instead if I thought I could get away with it defensively.

Yes Ingles will be at the Olympics. I don't think the basketball starts until a few days after the opening ceremony. He is 100% confirmed and committed. There is no worry with Ingles.

If we can keep the team as is, it is still pretty strong and should compete. The goal should still be medal.

I really don't think the Olympics should be more important than missing the birth of your own children and their first days.

Cram - last I read (April 30), Ingles might miss the opening ceremony but not any Olympic tournament games.

His wife is due to deliver twins on the day of the opening ceremony. Lemanis had told him he'd have his support for flying back for the birth if it happens then. If the birth was delayed, the article I read contained quotes that made it clear Ingles would play Olympics and miss the birth.

Why no ingles again? He's still young enough to compete for a position.

I would have Mills off the bench. He's best suited bringing a spark off the bench as we have seen time and time again.

Likely no Bogut, Simmons, Exum. Damn.

Unfortunate really, given we probably won't see Bogut in an Olympics again or Ingles & Newley either...

Yep, just forgot Ingles. Obviously he'd be in over Martin.

Wasn't suggesting that Motum should start - no particular order to my list. There's no point speculating starters, minutes etc yet as Lemanis probably hasn't even decided what combinations he's likely to go with.

I feel like you've forgotten Ingles here, who is clearly a better player than atleast half of the team you list.

Damien Martin is a world class defender but he can't shoot to save himself half of the time. He also isn't the best point guard for running a team. If we are really going to go for the third PG option I would be more comfortable with Gibson, who has some semblance of an offensive game. Or using someone like Cam Gliddon as an extra shooter.

Ingles, by the way, can play point guard and would nullify your need for a third.

I also have reservations about starting Motum. Anyone who watched the World Cup would see that he wasn't quite up to that level.

I'd expect Bairstow and Anderson to also share minutes with Baynes at center. Nate Jawai will only be worth 10-15 minutes per game, but could be very effective in those minutes.

A lot will be asked of Baynes in this series.

I would be inclined to start Delly on the bench, personally.

Mills
Ingles
Broekhoff
Anderson
Baynes

Delly
Goulding
Lisch
Newley
Bairstow
Jawai
Motum

And then if by some miracle we get Bogut, I would drop Bairstow or Jawai and reshuffle.

Fair enough.

With Lisch and Mills available in addition to those from the 2014 WCs there was a chance Exum wouldn't be picked anyway, so barring any more injuries/withdrawals it shouldn't matter.

M.Dellavadova / K.Lisch / D.Martin
P.Mills / C.Goulding
R.Broekhoff / B.Newley
B.Motum/ D.Anderson / C.Bairstow
A.Baynes / N.Jawai

http://www.aussiehoopla.com/exums-exit-shouldnt-extinguish-boomers-optimism/

"Coming off of an ACL injury which saw him sidelined for a year, the Rio Olympics were to be Dante’s first full games back on court. If Utah had allowed Dante to play, it would be his first full contact basketball in that time. It is unlikely he would have played himself into a prominent role on the team."

34 Points from Kirk Penney was not enough to get the Tallblacks over the line against Serbia in their opening game of the Adidas international tournament in Istanbul.
The 3rd quarter NZ went Ice cold at the offensive end and were punished by the Serbs 27-12.
Penney had 23points in the first half including shooting 5 from 5 from the 3point arc to put NZ up by 8 at the major break (59-51).
After the break the Serbs came back with a 7point run before piling on 14 more points to lead by double digits. tough D from the Serbs limited penney to just 1 missed shot in the 3rd.
Serbian guard Stefan Markovic hit back-to-back threes early in the final quarter to put the contest beyond the Tall Blacks' grasp, but the Kiwis worked hard to close a 15-point deficit to as little as five over the run home.
Penney led all scorers with 34 points (11/17 FG, 7/8 3pt, 5/8 FT), but was the only New Zealand player in double-figures. Forward Mika Vukona had six points and seven rebounds, while comeback skipper Pero Cameron got through 11 solid minutes. The Tall Blacks coughed up just 12 turnovers, but converted better from long-range (42 percent) than in two-point territory (40 percent).

New Zealand has just a day to regroup before meeting hosts Turkey in the second game of the tournament, early Sunday (NZ time)