Hoops

New Boomers squad

Lemanis isn't exactly inspiring, not a player's coach.

Based on no evidence

So, Olgun clearly does break stories. Saying he doesn't have 'scoops' or isn't a journo, is just demonstrably incorrect.

And, I'll go back to it, is it inconceivable that some players might not like Lemanis? No-one legitimate (including Olgun) has said anything about players not playing for the coach, just that they're not too fond of him. That's completely reasonable.

^^^^^agreed!!!
He is losing real journo cred with trash like that. He acts like he gets all the 'scoops' and lacks full understanding of the sport. It's one thing to get fed info from a few agents, it's another to live, and know the sport well.
I've spoken to some good young college guys who told me the exact opposite of what he said. And they've been hit up for desperate stories at times too.

I thought Lemanis was the real deal after seeing the Boomers play in the early stages of Rio but then started having second thoughts after seeing the way the Bullets played this year. We did get absolutely walloped in the semis of Rio and fell just short in the Bronze match so there is some doubt about whether he's the man.

He deserves one more tournament I think.

That olgun uluc ...he's no journo lol, he is a wannabe, those college kids who don want to play for their country are the ones that got knocked back to begin with. They were not happy because at 18 yrs of age they thought they were better than seasoned men......

With Lemanis at the helm the Aussie men had their best ever result at any Olympic Games, and that's because he chose men not kids to play

"Not so long ago, the overwhelming majority wanted Lemanis to stay because of the Rio results. So are we now seeing newbies or trolls entering the conversation, cos there's been nothing since then which would justify a change of mind."

The overwhelming majority have no idea, including you going off of your comment.

Yep, I'd say getting the 'scoop' would make a journo feel special. Nothing to it.
Get of his n@@s.

^^ I don't think Olgun has ever said anything like: '"My mail is there are a number of high players waiting to see if lemanis is the 2020 boomers coach before they commit. If he remains the coach expect those players to
either not respond to BA or politely decline."

That supposed rumour from an Anon is clearly an overreaction, and most probably not true.

Looks like all Olgun's said is that some of the players aren't fond of Lemanis.

Is that really that hard to believe?

Nope, it's just a suggestion from Olgun Ulic the journo. He's speculating and scaremongering. I don't agree with him at all, as monstnif not all Aussies would never turn down the green and gold! And if they did, stuff them!
You can't hold the country to ransom as if you have already proven yourself. We don't want to pander to the attitudes if that's the case, sort of reminds me of the young tennis lad kicking up a stink all the time. On to the next one!

"Are you seriously suggesting the NBA is a higher standard than the Boomers?"

If you're asking if the NBA is a better standard than international ball, then the answer is yes.

Not so long ago, the overwhelming majority wanted Lemanis to stay because of the Rio results. So are we now seeing newbies or trolls entering the conversation, cos there's been nothing since then which would justify a change of mind.

If the NCAA players won't play for Lemanis, and so far it's just anonymous rumour without facts (someone aping Trump?), why not? Because he'll make them earn their spots? Smh

"My mail is there are a number of high players waiting to see if lemanis is the 2020 boomers coach before they commit. If he remains the coach expect those players to
either not respond to BA or politely decline."

Yessssss, best news I've heard re: Boomers in a while. Smart players, Lemanis got lucky when the Breakers org. got more professional in the middle of his tenure, esp. in import recruiting. He stunk before and after that, and doesn't know how to tank properly. We have real players now who need a real coach!

"Gaze, heal, Mckinnon, Vlahov were only 19 when
they started their international careers"

and all of them had been knocking around against senior teams in the SEABL, VBA etc for several years. Years that (in those days) NCAA spent sitting on the bench of their NCAA team.

All of them rode the bench in the Boomers to start with.

unless you are a total freak like Kobe and malone ( moses) or D dawkins, no college level player would dominate the NBL or even initially compete in the NBA.

good to remember that Christian Laettner was and is regraded as having a far better college player career than O'Neal.

^^agree, useless thread, and agree re the "college" stars in their eyes devotees...... NCAA rules clearly state and adhere too , all players must be 23 and under that includes those on the scrimmage teams...that's for both men and women, high school kids are the same they can only play and/train against kids their own age and still in high school.
Unlike everywhere else in the world where if your a strong junior you get opportunities to play and train with and against mature seasoned players.
It's the hype that surrounds the colleg system that gets everyone over excited about the perceived ability of players.

It's not to say these players are not great players, but unless they are consistently playing/training with or against those mature bodies ( and mentalities) these college kids struggle when they first enter the senior area of the likes of the NBA/NBL and even more so the women.

Rarely if ever do college kids who have done their four years come into the higher levels of NBA/NBL or WNBA/WNBL and have an immediate impact, yet at college they may well have been killing it in that particular team and conference.

So they have even less chance of being trail blazers in a national team competing internationally.

You need to crawl before you walk and walk before you run

Apparently BA has sent out emails to potential future boomers making general contact with them to gage their interest in becoming boomers.

My mail is there are a number of high players waiting to see if lemanis is the 2020 boomers coach before they commit. If he remains the coach expect those players to
either not respond to BA or politely decline.

I say it again! Please kill this thread!

OK, let me lay it out for the 'college' lovers! Yes, most NBA players come from here, but they are not yet game ready the majority of the time. NBL teams would smack college teams mate. Men Vs Boys. You have no idea.

They have potential and may be very good, but not physically or mentally ready. please think before you speak

Adam Gibson, Peter Crawford etc were not NBA-level guys when they made the Boomers side m8

If you are able to dominate division 1 college basketball...you are not only good enough for the boomers, you are good enough
for the nba.

the Mongolian b league has very strict import limits so that's not surprising

""most top college teams would beat any nbl team."

Only March and already a candidate for dumbest post of 2017"

Absolutely. Now the reason why people think like this is because more NBA players come from college than the NBL. However, they seem oblivious to the fact that the vast majority of college players wont go on to play basketball professionally. Most of them wont even get a gig in the Mongolian B league.

NBL has beaten top college teams time and time again using only the NBL's bench and development players. Those who think college is a higher standard than NBL out themselves as people who know sweet fuck all about the game.

LOL WTF college teams come out to Aus every NBL preseason and get thumped by import amd star-less NBL teams by double figures.

"most top college teams would beat any nbl team."

Only March and already a candidate for dumbest post of 2017

College sides played I think Brisbane and Sydney at start last season and both Nbl sides did not have there imports and beat both college sides comfortably. They were UCLA and Washington I think and both sides had predicted top 10 draft picks. Men beat boys unless.

anon, it does mean alot !

most top college teams would beat any nbl team.
Most nbl marqee players / imports are / were also college players who could not make the nba.
If you are able to dominate division 1 college basketball like simmons, duop reath, adel, landale and Jo acuil, you are not only good enough for the boomers, you are good enough
for the nba.

Please kill this thread! It's a headache to read these people put forth names based on nothing.

Humphries has done very little and the NBA scouting report ain't that flash, why do people keep throwing him the mix, some of the other young players have also not proved much, just because you are at a US college doesn't mean a lot.

rjd, I agree with what you're saying on merit but I think Simmons would have a much greater impact than Exum did.

Simmons very literally deserves his spot on the A squad when he overcomes his injury.

Can Creek really do it all? I'm not sure about his shooting from 3, for example.

"Gaze, heal, Mckinnon, Vlahov were only 19 when
they started their international careers"

This argument is pulled out way too often. The depth of talent in Australian basketball was totally different back then. If you want a more recent example about the impact of including inexperienced 18-19 year olds with big upsides in major tournaments, look at Exum's performance in the Worlds. Simmons, even if officially available, would have had a similar minimal impact.

Major tournaments are for your best players at that time.

I see an argument to include young guys that are forecast, or possibles, to make future major tournaments to be included in the qualifiers and the Asian cup. We need players to have familiarity with each other and the system. We need chemistry that comes from years of playing together and in the same system. And in the case of players like Maker, we need them to commit to the national team.

Just to shut-up people here who don't understand the value of experience and chemistry, I would love to see our automatic-selection core experienced unit:

Delly
Mills
Ingles
Broekhoff
Baynes
Motum
Bairstow

Matchup against the kind of inexperienced names that have been mentioned in this thread.

Adel
Bolden
Duop Reath
Deng Gak
Jo Acuil
Humphries
Exum
Simmons
Maker

I'd include Exum, Simmons and Maker in this unit just so that they are not absolutely annihilated.

FIBA Asia Cup has nothing to do with world cup or Olympic qualifications so you can send whoever you want.

Of course we want to win it all, but for all intents and purposes it is a meaningless tournament.

We'll likely have no choice anyway, since I doubt our full team is going to be available very often.

Such little understanding about the level of basketball! Deng Gak wouldn't even be as good as Nick Kay in the NBL right now! You can pick these future prospects now for qualifying! You have to pick the best team! Deng Adel is doing very well in college, but international hoops is different. The only one who may have a shot of that group would be Bolden as he is already playing pro.

Agree with Aussie when it comes to the Olympics or World Cup but we would definitely benefit from running youngsters in less important ganes and against weaker teams.

ME, agree. Maker has to be picked for the next boomers squad.

I would also draft in Adel and Bolden, who will be main players for us for the next decade.

People seem to think athleticism and being black trumps experience, but it does not. Not by a long shot.

Those 'slow, 50 year old' white guys are what took us to within inches of history for Australian basketball, while those be-all and end-all black fellas were in college, playing against kids who can't even drink a beer yet.

When you're talking about major tournaments, you go for experienced heads for the most part. You go for guys who have been there, done that, have played with big game pressure, and have proven themselves. You don't go with kids because they look the part.

When Vlahov and MacKinnon came in, we were underdone as a team. There weren't too many other options to go with. Adrian Hurley took a punt, and it paid off.

Now, we have the deepest squad we've had in history. We have the most meaningful NBA experience we've ever had. We've got guys who'd put anyone in the 1988 team to shame. So why exactly would we be grabbing a bunch of teens for any major tournament in the near future?

But luckily, the FIBA Asia Cup isn't all that major. The competition is going to be considerably weak, with our only likely issues coming out of New Zealand and China. This is the one tournament where blooding some young guns actually makes sense. Australia could bring 5-6 veterans, 5-6 college kids, and likely still win the whole tournament.

But I think the most important task of this Asia Cup is to get Maker in the green and gold uniform. Everything else is a bonus.

aussie, we are going to play asian teams. We would still beat them convincingly with 3 or 4 young rookies plus the veterans.

There is harm to play them against weaker opponents so they gain more experience.

FIBA Asia Cup soon, about time we were in a better confederation and finally get to rip Asia a new one!

Yes but the Lakers are building for the future.

The international stage is not a development pathway. All teams have the goal of winning right now, particularly for Australia who finished 4th at Rio.

Young players can develop in their own leagues and WHEN and IF they are good enough in the future, they will represent their country

Aussie, some nba coaches play youths more minutes than established veterans. For example, Brandon Ingram is only 18 but is playing more minutes for the Lakersthan established vet nick young.

"Aussie, I would pick Ferguson ahead Broekhoff.
We have already picked teenagers like exum and simmons.

Gaze, heal, Mckinnon, Vlahov were only 19 when
they started their international careers"

Granted the Worlds and Olympics are 3 and 4 years away but choosing Ferguson is going on potential, nothing else.

Broekhoff is easily the better player at this stage

Aussie, I would pick Ferguson ahead Broekhoff.
We have already picked teenagers like exum and simmons.

Gaze, heal, Mckinnon, Vlahov were only 19 when
they started their international careers

* Ferguson

Let me give another example.

If we had a 19 year old with the equivalent skill set to Terrance Furgeson (who will be a 1st round NBA Draft pick) would you honestly take him over Ryan Broekhoff?

Answer that one honestly

Yes, 2 years sitting at the end of a nba
team bench and basically got DNP~CD every match.

"duke fan, motum and bairstow are not even good enough for the nba d league. They is a reason why they could not make it into an nba team, thet are simply not good enough!

Young guys like Bolden, humphries and Adel will most likely make it in a nba team."

What has being an NBA player got to do with playing for your country?

It certainly isn't a criteria.

It's about experience and who performs on the international stage.

Bairstow and Motum were great contributors for the Boomers at Rio.

Bairstow was in the NBA for 2 seasons.

"Aussie, Exum should be a lock for the team as well"

Oops forgot Exum, pencil him in for sure

Aussie, Exum should be a lock for the team as well

duke fan, motum and bairstow are not even good enough for the nba d league. They is a reason why they could not make it into an nba team, thet are simply not good enough!

Young guys like Bolden, humphries and Adel will most likely make it in a nba team.