MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) – Ten players from the Tokyo 2020 bronze medal-winning Australian team, including Patty Mills, Joe Ingles, Josh Green, Dante Exuma and Jock Landale, have been added to the expanded squad for the Paris Olympics. 22 people were selected.
Coach Brian Gougian's team has 10 NBA-based players, including Josh Guidi and Dyson Daniels. The team is expected to be reduced to 12 players by July's pregame training camp.
Brooklyn Nets point guard Ben Simmons was not selected to the team because he is still recovering from back surgery. Simmons has never represented Australia at an Olympics, but he said he was due to compete in Paris before his latest injury.
The Boomers finished 10th at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, but earned an automatic berth to Paris as Oceania's top-ranked team.
Gaujan will lead the Boomers to their fourth Olympic appearance as head coach.
“The 2023 World Cup marked a new beginning for the boomer generation,” Gouldjian said on Thursday. “We have introduced some new players and were able to identify areas where we need to progress and improve. We have been actively monitoring the Australian players and are confident in their potential chemistry on this list. ”
Australia will play in Group A at the Paris Games. Canada is the only confirmed opponent in the group so far.
The remaining two teams will participate in the preliminary tournament. One in Greece (one of Greece, Slovenia, New Zealand, Croatia, Egypt, or the Dominican Republic) and one in Spain (one of Spain, Lebanon, Angola, Finland, Poland, or the Bahamas).
Australia will play the Spanish qualifier on July 27. Twelve teams will participate in the group phase, eight of which will advance to the medal round. The men's gold medal final is scheduled for August 10th at the Bercy Arena in Paris.
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Australian Olympic Team: Dyson Daniels, Matthew Dellavedova, Xavier Cooks, Dante Exum, Sam Froling, Jonny Furphy, Josh Giddy, Chris Golding, Josh Green, Joe Ingles, Nick Kaye, Jock Landale, Will Magnay, Will McDowell-White, Jack McVeigh, Patty Mills, Keanu Pinder, Duop Rees, Matisse Thybulle, Dejan Vasiljevic, Jack White, Rocco Zikalski.
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AP Paris Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
