Australia’s Olympic hopefuls will have one final chance to push for selection in Brian Goorjian’s 12-man Boomers squad when they play China on Thursday evening.
The Boomers weren’t making their shots early in Tuesday’s first warm-up game against China but finished strong, coming out on top 107-87.
Jack McVeigh went a long way to stamping his ticket for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games with a standout 24 points off the bench, going 6-for-8 from deep to offer a much-needed shooting option for a Boomers team that can create plenty of open looks but struggles to convert them.
At this stage there look to be seven clear locks for Goorjian’s squad: Josh Giddey, Patty Mills, Josh Green, Dante Exum, Duop Reath, Jock Landale and Matisse Thybulle.
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Dyson Daniels also looks a good chance of making the cut given the Boomers are looking to really ramp things up on the defensive side of the ball, although his shortcomings on offence do pose some question marks.
Elsewhere, Matthew Dellavedova — having missed out on selection for the FIBA World Cup last year — impressed with his energy off the bench against China and could be in serious consideration for a spot in the 12-man squad.
The same goes for Chris Goulding, who like McVeigh is a sharpshooter and made four of his seven 3-point attempts in Tuesday’s game.
You would have to imagine Joe Ingles is a good chance of being picked too, although even he is no longer a lock given his defensive shortcomings.
All of this is to say this could be one of the toughest Boomers squads in recent memory to project, meaning there may be some surprise names that miss out — which makes Thursday’s game all the more important.
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Source Agencies
