The Australian Opals are in the running for medals at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, but the Boomers have a mountain to climb to match their heroics at the Tokyo Games. What’s more, Shane Heal believes a highly controversial selection could come back to haunt them later.
While the Opals secured second place in their group and avoided a showdown with the mighty United States for a potential semi-final, the Boomers struggled to reach the knockout stages of the tournament.
Defeats against Canada and Greece left the participants on life support at the Olympics. They were also eliminated early from the World Cup last year. Only other results helped the Boomers reach the last eight.
Tokyo’s bronze medallists have come under fire for their losses after coach Brian Goorjian controversially sidelined Portland Trailblazers star Matisse Thybulle.
Boomers fans were stunned by the decision, as Thybulle is an NBA Defensive Player of the Year and has twice been named the best second unit in the best league in the world.
On July 4, it was reported that Thybulle had been ‘ousted’ from the Australian squad in favor of Dyson Daniels, Dante Exum, Josh Green and Matthew Dellavedova.
Goorjian acknowledged the difficult decision at the time, saying, “There’s going to be a lot of people who want to put a bullet in my head.”
Shane Heal, who famously styled Charles Barkley at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, said the Boomers would need to recover from a major form deficit to reach the medal rounds
Baby boomer fans were shocked when NBA Defensive Player of the Year Matisse Thybulle was left out of the Paris roster
There were reports that a senior player would boycott Paris if another senior player was not chosen, which pushed Thybulle out of the selection. The Boomers have denied this
Last week, a member of the Boomers’ coaching staff denied that a veteran player had threatened to boycott the Games if a teammate, reportedly Joe Ingles, was not selected.
Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that Ingles played just two minutes in the opening match against Spain in Paris.
Former Boomer Shane Heal, who rose to fame as Charles Barkley at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and now works as a basketball expert for Stan Sportsaid questions had to be asked about why Thybulle had not been chosen for Paris.
“I have heard nothing more than what has been speculated and reported in the press, I have no facts to add to that,” he said.
“But these are certainly interesting times. There are a lot of question marks about why Matisse was not selected.
‘You see him in every match, how valuable Matisse would have been.
‘He’s one of the best defenders in the world and his athleticism would have definitely helped this Boomers team.
“There are certainly question marks about the selection, the way they went about it, where they are now and why Matisse is not there.”
Thybulle was part of the historic Tokyo Olympics Boomers team that won a bronze medal, Australia’s first in men’s basketball
Boomers coach Brian Goorjian has come under fire for his selections after the Boomers lost two of their group games and narrowly reached the quarter-finals
Three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokić and a strong Serbian team await the Boomers
In hindsight, it would have been better to send Ingles to Thybulle, but according to Heal this was not necessarily a clear sign of a rift between the playing group and the coach.
“It’s very difficult to get everyone to play,” he said.
‘I think the last two players are usually more of a guarantee than there to make minutes.
‘You even see it with the American team. [Boston Celtics superstar] Jayson Tatum didn’t start in the first game, so now two players who didn’t start will be used.
‘If Matisse had gone, it probably would have come down to whether you had Matthew Dellavedova or Joe Ingles in that role. [last] place.
“I don’t have much confidence that either party will play a role, but it is the role of insurance.”
Heal is optimistic about the Opals’ chances of success in their quarter-final against Serbia, having turned things around following a surprise defeat to Nigeria at the start of their tournament.
“Their first two games were really disappointing and it was difficult to see their best game,” he said.
‘The way they handled the ball, their defense, their free throws, but today’s game [a 79-72 defeat of previously-unbeaten France] gives you hope.
‘They were exceptional, they changed the tide in front of a large audience in France and showed great basketball.
‘I think they are a very good opponent, but I don’t think Serbia have the depth or quality to match the Opals.’
The Opals started their tournament on the wrong foot but bounced back with a big win over Canada to secure a spot in the quarterfinals.
Heal believes the Opals, in their current form, have a great chance of reaching the medal rounds and even challenging for gold
Heal is less confident about the Boomers’ chances against Serbia, which features three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokić.
“He’s a superstar, one of the best players in the world,” he said.
‘I think that’s what sets Serbia apart from Greece, which has really struggled [despite having Giannis Antetokounmpo in their squad] is that they have other scorers, especially [Atlanta forward] Bogdan Bogdanović. He has shown that he can do it at the Olympic level.
‘We have to pay close attention to Jokic, but there are other people who can hurt you.
‘We know he’s a great passer, so that makes them even more dangerous.
‘This is a competition that I feel less comfortable with than the women’s.
‘We are definitely capable of winning this game, but we will have to change some things.’
Shane Heal is a basketball expert on the Stan Sport Olympics lineup. The only place to watch every Paris 2024 event ad-free, live and on-demand in 4K. With exclusive features including international multilingual channels and minis, go to Stan.com.au/Olympic Games For more information.
