Paris 2024: The Opals’ physical formula to topple Team USA’s dynasty

How the physical Opals plan to shut down the most dominant team in basketball history and cause one of the Olympics’ biggest boilovers when they face team USA in the semi-final.

As Opals legend Lauren Jackson rode the Australian bench witnessing the changing of the guard taking place in front of her eyes, she couldn’t help loving every moment.

The Hall of Famer didn’t play a minute against Serbia but in point guard Jade Melbourne’s breakout game she saw the tactics to beat America and the character to lead this Australian team into the future.

Australia’s brilliant women basketballers will take on Team USA once more in a semi-final knowing it would take the Olympic Games’ greatest miracle to beat an American team riding a 59-game unbeaten streak.

Yet for Sandy Brondello’s Opals the win over Serbia showed them how they will attempt to beat America channelling the extraordinary level of physicality the FIBA referees have allowed in this Paris tournament.

Alanna Smith and Jade Melbourne celebrate the win. Picture: Adam Head

It also showed 43-year-old Jackson that a player less than half her age has the right stuff to lead this Opals team for the next decade.

“She came with the physicality, she got stuck into everyone, and she even had a crack at someone. I was so proud of her,” said Jackson after the Opals qualified for their first semi-final since London, by coincidence the last time Jackson played in the Olympics.

“It’s fun to watch this new generation of Opals get out and have a crack. We are in good hands. I think that is what we need in a leader and point guard. We need that ability to take the hits, to get back up again and make the three. She showed what she is made of.”

Fellow WNBA star Alanna Smith could barely hide her admiration for the 178cm former point guard who plays for the Minnesota Lynx by way of the Traralgon Thunderbirds.

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It wasn’t just her 18 points, five assists and two steals, it was the way she copped a beat-down and kept on getting back up.

“You look at her and she’s been beaten down and she’s on the floor and she’s smiling,” Smith said.

“She just loves playing the game, it’s infectious and it’s really cool to have that on your team.

“I keep saying to people Jade’s ceiling is so high, she has so much potential to be one of the greatest Australian players to play in the point guard spot. She had a rough start, we all did. “But she’s responded so well. So it’s nice to play with someone who has so much heart.”

Alanna Smith in the quarterfinal against Serbia. Picture: AFP.

That ‘rough’ start Smith talks about is the first pool game where Nigeria bashed the living daylights out of Australia, the refs called play on, and Melbourne had four turnovers as the Opals copped an Olympic smack-down.

And yet rather than packing up and going home, Australia beat Canada and France by quickly adjusting to the physical nature of a FIBA-ran tournament where pretty much anything goes.

It’s not quite the Olympics version of WWE basketball, but it’s not far short.

Veteran WNBA point guard Sami Whitcomb, who has combined so well with Melbourne in her first Olympics, speaks plainly about that Nigeria game.

“We all know FIBA is going to be more physical but that was the most physical game I have been a part of ever and it set the tone for us,” Whitcomb said.

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“This is what we are in for and if we don’t ‘woman up’ we are going to get pumped every single game.

“As shitty as it was for us to lose that game it was the eye opener and kick in the arse we needed. We still have areas we need to get better in but our grittiness and toughness is there.”

Melbourne admits she didn’t handle the heat in that first contest.

“WNBA is ‘so-called’ the best league in the world but international basketball and the speed is huge,” she said.

“I didn’t start the tournament the way I would have liked to. But we watched a lot of film and I feel like I am getting better every game and hopefully we can go to the gold medal match.”

Can the Opals cause an upset against the USA? Picture: Adam Head

Australia will lean into that physical basketball against America in the vain hope frenzied pressure can slow down a US side untroubled in four games so far.

The American team is packed with talent as usual - veteran Diana Taurasi chasing her sixth gold medal, power forward Breanna Stewart, sharpshooter Sabrina Ionsecu.

And 33-year-old Brittney Griner, only released from a Russian jail after 10 months in December 2022 in an international prison swap with a Russian arms dealer after being found guilty of drug possession.

“We know we have to come out swinging first,” Smith said.

“The beauty of our team is that seven of us have been playing against them in the WNBA. It doesn’t change how good they are but it changes the level of intimidation factor.”

Veteran centre Marianna Tolo agrees: “They have won a lot of their games comfortably but we will bring our style of basketball. Physical. In their grills. Hopefully disrupt them a little bit.

Team USA will be tough to beat. Picture: Getty Images

“When we get hurried up it’s when we don’t tend to play well. The US wants to play that up-tempo game, so you have to beat them at that, which not many teams can, or grind them down and play some defence.”

Opals veteran centre Cayla George knows her teammates won’t be afraid of the star-studded Americans, who have dominated the women’s basketball scene for almost three decades.

“We’ll give it a red hot go,” George said.

“We’re not going to take a step backwards at all.’

“We’re all Aussies, we’re gritty, we’re resilient and we’re tough.”