Shane Heal: Baffling Matisse Thybulle selection call Boomers will regret

Australian basketball great Shane Heal has revealed he’s still in shock over one baffling Boomers decision ahead of the Paris Olympics.

COMMENT

The Australian Boomers team is finally picked ahead of the Paris Olympics, and I’m still in shock that Matisse Thybulle was left out of the final team.

It is a decision that I think will be looked back on with regret from the Boomers coaching staff when the Games are finished.

Thybulle was named as the best defender in the USA in his final year of college, which led to him being a first-round draft pick in the NBA.

He was named to the NBA’s 2nd All-Defensive team in his first two years as a pro, and in 2022 he led the entire World Cup in steals.

He is used to being the defensive assignment against the best players in the world, day in and day out in the NBA, and I am convinced he was clearly the best defender in the Boomers squad.

I had Thybulle as a critical piece for Australia when playing against Canada’s NBA superstars such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray, RJ Barret and Andrew Wiggins - and also the ‘Greek Freak’, Giannis Antetokounmpo!

Matisse Thybulle was controversially overlooked. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

Boomers great Shane Heal is shocked by the Thybulle non-selection. Picture: David Swift.

He was unique to this squad because of his quickness and athleticism, and I thought was a ‘must-have’ in a Boomers team that most recently struggled defensively at the 2022 World Cup.

The other area I’m worried about for the Boomers is their preparation.

Playing two games against a rebuilding Chinese team that didn’t qualify for the Olympics, makes you wonder if there were better options to have the team ready to go.

These were also games used as part of the final selection process, with 17 players getting minutes across the two games.

So how much real preparation has been accomplished to-date?

Sure, it’s great for Australian basketball fans to have games on home soil, and for fans to get to see their favourite Australian NBA stars in person. But at what cost?

Matthew Dellavedova and Joe Ingles were both selected. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

The Boomers are pooled with Canada and, as of this morning, Greece and Spain have now qualified and fill out the rest of Group A.

I think that Canada are the second-best team at the Olympics after the USA, while Greece and Spain picked their teams many weeks ago and have gone through tough games against world class opposition just to get to the Games.

They are match fit and battle-hardened and have had their systems tested in real games while building familiarity with each other.

The Boomers preparation only gets real for the first time next week when they take on two of the powerhouse basketball countries with exhibition games against the USA and Serbia in Abu Dhabi.

Brian Goorjian will have a better idea after these matches of exactly where his team is at.

It’s obvious when watching the Boomers play that they want to run and play with high pace and energy.

Chris Goulding was overlooked despite some great shooting against China. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

Patty Mills gets another chance at an Olympic Games. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)

I see this working well against some of the weaker countries, but I’m not convinced this style will ultimately lead to the Boomers winning a gold medal as they have openly said is the aim.

I’m not of the opinion we should be fast paced, nor a slow-down half court team.

Although we have so much NBA experience, I don’t see us having the same talent as some of the other countries.

We have to be smart and pick and choose when to run and try and get cheap baskets and when to be poised and disciplined to get the right shot.

Defence was the biggest problem for the Boomers at the 2022 World Cup when they finished 10th.

That has to improve and I think a part of that starts by controlling the tempo and getting the right shots. International teams punish bad shots, quick misses and turnovers.

While defence will be critical so will our 3-point shooting. I have already spoken about Patty Mills needing to come off the bench.

Patty has been incredible for the Boomers over a long period of time and “Olympic Patty” is a site to see!

He needs a good training camp and games to get rid of some expected rust after not playing many minutes in the NBA over the past few years.

It’s tough to just turn it on, and we saw that against China with him making only 1 of his 13 shot attempts.

I have no doubt Mills will be ready and we need him to be efficient and aggressive if this team is going to medal again, something we all believe can happen.

All of this said, we have the most talented team Australia has ever assembled.

We have a master coach who has led this team to the Boomers only ever medal three years ago.

There is belief this team can medal again, but there is a fine line between success and failure when you consider the talent around the world.

The next few weeks preparation is crucial in the lead up to what will be a very competitive Olympic Games.

Shane Heal represented Australia four times at the Olympics. Pic David Kapernick

Boomers squad for Paris Olympics

Josh Giddey

Dyson Daniels

Josh Green

Patty Mills

Danté Exum

Jock Landale

Duop Reath

Joe Ingles

Jack McVeigh

Will Magnay

Matthew Dellavedova

Nick Kay

- Shane Heal is a four-time Olympic basketball star for the Boomers, including captaining the 2004 Athens Olympic team. He is writing exclusively for news.com.au during the Paris Olympics.