Basketball World Cup: Australia def. Georgia 100-84, end disappointing tournament on high
The Boomers ended their demoralising World Cup on a winning note, now with all eyes turned towards Paris 2024, will coach Brian Goorjian be there to lead the team?
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A fired-up Brian Goorjian has confirmed he will coach the Boomers at next year’s Olympics, revealing he will return home to Melbourne and take a lengthy break in preparation for a “last shot” at the podium in Paris.
Goorjian didn’t hide his passion after the Boomers finished an underwhelming World Cup campaign on a positive note with a 100-84 win over Georgia.
The master mentor took aim at the critics, declaring he has full faith in the roster as they immediately start planning for the path to Paris 2024.
Goorjian was announced as the Boomers head coach through to this year’s World Cup, but he says he’ll “100 per cent” coach at next year’s Olympics.
“I’ll be preparing for that for certain,” Goorjian said in the post-game press conference, shorting before Boomers veteran Joe Ingles cheekily said: “He better.”
Goorjian faces an uncertain future on the domestic front after the East Asia League disbanded the Bay Area Dragons – the Hong Kong based team that he had been coaching.
The legendary coach was informed of the decision to axe the Dragons before Australia’s clash against Slovenia on Friday.
Goorjian is disappointed about Bay Area’s demise, but told Code Sports he’ll use the time off to fully prepare himself and the Boomers for the Paris Games.
“It (the Dragons folding) was a shock because I was ready to jump to that, but as I weighed it up it’s a positive because the Olympics are so close,” he said.
“I can spend some time now watching NBL games, watching NBA games and have a total focus on this last shot.
“I’ll have a little break. I’ve done it year round for a long period of time, so now I get an eight, nine month break just to focus on getting better and the Boomer team getting better.
“I’m taking the high road on that.”
Sunday’s final Cup clash didn’t count for anything, but it served as a vital opportunity to experiment and hone with a view to the future.
Goorjian was proud of his side’s response against Georgia – and despite failing to reach the World Cup podium as planned – he is confident that the bumps in the road experienced in Japan will only make the Boomers better.
He also had to make big decisions in the lead-up to this Cup campaign, like parting ways with program stalwarts Aron Baynes and Matthew Dellavedova.
“I knew when I re-signed to come back to this that I’d have to do some nasty stuff and that we’d be in a position of change,” he said.
“But I told the group afterwards that I’m not embarrassed.
“I’m going to go back to Melbourne with my head held high that this isn’t a continuation of Rose Gold.
“I do think we had a chance to medal (at the World Cup), so that is going to be a goal, but I also knew with change, inexperience and style of play – was a process that was going to take some time.”
Goorjian believes this year’s World Cup has helped him discover the Boomers’ identity moving forward.
He admits the team has some “holes” and it requires another big, most likely Jock Landale, and more shooters.
“But again, the picture is clear,” he said.
“We are not a set play team, we are going to be a pressing team, a running team and we’re athletic.
“We’ve got a nice group of young guys that can play at this high level.
“We’re going to switch and go down with pace, so there is a really clear vision here.
“And with Giddey, what does it look like and it’s going to be really special.
“I think we’ve got the most potential to grow.”
Veteran Patty Mills provided a timely reminder that he’ll be very much part of the plans for the Paris Games with a classy display against Georgia.
Mills had 16 points at the break before finishing with a team-high 19 points, including 3-8 from range.
The Australian captain had five turnovers in the first-half, but this was also a by-product of the Boomers’ attempts to move the ball.
Mills desperately wanted to leave the World Cup with another medal to add to his Olympic bronze from Tokyo, but he is looking at the bigger picture for Paris.
“It was obviously a disappointing result for us this World Cup, but it was important to the playing group that we finish this thing right, and the big picture here doesn’t change for us, it’s the gold medal,” Mills told Code Sports.
“If you look at this thing back six weeks ago and the new and the young guys that we added to this program and where our program has elevated to, this is a building block for us.
“It’s notches on the belt, and the best thing for us is that we’re back at it ten months later.”
Big man Duop Reath produced his best performance of the World Cup campaign.
Reath looked dominant in the paint to drop 16 points, including 3-3 from range.
Boomers conductor and future face Josh Giddey was again solid, finishing with 15 points and four assists.
Guard Dante Exum also proved his worth as a lock for the Paris Olympics, dropping 18 points, including 3-5 from three.
Exum was excellent and he’ll only get better after penning a two-year $6.2 million NBA deal with the Dallas Mavericks.
Emerging guard Dyson Daniels, who had only played 10 minutes at the Cup, checked in with a tick over three minutes to go in the game.
INGLES RESPONDS:
Boomers veteran Joe Ingles is preparing for potentially his last Olympics at Paris next year, declaring: “you’ll have to kill me to get me out of here”.
Ingles, who turns 36 in October, is pumped about the prospect of helping the young core of Boomers build sustained success in the green and gold.
The NBA swingman is coming off a frustrating World Cup campaign.
The staple of the Australian program and Rose Gold hero has averaged just 5.8 points and 26.7 from three.
On Sunday against Georgia, Ingles pushed aside more frustration with the officials to rediscover his shooting mojo.
The Orlando Magic signing had six first-half points, including two of four from range.
Ingles finished with 10 points on 3-7 from range.
He now has his sights set on playing at the Paris Olympics and being a teacher to the likes of Giddey and Green.
Ingles has come a long way from the skinny 20-year-old starting in the Australian program alongside Mills.
“Now being on the flipside of that and being the old guys looking at the Giddeys and the next group of young guys,” Ingles said.
“From my point of view, the excitement around that and how I can help these guys.
“As you get older you realise that I’m at the other end of my career. It is going to end one day and it’s a lot sooner now than what it was three or four years ago.”
Mills knew Ingles - his Rose Gold buddy – would hit back after scoring zero points in 26 minutes in Friday’s loss to Slovenia.
“When there’s noise around Joe, that’s when he’s at his best,” Mills grinned.
“So pumped for him and again, it’s just money in the bank for a big ten months coming up.”
Potential Boomers team for Paris Olympics:
LOCKS: Josh Giddey, Patty Mills, Ben Simmons, Josh Green, Dyson Daniels, Dante Exum, Xavier Cooks, Jock Landale, Joe Ingles
NOT LOCKS: Duop Reath, Nick Kay, Chris Goulding, Jack White
BOLTERS: Dejan Vasiljevic, Tyrese Proctor, Alex Toohey, William McDowell-White, Rocco Zikarsky, Johnny Furphy, Harry Wessels, Ben Henshall
RECAP ALL THE KEY MOMENTS AS THEY HAPPENED IN THE WIN
Q4, 5.55: AUS 91-71 GEO
Dante Exum is up to 18 and Patty Mills has 19 for the Boomers and they’re about to close out their disappointing World Cup campaign with a positive — it’s been good to watch, but also a bit of too little, too late. Would have liked to have seen some Dyson Daniels, but it’s not looking good. The Boomers have 25 assists on 32 made field goals. It’s been a night of sharing. Chris Goulding
3QT: AUS 79-67 GEO
Georgia wins the quarter but Dante Exum continues to enhance his international chops. He’s scoring and dishing to his teammates. The control of pace from Exum has been most-impressive — he’s never out of control and adept at using his athleticism to get in the lane — 15 points and four dimes for the new Dallas Maverick.
Five Aussies are in double digits now with Joe Ingles hitting his third three-pointer of the game
Q3, 4.54: AUS 65-48 GEO
The Boomers have maintained the lead of around 17 throughout the third with an 11-11 stalemate. Georgia isn’t laying down but the Aussies have kept them at bay through Duop Reath (13), Dante Exum (12) and Josh Giddey (11). Mills had 16 at halftime.
HT: AUS 54-37 GEO
Patty’s on fire — again.
He had nine straight in the second and up to 16 points.
Where has this three-point shooting been in the tournament? The Boomers’ best effort was nine makes for the game in the loss to Germany.
They already have 10 and are shooting a white-hot 63 per cent from deep.
The Boomers have had 11 turnovers for the half, but Georgia hasn’t made them pay.
Mills has five of those turnovers to go with four assists in an interesting night for the 35-year-old Boomers’ legend.
Dante Exum has been great with eight points and three assists, while Duop Reath also has eight.
Q2, 3.06: AUS 48-31 GEO
Patty’s heating up. He’s in double digits now with 13 — nine-straight in the second — and they’ve opened up a 17-point lead. Game-winning stuff.
Q2, 6.09: AUS 36-23 GEO
Dante Exum has had an impressive tournament and he’s heating up with eight points for the Boomers. Duop Reath has a pair of threes and the Boomers are a scorching 6-10 from deep for basically the first time this entire campaign.
Jack White has checked in early after hardly featuring in the last couple of games and former Perth Wildcats coach Trevor Gleeson is with me in wanting to see some of the Boomers who haven’t had huge opportunities at the tournament.
“I’d like to see a bit of Chris Goulding out there and Dyson Daniels early in this game,” Gleeson said on ESPN.
QT: AUS 23-17 GEO
You can tell this is a dead rubber. There’s a distinct lack of urgency, both teams are fumbling and turning it over six times each. Sloppy stuff. Patty Mills has four of those six turnovers while Josh Giddey leads the Boomers scorers with six, Georgia’s Giorgi Shermadini with eight. No sign of Dyson Daniels yet — with an Olympic-berth already sealed, here’s hoping the Boomers’ senior players and coaching staff push to give him some exposure in a game that doesn’t mean all that much, apart from some ranking.
Q1, 4.27: AUS 15-12 GEO
Giddey scored the first bucket on the game — overpowering the Georgian guards and finishing at the hoop, as he has done regularly in the tournament. Then he showed a little flair in the post with a nice turnaround step back for the Boomers first four. The tournament’s over, but the Boomers are finally hitting the three — Duop Reath, Nick Kay and Josh Green all connecting from deep. We’re on Dyson Daniels watch — really hoping the veterans push for him to play heavy minutes. No Tornike Shengelia for Georgia — the former NBA big man is their leading scorer at the Cup but has suffered an injury.
5.20PM: BOOMERS STARTERS
Giddey
Mills
Green
Kay
Reath
Hopes of a look at maybe Dyson Daniels in the starting line-up don’t come to fruition.
BOOM-TIME FOR PARIS
Australia’s World Cup medal hopes are over but this is day one on the new path to the Paris Olympics, which presents the Boomers with a chance to start blooding the next generation now.
Sunday’s final World Cup clash against Georgia won’t count for anything, but it serves as a vital opportunity to experiment with the line-up.
One train of thought that has been floated is to give emerging guard Dyson Daniels more game time to see how he fits into the squad.
Daniels has only played seven minutes at the Cup, but he could be given more time to prove himself against Georgia.
The Boomers could also opt to lean in on experienced guard Chris Goulding – who has only played six minutes at the Cup.
Goulding is a proven perimeter threat – a quality the Australians have lacked at this year’s World Cup.
The Boomers have also been undersized – a problem largely sparked after losing big man Jock Landale to an ankle injury in the warm-up games.
Ingles has turned down multiple open looks throughout the tournament, but former Boomer Mark Worthington says there are factors at play.
Worthington believes Landale’s injury on the eve of the World Cup has impacted the NBA swingman.
“I say that because when Joe has been at Utah and Milwaukee last year, he is part of that second team unit where he gets people into pick and rolls, he is playing off the pick and rolls and he is crafty,” said Worthington on the Hasbeen Hoops podcast with fellow Boomers legend Chris Anstey.
“The way that Joe finds his way into the game is with the ball through his hands. He is a very unselfish player but he makes great decisions.
“The injury to Jock meant we went small ball and it meant Joe had to play more of a four-man power forward role, setting screens and he was in unfamiliar spaces on the floor.
“So, his level of comfort that he had on the court wasn’t quite there.
“I would have assumed that Joe could have been part of that second unit where the ball was going to go through him to be able to facilitate more and free up other people.
“So, I don’t blame Joe for probably having a lack of confidence but I blame the situation.”
The Boomers take on Georgia in their final World Cup game from 5.30pm (AEST) on Sunday.
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Originally published as Basketball World Cup: Australia def. Georgia 100-84, end disappointing tournament on high
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