Point guard Patty Mills will front up Australia's campaign at the London Olympics in fine form after taking part in the NBA postseason.
But while Mills is almost certainly a lock after a breakout campaign in Beijing, Boomers coach Brett Brown has plenty of other talent to put around his young playmaker as he looks to cut down his 25-man squad to 12.
Mills, playing off the bench for the Western Conference top-seeded San Antonio Spurs, is the only member of Brown's squad currently playing in the American competition.
Giant Victorian Andrew Bogut, a centre for the Golden State Warriors, is normally a mainstay of the Australian national team but ankle surgery has ruled him out of the hunt for an elusive Olympic medal in London.
Brown will have a myriad of options from which to select his final 12-man Boomers side with 10 prospects currently plying their trade in European leagues, nine from the NBL and five from the US college system.
"Our first camp will effectively be a 'melting pot' of players from various backgrounds and this very early start will enable us to begin moving forward while we wait for our core European players and Patty Mills to return," Brown said.
"How far our players stretch across the globe is a testament to the talent identification and developmental programs delivered by Basketball Australia and the AIS.
"I have great Aussie talent competing all over the world at my disposal."
Five Australian hopefuls are capable of filling Bogut's sizeable shoes at centre, and two of those have tasted limited NBA action.
Journeyman big David Andersen, who will turn 32 in June, had stints with Houston, Toronto and New Orleans but did not play in the lockout-shortened 2011/12 competition.
After a strong season for the Sydney Kings, Julian Khazzouh was given the opportunity to try out for Golden State during the NBA preseason and saw some brief court time before ultimately being waived.
But the NBL's 2010/11 MVP runner-up continued to turn in solid performances in Sydney and finished the regular season leading the league in rebounds per game (10.8) and fifth in average points per game (16.4).
Three players from the 2011/12 grand finalist Perth Wildcats side - Damian Martin, Jesse Wagstaff and Matt Knight - join Khazzouh and five other NBL players in the 25.
Sydney-born forward Nathan Jawai has also seen game time in the US, having played for the Raptors and Minnesota Timberwolves in the NBA, and five members of the squad have honed their games in the NCAA college basketball system.
Brown said that he was excited about having to narrow down such a talented roster.
"Our coaching staff is excited to extend invitations to this group of athletes who have earned the right to be considered for the Boomers London Olympic Games team," he said.
"We have identified these players, worked with these players, and watched their growth over the past four years.
"The large majority of this squad has participated in several camps, tours, and world events during my time as coach, and now each of them has the opportunity to take it one final step and represent Australia at the London 2012 Olympic Games.
"This invitation is a tremendous honour and is a result of years of hard work and dedication."
Brown aims to have the fittest team in the competition leading into London, and said he is confident with how the Boomers' preparations will play out.
"All of the athletes understand that we need to arrive into London with the best fitness base of the 11 other countries. This is our main goal," he said.
"Each player will arrive into camp with this in mind, and only here can we truly begin a very serious campaign and focus as we prepare to play the world's best. Our players understand this.
"I am beyond excited to continue on in the final stages of our four-year plan.
"We have not skipped steps along the way and I have complete confidence that we can achieve special results with the players and staff that we have assembled."
The Boomers will assemble in Perth for their first training camp on June 3 ahead of the tournament's opening tip on July 29.
Boomers squad: Anatoly Bose (Sydney Kings), Peter Crawford (Townsville Crocodiles) Matt Dellavedova (St Mary's), Anthony Drmic (Boise State), Adam Gibson (Gold Coast Blaze) Hugh Greenwood (New Mexico), Damian Martin (Perth Wildcats), Patrick Mills (San Antonio Spurs), David Barlow (UCAM Murcia), Ryan Broekhoff (Valparaiso), Mitch Creek (Adelaide 36ers), Joe Ingles (Spain), Brad Newley (Valencia), Brock Motum (Washington State University), Matthew Nielsen (BC Khimki), Jesse Wagstaff (Perth Wildcats), Mark Worthington (Gold Coast Blaze), Nathan Jawai (UNCIS Kazan), Daniel Kickert (PGE Turow), Matt Knight (Perth Wildcats), AJ Ogilvy (Valencia), David Andersen (Montepaschi Siena), Aron Baynes (Ikaros Kallitheas), Julian Khazzouh (Sydney Kings), Aleks Maric (Panathinaikos).
Tags: basketball, olympics-summer, sport, australia First posted May 01, 2012 20:35:11
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