Australian radio interview with Coach of the Australian National Basketball Team

Hi all, I was listening to 702 AM, ABC Radio Sydney and caught the second half of an interview with Brett Brown who is the Head Coach of the Australian Boomers (National Bball team). For your information, Brett Brown was a long time assistant coach for the Spurs throughout the past decade and some of the championship seasons.

Here are the main points that I heard:

When asked about the experience of the Australian team.
Coach Brown admitted that the team was not very experienced, however said that the young players proved to be very promising for what could be a possible golden age for Australian basketball over the next decade. He stated that Matt Nielson and ex-Rocket David Anderson were the most experienced Boomers who have proven themselves in European competition, and their experience will be very important for the upcoming world championships.

The interviewer then asked if this means that Coach Brown only sees the WC as a stepping stone to gain experience for the London Olympic games of 2012.
Coach Brown said that is simply not the case. The Boomers are taking the WC very seriously and will not simply look at the cometition as a steping stone.

About the strength of their group, which includes Argentina.
Coach said that he wil not take any of the teams likely and that the Boomers will work hard for every win regadless of who the opposing team is. He listed Argentina and Serbia as the strongest teams in the group. Argentina has several NBa Players such as our very own Scola, and Serbia has a young nucleus that looks very strong.

The Boomers' game plan for the WC?
Coach Brown said that they will work hard for every game, however they consider their goal to be 3rd in the group or better. Coach doesn't want to settle to make the next round as the 4th team because it would most likely mean the next round would be a matchup against Team USA.

Who are the leaders of the Australian team?
Without hesitating, Coach named Matt Nielson as the outright leader. He has the most experience and is the official captain of the Boomers. He is also a very vocal and defensively intense player. He named David Anderson as a quiet leader, very much like Tim Duncan. He won't say too much, but when he does, te entire teamnotices and respects what he says.

Who are the teams to beat?
He says Team USA is the obvious choice with the many allstars they can choose from. Even without Lebron James, Kevin Durant can just step in and be the superstar of the WC. He says that Spain and Argentina are also incredibly strong with medal experience. That rounds his top 3.

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If anyone else heard the interview and had other comments to add, please do so as I did not hear the whole interview.
Thanks

 

Does anyone think Newley can ever make the Rockets' squad, as a 12th man at least?

 

Yes, Andersen will definitely be a part of the World Championships. He is seen as one of Australia's long serving players. I think it is fair that Matt Nielson is the captain however. I also think that Nielson deserves an NBA contract more than Andersen ever did.