Delly to Captain Boomers

Melbourne United star, three-time Olympian and ‘Rose Gold’ Boomer, Matthew Dellavedova, will captain the national team at this week’s FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, set to tip-off on Thursday night at John Cain Arena.

The most experienced Boomer on the team, this series will be Dellavedova’s first appearance in the green and gold since their history-making bronze medal win at the Tokyo Olympics.

It will be an NBL heavy Australian squad, with 11 of the 12 players coming from the league.

Dellavedova headlines the team alongside NBL teammate and rising star Jack White. Adelaide 36ers captain Mitch McCarron and Perth Wildcats forward Todd Blanchfield, members of the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup winning team have been included.

Sam Froling and Jack McVeigh make their second appearances for the Boomers having previously taken the court in 2021 and 2019 qualification windows.

The team will have five debutants, with NBL veteran Clint Steindl and JackJumpers teammate Sam McDaniel named alongside championship winner Wani Swaka Lo Buluk, NBL22 Most Improved Player Keanu Pinder and New Zealand Breakers guard Will McDowell-White.

Coming off a season in the NBA G League with the Long Island Nets, Thon Maker will make his return to the Boomers fold.

Coach Brian Goorjian’s priority is to continue building the culture that strongly contributed to their Tokyo success.

“We’ve got a young group here and nobody represents the ‘Rose Gold’ better than Delly. He has the history of the culture of the Boomers, and we want a flow over from what took place at the Olympic Games, keep that momentum, keep carrying on and keep raising the standards as far as the culture of the team goes,” Goorjian told BA Media.

“We have a five-day window, so we’ve got to move quick. First day, he’s the man. We’re going to use him a lot in that role, try to touch on the culture with these young guys every day and he’ll be leading that.”

These FIBA World Cup Qualifiers will be Dellavedova’s first time captaining the Australian team and comes extra special when playing in front of a home crowd.

“It’s a great honour to be the captain, a great responsibility and not something I take lightly,” Dellavedova told BA Media.

“There’s nothing better than pulling on the green and gold and doing it in front of a home crowd, it doesn’t happen very often, so we definitely want to make the most of it.

“These games are really important for qualification and seeding. We’ve got a great group and we’re really looking forward to it.”

The Boomers will hit the John Cain Arena court this Thursday, Friday and Sunday night.

FIBA WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS SCHEDULE:

Thursday, June 30: Australia v China, 6:30pm AEST

Friday, July 1: China v Chinese Taipei, 5:00pm AEST

Friday, July 1: Japan v Australia, 7:30pm AEST

Sunday, July 3: Japan v Chinese Taipei, 4:00pm AEST

Sunday, July 3: China v Australia, 6:30pm AEST

Monday, July 4: Chinese Taipei v China, 6:30pm AEST