Philadelphia Sixers' Ben Simmons, Matisse Thybulle named to Australia's preliminary Olympic team inquirer.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from inquirer.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Ben Simmons, Matisse Thybulle, Joe Ingles named in star-studded Boomers squad for Tokyo Olympics
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WedWednesday 3
FebFebruary 2021 at 1:20am
Ben Simmons says he is hopeful of being able to play for the Boomers at the Olympics.
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Ben Simmons says it would be an amazing honour to play for Australia and is hopeful of playing for the Boomers at this year s Olympic Games, after being included in a star-studded 24-man squad.
Key points:
Melbourne-born Ben Simmons is now an NBA All-Star but says he wants to play for Australia at the Tokyo Olympics
Simmons is one of a number of NBA players named, along with Matisse Thybulle, Joe Ingles and Patty Mills
Green, a rookie out of Sydney, will be looking to make his debut with the Boomers, while this is the first time Thybulle a dual citizen of Australia and the US has officially been named to any Australian national squad.
Ben Simmons is a star and a routine triple-double threat for the 76ers, but an under-the-radar teammate is starting to make noise as a defensive stalwart.
Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images We are both excited to again be named in the Australian Boomers squad and we are determined to lead this group of both veteran experience and exciting younger talent to an elusive Olympic medal, Mills and Ingles said in a joint statement.
Wednesday, 3 February 2021
Two-time National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Ben Simmons headlines the Australian men s basketball squad for this year s Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Simmons, who plays for the NBA team Philadelphia 76ers, is set to make his Olympic debut after he was named on Basketball Australia s 24-strong team for Tokyo 2020 that was announced today.
The 24-year-old was named as an NBA All-Star in both 2019 and 2020.
The Australian men s team are currently ranked third in the world and will be coached at Tokyo 2020 by Brian Goorjian, who also led the country at Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008. It would be an amazing honour to play for my country, Simmons said.
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