Boomers can do "something special"

Australia has the chance to do “something special” at the Olympics, according to Andrew Bogut, after the Boomers recorded an impressive win over Serbia this morning.

Facing three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic, the Boomers used a strong defence to slow Serbia down and notch a 84-73 victory.

Speaking on NBL Media’s The Gold Standard, Bogut believes Australia’s defensively driven roster has a chance to make this Olympics campaign a memorable one.

“I’m looking forward to seeing how they come out and play, but we have a chance to do something special I think, just with the way we’ve got a gritty, long, athletic group defensively that can cause some problems,” Bogut said.

“Gold medal is always the goal. I think a short-term goal in this tournament for us is getting out of this group alive because it’s a tough group, but it’s get to the top four and then it’s a free roll, right?

“Someone catches fire, ref makes a bad call, those kinds of things come into play once you’re in the top four, you kind of create your own luck.

“We were real disruptive. If we can make our staple at the defensive end, it takes so much pressure off. We don’t have to come down that other end and score. We can have bad possessions offensively, all right, who cares? We’re going to go back and get a stop.”

The Gold Standard, featuring Australian basketball legends Bogut and Newley, will headline NBL Media’s Olympic coverage. The duo will analyse the Boomers’ on-court performance, while also breaking down all the latest news from the squad in the lead-up to the Olympics and during the tournament.

Bogut is a three-time Olympian, having represented the Boomers in 2004, 2008 and 2016. Newley has also been on the biggest stage, playing for Australia at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.

The Gold Standard is available on all of the NBL’s digital channels.