Giddey eyes elusive medal

Australian Boomers star Josh Giddey was just 18 years old when the Boomers won that memorable bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

It was tough watching on, not being a part of it.

History was made. The country's first medal of any colour in men's basketball, across 15 Olympic campaigns - and Giddey missed it.

So when you talk about going to the Paris Olympics, no player is more excited.

“It’s tough when you get cut. You think the world has ended and everything has turned into not-very-good-stuff. But I look back at it now and it was probably the best thing for me,” Giddey told The Herald Sun.

In those three years, Giddey has put together quite a basketball pedigree. He was named in the NBA’s All-Rookie Second Team in 2022 and played a huge role in Oklahoma City’s transformation into a serious Playoffs contender.

He’s now moved on to the Chicago Bulls, where he’ll have a point to prove too.

But before that, Giddey’s eyes are on one prize – an Olympic medal. If his performance at last year's World Cup is anything to go by, he'll be absolutely vital to the Boomers' chances. 

“Gold is the benchmark, it is what we are setting our sight on and anything less I don’t think guys will be overly satisfied with,” he added. 

The Boomers’ Olympic preparations begin this week, with two games against China in Melbourne on Tuesday and Thursday night.

A squad of 17 will be trimmed to 12 in the days following, before the team heads to Paris for the opening ceremony on July 26. 

Read the full story here >> Tokyo pain to drive Boomers star Josh Giddey to new high at Paris Games