The Boomers have drawn an absolutely brutal draw for the upcoming Olympic basketball group stage.
They will face Canada, who may be the deepest squad in the tournament behind the U.S, as well as the winners of qualifying pools one and three.
These will likely be Spain, our archrivals, and either Greece or Slovenia.
Greece would mean having to deal with Giannis Antetokounmpo, while Slovenia would lead to another square-off with Luka Doncic, who is quickly becoming a thorn in the Boomers’ side.
Canada will be led by potential NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, as well as Jamal Murray, RJ Barrett, Dillon Brooks, Lu Dort, Benedict Mathurin, Kelly Olynyk and more.
New Zealand, Croatia, Egypt and the Dominican Republic are also in the tournament alongside Greece and Slovenia, vying for that qualifying spot.
Spain goes in heavy favourites in their qualifying group, hosting Lebanon, Angola, Finland, Poland and the Bahamas.
Having to finish top two to get out of the group stage, this sets up a brutal run for the Aussies, but there are no easy beats in world basketball on this stage.
The U.S have been drawn in the same group as Serbia, meaning we will see them take on the best player in the world and reigning NBA Finals MVP Nikola Jokic.
Also in their pool will be South Sudan and the winner of pool four, which contains Mexico, Ivory Coast, Lithuania, Italy, Puerto Rico and Bahrain.
Reigning FIBA World Cup winners Germany have been drawn alongside host nation France, Japan and the qualifying pool that will likely be won by Latvia, Georgia or Brazil.
The U.S have won the gold medal in the last four Olympic Games, though their hold on world basketball continues to slip as the years go on.
Meanwhile the Opals have been drawn against Canada, Nigeria and France in another fascinating pool.
The U.S go in heavy favourites on the women’s side of the draw, having won every gold medal since 1996.
They have been drawn against Germany, Japan and Belgium.
#Paris2024 Draws completed in Mies 👀
— FIBA (@FIBA) March 19, 2024
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