One more time, Ben Simmons will not participate in a major competition with Australia. Every summer there are rumors of his presence, and every summer the former All-Star forfeits. For Brian Goorjian, it is not up to him to beg Simmons to come to the selection.
“In my dealings with Ben, I always said to him, ‘I’m not recruiting you'”said the Boomers coach on ESPN. “It’s important for the country to know that we’re not saying ‘please, Ben, please, we’re nothing if you don’t play’. We’re not like that at all.”
In recovery, Simmons has not played since 2013 with Australia, and after ten years of absence, it is therefore up to him to take the first step for an experience that could benefit him after years of disappointment. .
Win-win
“In a way, it’s about telling him that he’s a great player, that his country loves him and wants to see him in green and gold, and that our team wanted him too,” continues Goorjian. “But in return, that’s really also a good thing for him. He has the opportunity to walk through those doors, leave it all behind, be himself, and play with his friends in a great culture. That’s how I see it, telling myself that it will be a very good opportunity for him and that me and the other members of the team care about him. We want him to have a great career. »
Next up could be the Olympics if Australia finish one of the top seven places in the World Cup, and here’s what the Australia manager is ready to tell him: “If you are Ben Simmons, and you play like Ben Simmons with this team, and in this culture, you will take the team to a level that it has never reached. That’s my goal in all of this.”
