The final match of Brian Goorjian as Boomers coach, it was a lost match when his team was leading by 24 points. Australia was thus knocked out in the quarter-finals by Serbia (95-90).
In his second stint at the helm of the team, which he previously coached between 2001 and 2008, Brian Goorjian won bronze at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. But this is the second time the Boomers have gone out early while aiming for a medal. That was also the case at the World Cup last summer.
“That was the plan all along… I think I played a big part in that process and it's time to step away from it.”, he explained just after the Boomers were eliminated. “When I get off the plane, I will leave proud of my contribution over the 16 years I have been involved with the Boomers.”
The start of a new project
Patty Mills, Joe Ingles or Matthew Dellavedova could retire from international duty and leave with the coach. It would be the end of an era for Australia.
“I like the culture, I like the team situation”says Brian Goorjian. “I like the group I left with and I like the group I leave with, including the coaching staff. I just think it's a really exciting time for Australian basketball. If you watched these Games, I'm not ashamed of anything.”
The future of the national team must now be embodied by the youngsters, notably Josh Giddey, but a new coach will be needed to give new impetus to Australian basketball.
“For the sustainability of a national team program, you want someone who probably knows the Australian system a little bit better and how things work here.”considers Andrew Bogut. “Basketball Australia needs to start from scratch, start with a pool of ten to fifteen (candidates), whittle that down to five and then do in-depth interviews. That's the best way to do it. Have Australian candidates, European candidates, American candidates.”
