The draw has been set for the 2010 FIBA World Championships to be held in Turkey and Australia has found themselves with a relatively tough schedule, but then again, there was never such a thing as an easy ride for the Boomers.
The Aussies have been drawn in Group A, along with Serbia, Argentina, Australia, Jordan, Germany and Angola. The big, glaring elephant in that group is Argentina of course — the top ranked basketball nation in the world currently (yes, that’s right USA fans). Serbia are no slouches either and never have been.
As part of the first round, the Boomers face all five of the other nations in their group. If they fall out in the top four, they will cross over to face a team from Group B, ranked inversely by where they finish. You guessed it, Team USA is part of that Group B, meaning that if Australia qualifies fourth in the first round, they’ll no doubt be hit by the might of the Yanks. Could we see another Patty Mills v Chris Paul show?
None of USA’s opponents in Group B are likely to offer them much resistance, so the Boomers’ aim will be to push for third position or better in the Group stage. Assuming that Argentina pulls out top rank, followed possibly by Serbia (ranked 5th in the world), then the battle continues with the remaining teams. The Boomers will face tough opposition in Germany, who despite being a wild card entry, are the 7th ranked team in FIBA’s listings after Eurobasket 2009. Dirk Nowitzki is reportedly keen to play, despite Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban’s firm stance against NBA players being “contracted out” to international competition.
Angola are ranked one position behind Australia in those same rankings (12th and 11th) and are traditionally the powerhouses of Africa, despite previous strong ribbings from the likes of Charles Barkley in Barcelona. Their competitiveness makes perhaps Jordan the only country without the necessary pedigree (despite the props attached to their country’s namesake) to cause the others trouble in getting through to the next round.
It should make for a very interesting tournament. More analysis to come here soon.
The four groups are as follows:
Group A: Serbia, Argentina, Australia, Jordan, Germany, Angola
Group B: Croatia, Brazil, Tunisia, Slovenia, Iran, USA
Group C: China, Turkey, Russia, Puerto Rico, Ivory Coast, Greece
Group D: Lithuania, Lebanon, France, Spain, Canada, New Zealand
