The Australian Boomers have announced an extended 24-player squad for the FIBA Asia cup qualifiers.
The Boomers will play the New Zealand Tall Blacks in Brisbane on Feb. 20 before they are hosted by Hong Kong on Feb. 23 in preparation for the defence of their 2017 Asia Cup title.
The young squad, will as expected be without its NBA superstars and also without newly announced head coach Brett Brown.
Will Weaver will take the reins in Brown's absence in his own first stint as head coach.
The squad is headlined by Mitch Creek, Chris Goulding, David Barlow and Nathan Sobey who were all members of the 2019 World Cup squad that finished fourth.
The squad is heavily influenced by the demands of the NBL season, with all Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats being exempt with the understanding that any players participating in NBL finals will also be unavailable.
Due to the unavailability of a number of key contributors, Basketball Australia have taken the opportunity to inject some youth into the squad, with the likes of Kouat Noi, Will Magnay and Harry Froling included in the extended squad.
"We're fortunate to have so many talented players eager to step up whenever they have the chance to represent Australia," Weaver said.
"It's always a tremendous honour to be part of the Boomers program and we are excited for this group to start the journey of qualifying for the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup on home soil against New Zealand in Brisbane."
The final team for the qualifiers will be announced ahead of the first game on Thursday Feb. 20.
FULL SQUAD:
Anthony Drmic, Adelaide 36ers Harry Froling, Adelaide 36ers, Nathan Sobey, Brisbane Bullets, Cameron Gliddon, Brisbane Bullets, Matthew Hodgson Brisbane Bullets Jason Cadee, Brisbane Bullets, Will Magnay Brisbane Bullets Tamuri Wigness, Centre of Excellence Kouat Noi Cairns Taipans Mirko Djeric, Cairns Taipans Josh Giddey NBA Global Academy Todd Blanchfield, Illawarra Hawks Daniel Grida, Illawarra Hawks Emmett Naar, Illawarra Hawks Sunday Dech, Illawarra Hawks Sam Froling, Illawarra Hawks Angus Glover, Illawarra Hawks Chris Goulding Melbourne United David Barlow, Melbourne United Mitch McCarron, Melbourne United, Mitch Creek, South East Melbourne Phoenix Dane Pineau, South East Melbourne Phoenix, Kyle Adnam, South East Melbourne Phoenix Adam Gibson, South East Melbourne Phoenix