Australia will count on Matthew Dellavedova and Thon Maker in FIBA window / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: FIBA Credit FIBA

Basketball Australia announced the 12-player roster for the upcoming third window of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Asian Qualifiers.

Thon Maker

Team:Hapoel JerusalemPosition:CAge:25Height:216 cmWeight:101 kgBirth place:Vau, SudanProfileNewsStatistics

The lineup is headlined by the return of Tokyo Olympic medalist, Matthew Dellavedova. The defensive-minded guard also played in Window 3 of the last World Cup Qualifiers against Japan and the Philippines.

The NBA champion (2016) averaged 10.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 4.8 assists for Melbourne United over 27 NBL games this season. He returned to play in Australia after 8 seasons in the NBA.

Joining Dellavedova as a returnee from Window 3 of the previous Qualifiers is Thon Maker. Both will be facing Japan once again in this Window and are also scheduled to play against China twice.

Maker made headlines during the start of the 2021-22 season when he joined Hapoel Jerusalem. As a former NBA player, it was expected for Maker to be one of the main guys on the team. However, things did not work out quite as well.

The center only averaged 2.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assist for a measle 1.6 PIR and was ultimately released by the club on December 13th.

He later joined an NBA G-League club Long Island Nets where Maker averaged 7.9 points and 6.5 rebounds in 21 matches.

The Boomers will be coached by Brian Goorjian for the first event since the Tokyo Olympics.

"I'm really excited by the depth of basketball talent in Australia, we have put together a competitive list of players, six who are playing as Boomers for the first time. We know what China and Japan will bring to the table and what it will take for the win."

"We can expect Thon Maker at 7 feet to be a significant asset for us, alongside Delly, White, and Froling there is a lot to like with this group. We only have a short time to train together, but we will make it count, I know the home crowd will give us the advantage," said Goorjian, per BAS.

In Window 3, Australia will be playing at the John Cain Arena in Melbourne, Australia. They start off the window against China on June 30 and will play them again on July 3. In between on July 1 is a rematch against Japan.

Australia has already qualified for the next stage. The team sits first in Group B, as it won all 3 games.

Full squad:

Matthew Dellavedova Mitch McCarron Will McDowell White Sam McDaniel Wani Swaka Lo Buluk Todd Blanchfield Clint Steindl Jack White Jack McVeigh Keanu Pinder Thon Maker Sam Froling

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