The Australian Boomers are set to showcase their best – ever team to the world in August this year with news Wednesday that Ben Simmons will indeed be playing in the FIBA World Cup. However, they are likely to be without another important piece for their World Cup tilt – Dallas Mavericks sharpshooter Ryan Broekhoff.
As Broekhoff awaits the arrival of his first child, the Australian team, packed with startling athleticism and crafty play makers, will be looking for a three-point punch off the bench. And while few Australian players could possibly fill Broekhoff’s shoes in this regard, it’s time to turn our attention to those players who will negate the hurt that his loss could bring to a team that has absolutely everything else at its disposal.
Chris Goulding
If you’re not from Melbourne, you probably love to hate this guy. But if one thing is for sure, it is that he won’t die wondering from behind the arc. Goulding is a volume shooter, and at times lacks consistency. But when he’s on fire, it’s “goodnight” for the opposition.
Goulding’s game has developed over recent seasons, and he has shown maturity in his play making ability and his shot selection that suggests offensively he could be a real benefit to the team. His defence is still questionable at this level but one thing he has above most of the other options is World Cup and Olympic experience – and that must count for something. Chris Goulding has a career 38% three-point shooting accuracy, which dropped to 35% in 2018/19.
Cameron Gliddon
Cam Gliddon is “Mr Dependable” for the Brisbane Bullets and for the Australian Boomers Asia Qualifiers’ team. Gliddon is a sound decision maker who, unlike Goulding, doesn’t fall in love with his own shot. It is rare that you see him take an ill-advised shot, and when he’s open, he’s money as shown in his 39% three-point clip in the 2018/19 season.
Gliddon has the length (6’6’’ tall), smarts (as shown in his 2.2 to 0.9 assist-to-turnover ratio) and defensive resolve to be a solid contributor for the Boomer’s world cup team. And at 29 years old, with 7 years NBL experience, he is now an experienced campaigner who is ripe for a call up. If Cam Gliddon doesn’t get the call up to this particular Boomers major tournament it is hard to imagine him getting another chance at this level again given the plethora of talent emerging at his position. If Cam Gliddon is to make his mark with the Boomers, the time is now.
Todd Blanchfield
Todd Blanchfield was meant to be ‘the next Brad Newley’. And seeing as his career also started at the Townsville Crocodiles, and that he possesses a type of length and athleticism that is rare in Australian guards, it’s not hard to see why. But Todd never quite reached the heights that Newley reached, and whilst he’s been knocking at the Boomer’s door for the better part of a decade, he has never stepped through it for a major tournament. 2019 could be his year.
In the 2018/19 season, Blanchfield averaged 13.8 points per game and shot at an impressive 41% from the three-point line. His game has also reached an overall maturity that has made commentators and fans take notice. Blanchfield has gone from being an afterthought for Melbourne United to being an undisputed star in Illawarra, where he has revitalised his career.
A Boomers cap would be an awesome way for him to finish off the season and he appears up to the task. With the likely absence of Ryan Broekhoff, Todd Blanchfield warrants serious attention.
Mitch McCarron
Mitch McCarron plays with the kind of hunger and ferocity that exemplifies the Australian Boomer’s style of play. He is an undersized combo-guard/forward who rebounds well above his height and who consistently provides a scoring punch and helps stretch the floor for Melbourne United.
Mitch also is solid inside the paint, where his shooting accuracy is at 48 %, and he’s reliable at the three-point line, where his accuracy sits at 38 %.
The only question that lingers for McCarron is whether he is up to competing with the kinds of bodies he will see at a major world tournament. In the NBL vs. NBA series last year Mitch was a non-entity, and it would have to concern Boomers selectors that against players with NBA athleticism he may not be able to play his natural game. But Mitch should be given every chance to prove himself in selection camp.
David Barlow
David Barlow is the Benjamin Button of the NBL. The guy ages like fine wine. At 36 years old, Barlow has just finished perhaps his best ever season in the NBL, averaging 11.0 points per game and shooting the three at 41% for Melbourne United.
There were countless games last season when a timely David Barlow three either shot Melbourne out of a hole or put a dagger in the heart of the opposition. Barlow also has a wealth of international experience, is a dual-Olympian, and still has the size and athleticism to contribute at that level. Could David Barlow do a David Anderson for the Boomers and become instrumental off the bench for one last spin-of-the-wheel?
It’s certainly a possibility. Expect Barlow to at least make the selection camp as the Boomers coaching staff scramble to fill the hole left by Broekhoff.
Kendall Stephens
Stephens is a surprise inclusion to the list for most readers who may not even know who he is. But there’s one thing Kendall Stephens can do, and that is shoot.
Kendall Stephens is a 6’7’’ Australian-American wing – the son of ex-NBL import Everette Stephens – who has just been signed to the South Melbourne Phoenix due to the 38% three-point shooting clip he maintained across his four-season college career at Purdue in the Big Ten.
While not a lot is known about Kendall Stephens, or whether he has ever even considered playing for Australia, his ability to shoot the rock should at least launch his name into the conversation. Stephens struggled in the Spanish Liga ACB and only lasted three games when recruited by Monbus Obradoiro. However, what he could do in the right system is still a tantalising unknown worth exploring.
Projected Line Up for Australia’s 2019 World Cup Team
Todd Blanchfield/Cam Gliddon