Interesting choice. I too am glad it was not Anstey or CJ - I just didn't they they were the right people for the job. And yes, there are not many more options.
Fingers crossed for Beijing - now only 15 days away.

Hmmm, there is obviously a lack of options for the captaincy. I'm not a fan of awarding the captaincy to someone who misses more national team games than he plays. Is Nielsen even a chance of starting at the Olympics?!?!

If you are going to give the captaincy to someone who can't play all the games though, why not give it to Bogut? Your captain needs to be a guy who leads from the front when the pressure is on in a big game. Someone who everyone respects and can rally the troops when the going gets tough.

I know Nielsen was once pretty committed to the Boomers, but that was a few years back, before he started playing in Europe and it was more difficult for him to play every game for the national team. He doesn't seem to have the same commitment anymore, if missing those games to visit family is any guide.

Nielsen is a good choice.

I personally think Andersen would have been a better choice considering his age and experience (and the fact he isn't Anstey or CJ).

Decent enough choice considering the alternatives.

(Went to a preview of a crappy movie last night - The Forbidden Kingdom, with Jackie Chan and Jet Li, seriously don't waste your time with it - and at the end, there was a moment where the boy-becomes-hero character looked exactly liked Matt Nielsen and I almost laughed out loud.)

"I know Nielsen was once pretty committed to the Boomers, but that was a few years back, before he started playing in Europe and it was more difficult for him to play every game for the national team. He doesn't seem to have the same commitment anymore, if missing those games to visit family is any guide"


bit harsh on that, he paid his own insurance premium (over $10k) just so he could play, and not miss out ala the World Champs..

de cap should be Bogut ..he most famous and best playa aus has .. nobody lisen to a lessa light .. peopl only lissen to da best !!!

yeah thanks for that home boy.

as gay as playa sounds and types. he has a point.

Why should Bogut be captain on this squad?

Nielsen, Andersen and Bruton (before he went down) were more credentialled, even Anstey...shudder.

Bogut is young, immature in International experience.

Bogut is young, experienced, best aussie talent by FARRRR and our biggest cahnce of placing a medal.

good enough?.

would have thought anderson as he doesnt miss a lot of games

Captain = most experienced

Therefore it should be Nielsen or Saville

(Bogut next olympics)

Anderson has certainly put himself out a lot more in terms of the preparation for this team.

I am surprised it was not him.

DB5, fair call if he coughed up his own insurance money. I didn't know that. That shows good commitment.

I wouldn't say it qualifies him for captain though. I'm just disappointed because he has played so few mins with the guys and really done nothing in the preparation games that I can see to make me think he will have any real impact at the Olympics. Hopefully Matty is reading this and goes out and kicks some Euro ass next month! LOL

I don't think its fair to call Bogut too immature to be captain either. As I recall, when we played at the last worlds, Bogut and Sammy Mac were the only players on the entire roster who looked capable of winning their match up in intl competition.

Since then, Bogut has played 3 years in the NBA and established himself with the Bucks. He has impressed his team so much that they actually started running their offence through him last year and have clearly made him one of the franchise cornerstones.

It would be pretty hard to achieve what he has without a great deal of maturity and commitment. Especially because nobody in the US expects a big Aussie white guy to be anything other than a stiff in the NBA.

Imagine all the doubters Bogut has had to fight from the day he was drafted #1 overall. I STILL read posts from Bucks fans on their forums saying what a big useless lug he is!

Anyway, I probably went a bit overboard making my point, but I think Bogut's talent, intensity and role on the team make him a much better option to captain than Nielsen.

If Sammy Mac were playing I'd give it to him... but there really aren't too many locally based, credible options after him, so I would have given it to Bogut.

Nielsen is a good choice as long as no stress balls are thrown at him :P

By immature, I was referring to his experience in international 'ball playing for the Boomers.

Nielsen this time or even Andersen.

Bogut in London 2012.

If u look at the roster the oldest and most capped players are CJ and Anstey

Should be either one of those, with Sav and Matty next in line

Patty Mills is the Capt of the future

I think the captains role should have gone to someone who is a full time NBL player. Citizenship aside, you would have to say they are more Australian than the ones who spend all their playing time overseas.

EC, that was my first thought, but I also think that on a basketball team the captain needs to be the guy who can rally the troops by making big plays. With Sammy Mac out injured, and Anstey clearly passed over by Goorj, I just don't see any NBL based players who will have that kind of impact.

That's why I think, once you start considering overseas based players, the conversation should start and end with Bogut. He had a massive impact on the Boomers when he debuted for them just before he joined the NBA. Since then I've seen him take over and win games for the Bucks in the NBA.

If the Boomers are going to be successful, Bogut should be at the centre of everything. What better way to make that point to the players than make him captain?