Whoops. Wrong link

https://au.news.yahoo.com/thewest/a/25978671/china-basketball-series-gets-the-chop/

I was underwhelmed the two times I attended. With the shenanigans that went on during the last series I'm not surprised.

Good idea. Such a waste of time.

In reading the article, I interpreted it as Tourism Perth/WA dropping the series.

LC - Basketball Australia didnt make the arrangements for it to go ahead so Tourism perths hand was forced.

It wasn't a bad way to introduce people to the Boomers program, with a number of members of the 2013 and 2014 teams graduating from it. Hopefully BA finds another pathway because there aren't many players who really made a spot their own last year and we need pressure coming up from below.

Hmmm, well I agree that the standard of the Chinese opposition wasn't great, but we do need a series in Australia every year to generate interest in the Boomers. Are we going to get decent Euro teams out here to play a series every year?

It's pointless playing against a team of such low calibre.

Why don't we play against NZ more often? They're right there and they don't suck...

"miami d team or Jazz d team !! build nba links"
How is that supposed to attract Chinese viewers?
(Which was the WHOLE point of the series promoted by Tourism WA.)

Unfortunately just shows what a bunch of idiots are running BA. Why sign a 4 year contract and then fluff it after only two years.
They're just extraordinarily lucky that Tourism WA were happy to walk away, had they been dealing with a private promoter they would have been taken for breach of contract.

As for "preparation for the Olympics," well it remains to be seen what European teams will be interested in travelling across the world to play Australia???

Will be interesting if Tourism WA tries to establish a replacement tournament?

would be a positive move to some how form a relationship with the NBA....right now!!

There's a lot of things that would benefit Australian BBL. However we need to have something to offer in return. The Wildcats are trying to demonstrate that the NBL is a good alternative to the D-League for some players, but aside form that I'm not sure what we have to offer the NBA?

Unfortunately I feel its the same with European teams. What have we got to offer?

Apparently we have tentative dates set for games and training in Europe this year. I would rather we pursued that in the lead up to the qualifying series against NZ than to play China's C team which is probably comparable to a SEABL team.

I am sure up and coming players will have their shot in early games in Europe before the big guns make themselves available. They might get obliterated but nothing teaches quicker than a baptism by fire. It wouldnt hurt to get your blanchfields and creeks and Greenwoods playing against say, the Ukraine before Fiba Europe.

This is what we want! REAL competition. We need a good preparation against New Zealand - Because they are just the type of nuggety-bastard over achievers that Australia use to be. They are just the type of team we are susceptible to losing to and a lot is on the line this year.

Isn't Aussies % of players by nationality in the NBA quite high !!! That would suggest that the potential is there if you calculate per head of population and those playing basketball

They are two different series GWB, one a pathway and the ones in Europe preparing for NZ. I wonder if this a funding based decision and development loses out for now. Understandable given how tough NZ could be this year.

Flip side is they won't have BJ this year, sad for Sixers and for BJ, bonus for Aussies

When it comes to beating New Zealand it really depends who we have available. Bogut is talking like he wants to play Qualifiers and Olympics this time around - if we get him and most of our top players in we should really be in great shape. In regards to Pauls comment, I don't think taking a year off development will really hurt us. There are about 20 guys in the running for Boomers spots in the next 2 years, and most of those probably wouldnt even do a Sino series.

I would be looking at a squad like the following for the Euro training camp.

Delly
Mills
Ingles
Baynes
Bogut - Miracle
Exum
Bairstow
Broekhoff
Motum
Jawai
Goulding
Gibson
Drmic
Jois
Simmons
Blanchfield
Petrie
Greenwood
Maric
Maker
Bolden
Barlow
Kickert

That is like 23/24 guys making for 2 teams of 12. Some of those guys pick themselves... some would be just training fodder... but the competition would be healthy and it would give some young guys a look. I expect if everyone is healthy the team will be much the same as last times team maybe with Simmons included.

Loving Petrie at the moment. Those flying blocks and rebounds. Sensational !

Judging by last season, I think Lemanis may have a fairly small squad (16-18) from which he chooses his team pretty quickly to play games through Europe.

Two mistakes I think Lemanis made in the lead-up to Spain 2014 were not getting many games in 2013 and then picking a straight 12 early in 2014, rather than keeping 14 and making decisions after a few practice games.

My squad of 18:

Bogut, Baynes, Andersen, Jawai
Bairstow, Motum, Petrie, Simmons
Newley, Broekhoff, Blanchfield
Ingles, Goulding, Exum
Mills, Dellavedova, Gibson, Martin