Fingers crossed...
Phillips/Mansfield/lavey
Taylor/Allen
Jarry/Talbot
George/tolo/griffin
Cambage/batkovic
I believe we can only take 1 naturalised player out of Mitchell and griffin.

Most likely...
Phillips/Mitchell/lavey
Taylor/Allen
Jarry/Talbot
Hodges/Burton/George
Cambage/tolo

I Don't think Jackson will be fit and ready and if she is, will probably be a better fit at the centre position instead of pf.
Batkovic having such a stellar season makes it hard for her to make the team Imo.
Add Francis and tolo which makes it that much more unlikely.

You don't think Jackson will be fit? What could possibly make you think that?

She has a problem with her knee Currently I believe.

Kunek and Liz in the mix, that would be some interesting training drills to watch.

The 2014 worlds squad in which we got the bronze was..
Phillips/Mitchell/lavey
Taylor/snell
Jarry/Allen
Hodges/burton
Tolo/George/Richards
A 6'3 starting pf and a 6'2 backup centre is quite small.

Cambage at 6'8, Jackson or batkovic at 6'5 and moving George 6'4 and possibly tolo 6'5 over to pf will definitely improve the front line.
Very necessary since we be will probably be going up against a bunch of larger teams than previously encountered.

Possible front lines...
USA
6'8 Griner, 6'6 Fowles, 6'4 Charles, 6'5 della Donne, 6'4 Parker, 6'4 ogwumike, 6'4 Stewart etc

Spain
6'6 Ndour, 6'5 lyttle, 6'3 Gil, 6'3 Nicholls, 6'3 Torrens etc

Canada
6'6 Hamblin, 6'6 potter, 6'5 Boogard, 6'4 Alexander, 6'4 bulgak, 6'3 achonwa, 6'3 ayim etc

Brazil
6'5 Souza, 6'4 dantas, 6'4 colhado etc

Ohea is our best sf.

I thought it was that she an issue with the team or they had an issue with her.

I've met her before, she seemed much more genuine and down to earth compared to some of the others I've met.

O'hea chose WNBL none of the girls chosen wil be going to the US. They had to choose

Sorry chose WNBA

Ha? Didn't Taylor just resign to Mercury...

USA maybe?

Bird/Whalen
Taurasi/Augustus/mccoughtry
Moore/catchings
Della Donne/Parker/Charles
Griner/Fowles

Unfortunately we are in a holding pattern until the next generation comes through. Penny and LJ etc are going to their last Olympics.

In 8 years we will be back in town. This and the next Olympic campaigns will be hard to watch.

for anyone who had a bad day and needs a good laugh before bed
http://www.fiba.com/olympicswomen/2016/news/burton-evolves-into-one-of-the-most-important-opals

Gone beyond rio? Phillips, Mitchell, snell, Taylor, ohea, hodges, Jackson, batkovic.
Opals future... U30y.o?
5'10 Cole/5'7 lavey
6'1 Allen/6'1 jarry/5'10 ebzery
6'2 Talbot/6'2 Blicavs
6'4 George/6'4 penaluna/6'2 griffin
6'8 cambage/6'5 tolo

Next in line potentially....
Pg 5'7 Mansfield/5'10 Garrick
Sg 5'10 madgen/5'10 cumming
Sf 6'2 kunek/6'1 Murray
Pf 6'4 burton/6'5 mijovic
C 6'5 bunton/6'5 scherf

College seniors a possibility?
Seekamp
Nicholson
Whittle
Young

Ohea may not be on Joyce's fav player list but I'm sure the feeling would be mutual

Or maybe she's msking a living for herself while she can .... You don't get paid to be an opal , unlike every other country who actually pay their players.

Is getting paid 50,000 or so in the wnba worth giving up an Olympic spot?
Imo it's not.

Getting paid 500,000 to 1 mill in China or Russia definitely is.
But ohea is obviously not on that level. Cambage, taurasi, Moore and Parker are though...

Anyone know how much she might get for playing in France?

It makes no sense they would say O'Hea gets dropped from consideration for that reason but not Taylor or Phillips. Happy to read Phillips is back in form. What is Taylor up to anyway? She didn't go to Jan's Rio Test Event but she was replaced by Moore in China in early Dec.

I know for certain O'Hea has made herself available for selection but isn't a favorite of Joyce.

Bishop is going to WNBA as well so O'Hea playing over there isn't the issue.

The issue is Joyce. How he continues to pick Burton is laughable.

If the Opals medal in Rio it will have nothing to do with Joyce as the majority of the team can't stand him!

It is a common double standard. Rules made some player that don't apply to others.

At the end of the day Joyce did not want Jenna in his squad. Regardless of her talent he did not want her to be an Opal.

A player of Jenna's calibre is well inside the top 12 top Australia women's players.

Basketball Australia should really be thinking what the hell is going on. WNBA don't sign people year after year for not meeting the standard.

Good luck to Jenna for the 2016 season of WNBA. Your hard work and dedication has been noticed and rewarded.

Seriously though ... What is the deal with Joyce picking burton?
She hasnt proved herself in any game I've ever seen. She can run and is quite athletic but has a very poor feel for the game resulting in almost no points and a few rebounds every time she plays.

joyce would put her ahead of cambage, batkovic, Jackson, tolo, Francis, hodges, griffin, penaluna? Umm hell no!

Something definitely going on...

If I was netball Australia... I'd want her to switch codes. More money in it for burton, long term stability. ( not many players with her size and quickness). Would Make a great Gk with her height, length, speed and footwork. Imagine her beside 1 of geitz or layton. I'm very serious... Would be awesome for the diamonds. She would be the best gk in the world in the space of one season and guarantee gold at the commonwealth games.

Blicavs ahead of Talbot for opals?

Snell shouldn't have even made the world's last time.
No longer can you be a specialist. Like burton...
Garrick is a potential opal of the future and I think this was Wilsons last chance.
Imo i would also take out kunek, madgen, cumming, bishop and mijovic. No way are they making the squad.

Which leaves..
Pg/Sg 3 out of Phillips, Mitchell, lavey, Mansfield.
Sg/sf 4 out of Taylor, Allen, ebzery, jarry, Talbot, blicavs.
Pf/c 5 out of George, tolo, Hodges, griffin, penaluna, cambage, batkovic, Jackson.

5'8 Phillips/5'7 Mansfield/5'7 lavey
6'1 Taylor/6'1 allen
6'1 Jarry/6'2 Blicavs or 6'2 talbot(tough call)
6'2 griffin/6'4 George/6'5 tolo
6'8 Cambage/6'5 batkovic

If Mitchell gets the nod and griffin booted, I'd take penaluna as a pf.

I'd actually scrap lavey also and add ebzery as a combo guard.

Doesn't make sense to me..
You put tolo at centre.. and batkovic at pf.
It's definitely the other way round.
Tolo has mobility, consistent mid range shot, but a poor rebounder and a smaller body. Batkovic is the opposite.

Starting 5.
Pg/sg Phillips 5'8
Sg/sf Taylor 6'1
Sf/sg Talbot 6'2
Pf/sf Griffin 6'2
C Cambage 6'8

2nd unit.
Pg/sg Mansfield 5'7
Sg/sf Jarry 6'1
Sf/sg Allen 6'1
Pf/c George 6'4
C Batkovic 6'5

Extras.
Sg/pg Ebzery 5'10
C/pf Tolo 6'5

Reserves(next in line)
Pg/sg Lavey 5'7
Sf/sg Blicavs 6'2
Pf/c penaluna 6'4

I agree. I wouldn't put her up against della Donne or Parker as a pf. Other teams I would.
Brazil, France, Serbia, turkey, China, Belarus yes.. I would
USA, Spain, Canada, Japan no... I wouldn't.

After rio.. I see us falling back a few spots. The following tournament in 2019 will be a rebuilding phase I think.

Phillips, Mitchell, Wilson, Taylor, ohea, snell, griffin, hodges, Jackson, batkovic pretty much all guaranteed to not be there and not a whole lot of experienced talent to replace them.

The next crop.. Leading up to 2019...?
5'7 Mansfield/5'7 lavey
6'1 jarry/6'1 Allen/5'10 ebzery
6'2 Talbot/6'2 Blicavs
6'4 George/6'4 penaluna/6'3 bishop
6'8 cambage/6'5 tolo
On the cusp...
Cole, Garrick, seekamp, madgen, cumming, kunek.

Bright future...? U22 2020 and beyond...
5'10 wehrung/5'9 Molloy
5'11 Wallace/6'1 horvat/5'9 yaegar
6'1 sharp/6'1 bibby
6'4 smith/6'3 froling/6'5 mijovic
6'5 scherf/6'5 bunton
Many others in contention...

Article didn't make sense to me.
It says Griffin to be the replacement option to Taylor after rio...
Lol, their game is nothing alike and they play different positions.

Ohea has not met selection criteria.. What does that mean exactly?

No surprise Snell didn't make the camp, the writing was on the wall when she didn't make the Rio test squad.

O'hea not invited to camp for not making selection criteria? Taylor hasn't attended anything since Worlds '14 - make your requirements standards for everyone.

I think hodges is done, a 6'3 pf (almost undersized now) without a solid permiter game seems poor in today's international game.

I think George and batkovic is a nice combination upfront. Familiarity... fire teammates.

I also think Penaluna and cambage would work well together(like when they played at bulleen)

So you have 2 mobile 6'4 pfs (George, penaluna) is who can shoot from distance who are mobile, can also defend, rebound and block shots.

2 solid bodied centres, 1 6'8, 1 6'5, (ca,babe, batkovic) both who of whom can step away from the basket and post up, bang bodies whilst also providing rim protection and cleaning the glass.

Leaves 1 spot left for Jackson, tolo or griffin.
Basically a centre, a c/pf or a combo forward. Tough choice...

George being a capable centre also, I would lean towards tolo or griffin.
The international game seems to focus on transition, not sure..
Mitchell and tolo or Mansfield and griffin.

The front courts of other teams have completely changed since the 2014 worlds.
Hodges will have to come further away from the basket and guard much longer, taller stronger opponents.

japan, Canada, USA, Spain, Serbia, Brazil etc..

To use Canada as an example...
At the 2014 worlds they had ayim at centre(starting), the plouffe sisters at 6'3 and boogaard at 6'5 in the front court. No one else..

Now, they have 6'4 achonwa and 6'4 Alexander, both wnba.
6'4 superstar senior bulgak who can play 4 or 5
2 quality young 6'6 centres in hamblin and Potter.
Add 6'3 ayim who's a fantastic 4.
Potentially Add some young Canadian guards... Nurse, fields, Weisner, crozon.

USA go from 6'2 Dupree, 6'2 ogwumike who both can't shoot from the 3... an inexperienced 6'4 Stewart.
Now they have 6'5 della Donne, 6'4 Parker(who can play 3),a much more rounded Stewart..
Potentially Charles over to the 4 with 6'8 Griner and 6'6 Fowles at centre.
A plethora of others not to count out..

I agree, Charles doesn't offer much from distance but she's great on the boards.
i would put penaluna, George, griffin and even tolo out there on della Donne. away from the basket she's a spot up shooter or has the 1 dribble pull up.
Parker is harder to guard because she's a combo forward. Much better ball handler and has descent first step, less of a threat from long distance but gets to the hoop and stretches defences.

"Cayla George can probably hang with Charles and compete with her inside, but do we really want her getting drawn out to the perimeter to guard a Delle Donne or a Parker?"

She didn't prove she could effectively guard any of those players last WNBA season though.

http://www.fiba.com/news/joyce-we-want-to-beat-the-best

Joyce thinks he has a long run-and-gun team. Does he not realise his team has a core of Phillips, Taylor and Cambage?

Taurasi at 6'2? Man this guy talks some bs.

Its seems that fiba.com are happy to put out these propaganda puff pieces for Joyce.

The last one on Burton evolving into one of the most important Opals and this most recent article on the speed needed to keep in front of a player like Lindsay Whalen (probably more justification on the upcoming selections of Burton and Lavey).

"When people look at the most talent, unfortunately people look at the leading scorers. But some of those players can't defend, or they don't rebound, or they don't run hard enough the whole game," he said.

Burton has already made the side; he is always talking about how she runs well.

Can't wait till they get rid of Joyce and lemanis...
Pisses me off.

Seebohm and Goorjan please.