Josh Giddey display leaves Boomers fans salivating ahead of World Cup

Australian NBA star Josh Giddey has gotten the Boomers off to a promising start in their quest for FIBA World Cup glory, verging on a triple-double in Monday night's 97-41 win in a practice match against Venezuela. The OKC Thunder star put up 14 points, eight rebounds and nine assists before he was pulled early in the fourth quarter, the game well and truly in hand.

Giddey's passing ability was on full display and big ban Duop Reath was the main beneficiary, collecting a game-high 26 points in a confidence-boosting display for the Boomers frontcourt. The only sour note for the Aussies was Chris Goulding, who appeared troubled by his right knee a couple of times throughout the game.

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Elsewhere, veterans of the brilliant 2021 Paris Olympics run Patty Mills and Joe Ingles showed they haven't lost a step since the breakthrough Bronze medal in Tokyo. Mills added eight points and four assists and Ingles had 12 points of his own in a well-rounded display.

For fans though all eyes were on Giddey, with the 20-year-old set to be the centrepiece of the national team in the years to come. Commentator and NBL legend Andrew Gaze likened Giddey's 'silver service' to that of Magic Johnson, adding that while Mills would be captain of the team for the foreseeable future, Giddey would be it's driving force on the court.

The Giddey-Reath show launched Australia to an early 12-2 lead before the 17th-ranked tourists hit back with a 9-0 burst to close to 12-11. It was never close again - however head coach Brian Goorjian said taking care of the ball was something that needed to improve.

"We turned the ball over a lot," Goorjian said. "The cornerstone for us moving forward is the defensive end of the floor.

"I really believe as we grow, we're going to be OK offensively. Defending and rebounding, we did a good job of that tonight."

Boomers dominant in FIBA World Cup hitout despite injury concerns

Goulding pulled up sore in a collision early in the fourth quarter of the Monday night rout before calling for a substitute and limping off to receive treatment. He returned to the bench in the dying minutes with his knee iced but in no obvious discomfort.

Goulding's injury, on top of the absence of Jock Landale (ankle), are the Boomers' primary concerns leading into the World Cup in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia, which starts next Friday. In Landale's absence it was Reath, who played under Boomers coach Brian Goorjian with Illawarra's NBL team in 2021-22, pressing his claim for selection in the final 12-man squad, top-scoring with 26 on 86 per cent shooting.

Veteran Ingles caught fire from the perimeter and captain Patty Mills completed a miraculous four-point play as the Boomers extended their 27-16 quarter-time lead to 54-23 at halftime. Venezuela misfired seven first-half airballs before being forced into 10 third-quarter turnovers in the face of the Aussies' smothering defence.

The Boomers' ball use became sloppy in the fourth and they were outscored 12-2 during one ugly stretch.They will want to tidy that up on Wednesday when they take on Brazil, who defeated South Sudan 85-75 in the earlier game.

With AAP

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