WNBA: Australian Alanna Smith has been left shocked after a controversial foul called against her has resulted in Game 5 of the WNBA finals going to overtime. The New York Liberty would go on to with the championship.
The 2024-25 NBA season tips off today, with 14 Australians on show — from already established players in new situations to emerging talent with big opportunities.But now, with the season finally here, we give one final update on what sort of role you can expect from every Australian in the NBA this year amd how they fared in the preseason.
Should Simmons start at point guard as anticipated, it could reignite the debate about his fit next to Claxton given the way the Nets’ offence spluttered with two non-shooters sharing the floor.JOSH GIDDEY Giddey was extension eligible this offseason and while he didn’t come to an agreement with Chicago before the deadline for rookie extensions, it means it is ultimately now a case of Giddey betting on himself to prove how much he is worth — whether that is to the Bulls or a rival team.
Green was heavily involved early in Charlotte’s preseason action but then sat out their next game for rest and was unavailable once again last Friday, with the Hornets not specifying if he was suffering any injury. But it was Daniels’ work on defence that was the talk of the locker room, with Young describing his new Australian teammate as “one of the best defenders in the league”.“It helps our defence, it kills time off the clock. That’s what teams try to do versus us, they try and pick me up full-court and get the ball out of my hands and trying to use clock before we get across half-court.
“It’ll be fun to play with him again. A lot of that stuff comes natural once we get out there together again, you just automatically go back to some of the things that happened. Obviously different coach, different system, whole different state but excited to be back out there with him and Mike.”You know what you are going to get from Mills at this point of his career.
“I think there’s a lot here that I’m naturally good at being able to help some younger guys develop and create a strong foundation base here in Utah for the Jazz to be able to build on over the course of many, many years. While Furphy didn’t get to play in the preseason he did impress at Las Vegas Summer League, averaging 14 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, and 1.8 steals in four games.
In other words, as valuable as Thybulle’s defence and veteran presence is, he could hardly afford to miss the start of the season given the competition for minutes in Portland’s rotation.Like Thybulle, Reath looks buried in the rotation and may struggle to find regular minutes outside of specific match-ups or game situations where Portland needs a floor-spacing big.
The Houston front office seems to have recognised it too, with McVeigh surviving the roster cuts and likely to remain on a two-way deal which will see him play for both the Rockets and the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, their G League affiliate.Unlike Reath and Thybulle, McVeigh isn’t the kind of player who needs big minutes to have an impact and could be a valuable shooting piece for Houston off the bench moving forward.
It means he returns to the Rockets for another year, although there is still a level of uncertainty surrounding his future beyond that point given the fact Landale’s contract is non-guaranteed next season.
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