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It’s time for Australia to wake up to the fact that they’ve got a sporting team playing a World Cup on home soil that they can be proud of.
The Opals are a team in the truest sense of the word.
They play a selfless style with no standout star and it has carried the world’s third-ranked team on the FIBA rankings to top spot in their group as the tournament enters the quarter-final stage.
Australia overcame a determined Japanese side 71-54 in Sydney on Tuesday night to make it four wins on the trot after dropping their opening clash with France.
Along the way they have shown bravery and skill to overcome a physical Serbian side and down world No.4 Canada by three in a thriller.
Coach Sandy Brondello isn’t afraid to yank players if they don’t follow the script or miss an assignment and the players don’t drop their lip or pout.
Lauren Jackson and Cayla George. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)
It’s a refreshing change from the individualism that talented but flawed star centre Liz Cambage brought to the table in recent years.
Her infamous pre-Olympics antics which led to her late withdrawal from the Tokyo Games were a disruption that Australia could not shrug off.
They went from upsetting the US a month before the Olympics to winning just one game in Japan to never be in medal contention.
Chemistry wise, the Opals are much better off without her and on the court they have got more than enough size to compete with the tallest timber their opposition throw at them.
Marianna Tolo, Ezi Magbegor and Cayla George have stepped up in the paint at the offensive and defensive ends while the addition of Australia’s greatest player from the retirement lounge in Lauren Jackson has done wonders.
Ezi Magbegor. (Photo by Steve Christo – Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
Jackson is only playing spot minutes but the 41-year-old still has that old magic that made her a three-time WNBA MVP.
She’s been knocking down the three-ball to give Brondello a point of difference in the rotation of her bigs and while Jackson does not move with the agility of her halcyon days, she’s come up with several savvy veteran defensive plays.
And whenever she gets on the court, it sets the green and gold faithful at Qudos Bank Arena abuzz.
The bonus for tipping their group means Australia can avoid facing the might of tournament favourites Team USA until the gold medal game on Saturday night.
They return to the hardwood on Thursday night against Belgium and will likely match up against China in the semi-finals.
Bec Allen, one of the top performers in the tournament along with fellow forward Steph Talbot after the first few matches, is hopeful of making a return from a rib injury suffered against Serbia.
Point guard Sami Whitcomb was also bruised and battered against the Serbs after copping a whack on the nose but despite being bloodied she was unbowed and soldiered on.
Bec Allen. (Photo by Steve Christo – Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
The Opals are that kind of team.
After collecting silver at the 2018 World Cup, they are again a strong chance of a medal.
A repeat of their 2006 World Cup triumph when Jackson was in her prime is not out of the question although the US are stacked with WNBA talent and haven’t looked like dropping a game this tournament in winning by an average margin of 46.2 points as they chase their fourth straight trophy since the Opals’ boilover in Brazil.
Their 121-59 walk in the park against Bosnia & Herzegovina on Tuesday was their 27th win in a row in World Cup play, breaking their national record set from 1994-2006. However they still have a long way to break the all-time mark of 56 set by the Soviet Union from 1959-86.
Jackson deserves all the plaudits that come her way for her return after more than five years since she retired due to a string of hamstring injuries which had rendered the final couple of years of her career virtually a waste.
It’s never easy for a champion in any sport to put their legacy on the line by returning, especially considering Jackson only begun her comeback a year ago as a way to get fit.
If Australian basketball supporters, all sporting fans for that matter, need any further reason to rally around the Opals, then one last chance to see Jackson’s one last hurrah should be more than enough motivation.