Joyce: We want to beat the best

MELBOURNE (Paulo Kennedy's View from Downunder) - Make no mistake, when Australian Opals coach Brendan Joyce picked his 24-woman squad for Rio this week he was thinking of little else but gold.

Of course, in international basketball, the almost always means one thing.

"You look at for you to win, who's the best? The USA are the best," he said when I chatted to him about the Olympic campaign last year.

There's no doubt everyone involved with the Opals knows there's plenty of work to do to even face the US, especially with host nation Brazil their first assignment in Rio.

But after so many near misses - three silver and two bronze at the past five Olympics, and a hard-fought 12-point Semi-Final loss to the USA at the 2014 FIBA Women's World Championship, there is a sense that there’s no point playing bridesmaids again.

While some think the Americans, winners of the past five Olympic gold medals, are unbeatable, Joyce doesn't agree. However, he is certain trying the same old approach isn't going to dethrone the champs.

"If you break all their players down individually can they be beaten? The answer is yes," he said.

Joyce's plan for the Opals has been finding a way to beat the US all along, trying to find as many ways to match their incredible line-up.

"We're not going to have as much talent as the US but we want to be as close as we can athletically from a quickness point of view," he said. "The one thing you can count on with the US is there isn't a slow player on their team."

Usually, opposition teams have tried to force the US into a slow-paced game, but their 32-game major tournament winning streak suggests that isn't really working.

"If you think you're going to beat them with a bunch of players that are slow, or you think you're going to play a slow game and control the tempo, it's not going to be happen, because the USA, with their speed and their size can play both (speeds)," Joyce said.

"You can control the tempo when you've got the ball, but when you haven't got the ball they're always going to be running down your throat … We've got to be able to defend them, because if we can't defend them we’ll never beat them. It’s about putting a balanced group together."

Joyce feels the best way to slow the USA is to stop them from penetrating and forcing the defence into rotations.

"When you come up against the best players in the world like the USA - Diana Taurasi, Lindsay Whalen, Sue Bird - their guards are extremely quick," he said.

"So if I'm looking for players to play against them I'm thinking, 'Who can stay in front of them?'. Erin Phillips, lateral quickness, lateral movement, she can defend those girls, and (Tess) Lavey brings a point of difference, in respect to she can get up the court and defend those guards and turn them."

According to Joyce, there's another huge factor when it comes to defending the athletic Americans.

"The other important factor is length, it's not to say we won't have any small players in our team, but across the board if your players are long it gives you so much versatility," he said.

"Look at Rebecca Allen, she's 6ft 2in (1.88m) and she's got a wingspan of 6ft 5in (1.95m) or 6ft 6in (1.98). She can gap a player and they'll think they can get their shot off but she gets a piece of it."

Joyce is hoping an Opals team with a combination of length and speed will make it harder for the USA to find mismatches in the 24-second shot clock, forcing more contested shots and creating more opportunities to rebound and run.

"It allows you to switch a lot of screening action, and the USA are probably the best example, the length and quickness of their athletes allows them to disrupt teams offensively because theirs is consistency with their length, so they switch a lot," he said.

And that's why Joyce wants a team mostly filled with players who can get down in their stance and defend at a high level when it's their turn, even if only for a few seconds late in the shot clock.

"If they can't run fast and they can't jump high then they can't play against the best players in the world," he said bluntly.

"Let's talk about the best players in the world. Diana Taurasi is a 6ft 2in (1.88m) point guard who's long and quick. Candace Parker is 6ft 4in (1.92m) with a 6ft 7in (2.01m) wingspan who can play 1-5 and dribble the ball like a guard and pass. Maya Moore is the best three in the world who can shoot step-backs, make crossovers and beat people off the dribble.

"Now, who in Australia that can just play basketball without athleticism and quickness can guard them? They can't. To be a great defensive player you need athleticism and quickness.

"When you play against the best players in the world, and they're quick, athletic and skilful, you get exposed."

It's no surprise then that 10 of the 12 players who helped Australia to the third step on the podium at Turkey 2014 - holding five of their six opponents under 60 points - are included in the Opals squad ahead of Rio, nor that WNBL defensive player of the year Steph Cumming was also named.

The true stars will make the final squad, but if Joyce is true to his word, the rest will then come down to who proves they are part of the best, most athletic defensive combinations the Aussies can put on the floor to stop the USA and take gold.

"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.

"So forget about talent, the question most coaches need to ask themselves is how do you win?"

Opals squad: Rebecca Allen (SEQ Stars), Suzy Batkovic (Townsville Fire), Sara Blicavs (Dandenong Rangers), Abby Bishop (University of Canberra Capitals), Natalie Burton (Perth Lynx), Elizabeth Cambage (Shanghai, China), Stephanie Cumming (Dandenong Rangers), Katie-Rae Ebzery (Sydney Flames), Cayla George (Townsville Fire), Kelsey Griffin( Bendigo Spirit), Laura Hodges (Bourges, France), Lauren Jackson (University of Canberra Capitals), Rachel Jarry (SEQ Stars), Alice Kunek (Melbourne Boomers), Tessa Lavey (Perth Lynx), Tess Madgen (Melbourne Boomers), Lauren Mansfield (SEQ Stars), Carley Mijovic (Perth Lynx), Leilani Mitchell (Adelaide Lightning), Elyse Penaluna (Melbourne Boomers), Erin Phillips (LA Sparks), WNBA), Stephanie Talbot (University of Canberra Capitals), PennyTaylor (Phoenix Mercury, WNBA) Marianna Tolo (LA Sparks, WNBA).  

Paulo Kennedy

FIBA

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