Despite many vocal hoops tragics thinking Nick Kay shouldn't have made the Boomers squad he played a key role in the team, often taking on the toughest defensive assignments (listen to him talk about guarding Kevin Durant) and nailing a number of clutch three-point baskets when needed.
Nick joins the show to talk about making history by winning the Boomers first Olympic medal, his experiences with the team, Boomers culture night, playing for Brian Goorjian, how close he came to playing for the JackJumpers and his plans for this season in Japan.
Topics include...
Nick's take on the team emotional after the Boomers bronze medal win (2:00) The Boomers culture and stories from the team's culture night prior to the Olympics (5:00) How the squad came together and added to the foundation built from the 2019 World Cup squad (7:30) A covid scare in Las Vegas puts the team's Olympic chances in jeopardy (9:30) Aron Baynes goes down and how it changed the squad (11:30) Facing the USA in the semi-finals (13:00) Comparing the 2019 Boomers team to the bronze medal squad differs from the fourth-place finishing FIBA World Cup squad in 2019 (16:30) Looking at guys who choose against playing in the Olympics to secure NBA contracts and whether that works (18:00) Preparing to play in Japan and how close did he come to playing for the JackJumpers this season (21:00) Guarding Kevin Durant (24:00) How the 2019 NBL championship won under COVID-19 conditions sits with him (27:00) The negative reactions he received from social media when Nick made the Boomers squad (28:00) documentary and his involvement with the Australian Boomers program (33:00)Visit dunk.com.au for your next set of basketball uniforms.
Listen to our previous interviews with the biggest stars in Australian Basketball, head to Aussiehoopla.com. Check out previous podcasts featuring;
Australian Basketball Legends - Luc Longley, Andrew Gaze, Shane Heal, Mark Bradtke, Leroy Loggins, David Andersen, Andrew Vlahov, Phil Smyth, CJ Bruton, Chris Anstey, Brett Maher, John Rillie, Tony Ronaldson, Damian Martin
Current NBL Stars - Jack White, Dejan Vasiljevic, AJ Ogilvy, Daniel Kickert, Thomas Abercrombie, Jason Cadee, Bryce Cotton, Chris Goulding, Mitch McCarron, Cam Gliddon, Anthony Drmic, Brad Newley
Our Finest Coaching Minds - Brian Goorjian, Barry Barnes, Joey Wright, Adrian Hurley, Aaron Fearne, Rob Beveridge, Ian Stacker, Shawn Dennis, Dean Vickerman, Trevor Gleeson, Lindsey Gaze, Ken Cole, Will Weaver, Bruce Palmer
NBA Stars Past & Present - Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova, Stephen Jackson, Randy Livingston, Torrey Craig, Acie Earl, Josh Childress, Reggie Smith, Todd Lichti, Ryan Broekhoff, Doug Overton, Donald Sloan
The NBL's Greatest Imports - Darryl McDonald, Ricky Grace, Derek Rucker, Leon Trimmingham, Scott Fisher, Lanard Copeland, Mike Mitchell, Darnell Mee, Isaac Burton, Adonis Jordan, Shawn Redhage, Willie Farley, Al Green, Corey "Homicide" Williams, Andre Moore, Steve Woodberry, Gary Ervin, Ebi Ere, Doug Overton, Kevin Lisch
And the men who run things - Larry Kestelman, Mal Speed, Paul Maley, Vince Crivelli, Jeremy Loeliger, Chuck Harmison, Jeff Van Groningen, Bob Turner
All that and much more.
Follow @AussieHoopla on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or email us at info@aussiehoopla.com