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20 November, 2017
26 February, 2019
13 Miroslav Raduljica (SRB), 6 Andrew Bogut (AUS)
04/01/2018
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Bogut would like to sign off with medal triumph at Tokyo 2020

LOS ANGELES (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Asia Qualifiers) - Australia center Andrew Bogut is hoping to cap his international career by winning a medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

The Los Angeles Lakers center battled back from injury to play for the Boomers at the Rio 2016 Games, helping the Boomers  to an impressive fourth-place finish.

"I'll be 36 or 37 [in 2020]," he said in an interview with Australian Associated Press (AAP). "It would be nice, but you never know what happens and I'm just taking it year by year."

Australia had six NBA players in their 2016 Olympic side and could have even more in Tokyo. At the same time, their NBL stars have proven themselves to be big talents in their own right, helping the country go unbeaten in their FIBA Asia Cup 2017 title winning campaign, and getting off to a 2-0 start in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers, that got underway in November.

The Boomers won at Chinese Taipei and at home against Japan in November.

Bogut said "the guys that we have had have done a great job so far" in the Qualifiers, but added: "We could fill a whole Australian team with NBA players, so it's exciting.

"Hopefully I'm still running around and the body feels good.

"It would be my fourth Olympics and I'd love to be involved with it and, being greedy, we have a chance to be really good with a squad of NBA players with Ben Simmons, Patty (Mills), Dante (Exum), Delly (Matthew Dellavedova), Baynesey (Aron Baynes), Joey (Joe Ingles)."

According to Bogut, the elite group will likely first come together at the World Cup.

"That will be the plan," he said, "While it's a tournament, it's actually a qualifier for the Olympics so most of the guys who commit for the Olympics will likely commit to both years and I'll probably do the same.'

Under FIBA's New Competition System, qualification for the Olympic Games will be achieved through the FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Therefore, the Boomers must qualify for China 2019 and perform well there in order to earn their place in Tokyo the following year.

Australia have a lot of work to do just to reach the World Cup. They resume their qualifying campaign with First Round games at home to the Philippines on February 22 and Chinese Taipei three days later. Both of those contests will be stated in Melbourne.

Tickets for both games are now on sale.

FIBA