But it says 2014 whats the deal with that?

if he truly is playing for USA.. well then that is exactly what i said would happen! australia sleeps on another player.. and we get fucked over

I am so irritated right now. WHy does Basketball Australia sit on its hands when we get given real prospects? we should have been all over Kyrie Irving years before he made the NBA.. same goes for Thon but looks like were gonna lose our best potential talent to the USA so they can continue to beat down on us. If he has traitored australia for USA i will be seriously annoyed, dropping the country that gave you refuge so you can look cool in the US...

Not sure how well known this is.. And it's kinda off topic.. But late 2010 or early 2011 Irving came to Australia for the Boomers camp, well that was the plan, but he was told the wrong date (a month early) and so there was no camp.. He spent a week or two in Australia sight seeing, went back to America and later declared to play for team USA.

And like Marky Mark said, i'd be pissed if he turns his back on Australia to play for team USA, seeing as thought Australia gave him refuge when he needed it.

Well hate to get all racist sounding, But thats what they do. These Sudanese refuges feel absolutely NO patriotism for Australia... The only reason that Ater Majok played for Australia would be because Sudan doesnty have a team and he was forced to play for us in juniors.. if he had a bees dick of chane to represent america after living there a day, he would..

ABSOLUTELY NO loyalty to Australia... this is gonna bite us on the ass! oh well... on the upside, atleast hes going to the USA who will always win no matter who plays for them. its not like hes moved to a team we have much of a chance of beating. Basketball Australia dropped the ball... WOW, something good could have finally come of sudanese immigration... but they continue to just TAKE and leave for the firts oppurtunity.. as i said. NO loyalty

If you hate to get all racist sounding, dont take the actions of a few and apply it to a much larger group of those persons' race. The great thing about Australia being a free country is that people are free to choose the level of loyalty and patriotism they feel.

So you dont feel like it was a kick in the teeth at all? lives in the US for like a year and to hell with the country who saved him from hell?

well atleast we still have Dante Exum I guess!

Why does Basketball Australia aloow theese things to slip through the cracks? dont they stay awake on all potential talent that is on the border of being poached? pathetic!

How much leverage do you think Basketball Australia has against what the US of A can do in terms of basketball? A lot of people could get very rich of a kid like this, and those people don't live in Australia. I just hope he's surrounded by good people that have his best interests in mind.

He's obviously not Australian, cancel his passport

Settle down, it's only adidas nations teams not actual national teams..

Hurls/Hman/Marky Mark, can you relax? And stop spamming your Facebook page too BTW.

This really is a big deal made of nothing, its only adidas nations, not national teams.

the interwebz can be upsetting for some

Yep - the Adidas Nations tourney has nothing to do with any FIBA sanctioned event. To date, he possesses an Australian passport and not one that has the USA written on it.

He is still able to play for Australia. One easy way to sort it out is for BA to seelect him for an Australian national team and for him to play in a FIBa sanctioned event.

BA needs to take some tips from Australian Rugby League on how to poach players :p

LC, BA just arent that smart enough. in the NRL we seem to do that. pick karmichael hunt for australia so he cant play for NZ, James Tamou another one. BA will let them all go over to the US and wont do anything proactive to keep our talent here.

Natwhereyouat, if thats true what your saying i hope people had their Frigin Arses fired. that is dumb SH1Tango

Thon Maker turned down an opportunity to play in the Australian U/17 National Team 3 years ago. He might be a good kid but the advice he listens to is flawed and for personal gain. Get rid of that idiot guardian of his.

I dont blame him really. BA does not provide the brightes of pathways for our developing players, no money, very few NBL spots up for grabs and a limited public profile, if he was offered the opportunity you cant blame him for grabbing it. BA also try to discorage our young players from looking to the US College system, prefering them to stay and develop here, but the oportunities are very limited. Hence the stories of AIS athletes opting for AFL careers because all they can see is a black hole.

"BA also try to discorage our young players from looking to the US College system"

That's questionable.

Clapped out Hack if your talking about Stacker's working paper on the idea then your right but as it's titled its a working paper. Not signed off by anyone in BA, National Team or NBL coaches. Won't happen!

Yes probably AIS rather than BA. And to be honest probably talking out my ass, but I still dont blame him for being tempted to take that pathway. Would look a lot more inviting to a 17 year old than what can be offered here.

sitiveni, you write some rubbish on here. Aaron Baynes?

Anon, I think something will happen, it's just a matter of how far it will go, and I think some of the more radical ideas (compulsory playing time) have been well and truly dismissed already.

HO you can have Baynes, dont like him. im guessing your a kiwi. I may write rubbish but at least i write SH1Tango. dont ever see you contributing champ

Country of under 25 million up against a country of 300 million where basketball is a strong sport with massive college support. Here university sport is barely noticed. How is BA realistically going to offer brilliant pathways? Who's going to pay for something like a salaried youth league when leagues like the NBL and A-League aren't always steady? I think expectations have to be realistic.

Lol

Just read this thread and its sortof funny

Considering Thon started the Adidas nations on the African team and then switched to one of the US teams anyone who reads into this is a dope

In fact I was reading some tweets off ESPN the other day and they were talking about the US u16/u17 team try outs and said it was one of the best team's they've had for the age group.. the ESPN guy posted back and said he isnt eligible, Thon's Australian.

Sircreate that is why we love you my man. always on the ball with the facts

Sircreate.. I am glad to hear that he isnt elligible to play for the US. I think Australia needs to get this kid on a FIBA junior team and quick

MarkyMark, you need to relax man. Basketball never gave this kid a chance to show what he could do on the court. All of a sudden he gets his connections by an American coach who gives him everything he needs and trains him. Sure, Australia helped him out immensely with all the refuge but a kid would his potential should have been on an Australian team, right?

potential shouldn't get you on a rep team, hardwork and consistent performances should

Why Thon Maker did play against a junior national team where he should be playing for, is already a big question.

And wondering if any from the Australian coaching staff had this same concern since they played against Maker on the other team.

I still dont believe that there is racism going on in selection process. And of course understanding how to deal with every culture.

But if things like this one will keep on happening then there must fault somewhere that needs necessary attention and actions.

Mystro, at the age of 14 and 15, how many players are dominant then? Thon Maker is easily the best player of his age group and has the highest ceiling to get better as well. Also, you can't teach height

lol everyone stop crying about him, he isn't going to eventuate into anything, the dude is 19 years old...turning 20 next year. He is LIEING about his age. It is a known fact around where he originally started playing ball in PERTH, Australia...

His "mentor" is trying to cash in on Sudanese players and gets them to change their birth dates...to make them look like they have potential.

Australia has slept on him because he literally came out of no where...just a kid off the street that never played organised ball, and then omg all the sudden this 13 year old kid out of no where that is 7 foot...pleeeeeeeaaseeeeee.

which is why he quit his US school...........

... And transferred to another, better school in the US

http://highschoolsports.nola.com/news/article/-2296631952771391767/thon-maker-former-country-day-basketball-player-enrolls-at-the-carlisle-school-in-virginia/