Team Australia cuts Matisse Thybulle from 2024 Olympics roster, Ben Simmons still noticeably missing

As countries are beginning preparations for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris later this month, Team Australia officially announced that two key players will not be on the Boomers’ roster.

Matisse Thybulle has been cut from Team Australia and Ben Simmons, who initially planned on playing for the Boomers in 2024, will remain off the national team while he continues to recover from a nagging back injury.

Matisse Thybulle has been cut from Team Australia

Australia has cut Matisse Thybulle from its Olympic roster, per ESPN pic.twitter.com/AF6G7QKR6p

— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) July 5, 2024

Matisse Thybulle will not be part of the Australian team at the 2024 Olympics. Despite being healthy and willing to play, he was not included in the final roster announced by the coaching staff on Thursday, as reported by ESPN Australia’s Olgun Uluc.

Team Australia: Boomers Roster Details

• 8 NBA Players: Dyson Daniels, Dante Exum, Josh Giddey, Josh Green, Joe Ingles, Jock Landale, Patty Mills, Duop Reath
• 2 International Players: Former NBA player Matthew Dellavedova, who is now a member of a member of the NBL’s Melbourne United, and Nick Kay, who plays for Japan’s Shimane Susanoo Magic
• 2 Newcomers: Jack McVeigh and Will Magnay, who both play for the NBL’s Tasmania JackJumpers

Mills, Green, Ingles, Dellavedova, Exum, Landale, Reath, Kay, and Thybulle were all part of the team that won bronze at the Tokyo Olympic Games three years ago. Thybulle also played for the Boomers at the FIBA World Cup last summer.

Still no Ben Simmons for Team Australia

Also absent from Team Australia is Ben Simmons, who was supposed to play for the Boomers in 2024, but a season-ending back injury derailed the plans.

The Nets ruled Simmons out for the rest of the 2023-24 season as he chose to undergo treatments for the nerve impingement in his lower back. He recently had a partial discectomy to alleviate the complication.

Since being acquired in the middle of the 2021-22 season, Simmons has only played in 57 regular season games due to back issues, which have significantly impacted his availability and performance for Brooklyn.

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Simmons has been a hot topic for Australia as he has yet to play for the national team since the 2013 FIBA Oceania Championship.

He chose not to play for them in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after a tumultuous 2021 postseason with the Philadelphia 76ers, stating that he wanted to “work on his game.” However, he faced criticism when he was seen on vacation in London with his girlfriend instead.

Australia, the top Oceania team in last year’s FIBA Basketball World Cup, will compete in Group A at the Summer Games. They will play against Canada and the winners of the Pre-Olympic Qualifying Tournament from host nations Spain and Greece.

The Boomers claimed a bronze medal run in the previous Olympic Games, their highest finish in tournament history.

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