Mackinnon, Dell'Orso headline Boomers debutants

• Max Mackinnon and Anthony Dell'Orso, both 22, will debut for the Boomers
• Australia meet Syria on Friday and Jordan on Sunday in a Manila double-header
• Jacob Chance coaches because Adam Caporn and Dean Vickerman are both committed overseas

Brisbane and former LSU guard Max Mackinnon is following in the footsteps of his famous father Sam – he's now an Australian Boomer.

Sam played 41 times for the Boomers at Olympic Games and World Cups and now son Max has been named in the Boomers 12-player team for the second round of Asian qualifying for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar. Perth's Anthony Dell'Orso will debut for the Australian Boomers in Manila this week, in a 12 built almost entirely out of the NBL.

Australia meet Syria on Friday and Jordan on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena, both at 7pm AEST, in a double-header that opens the second round of Asian qualifying for the 2027 World Cup in Qatar.

The Boomers need to finish in the top three of Group E to qualify automatically.

Jacob Chance takes the head coaching job for the window because both of the men above him are unavailable, and for reasons that say something about where Australian coaching has got to: Adam Caporn is back with the Washington Wizards for pre-season, and Dean Vickerman has begun his tenure at Nagasaki Velca in Japan.

"It's been a little while since I was directly involved in the program, but you know I'm really lucky with my role and connection to the program," Chance said.

"I've tried to stay as involved as I can from afar and took a little bit of a break for the FIBA Asia Cup, but I've been assisting remotely to implement our philosophies and style of play for the windows.

"I think the most important thing I can do for him is help with the continuity in the windows, as the other staff have done when they're in this position.

"We've got such a great coaching support network led by Capes and Deano, and when me and the other coaches come in, our job is just to echo the same messages. Echo what it means to play for Australia and how important these windows are.

"We're really excited about this group. It's obviously a tricky time of the year with teams into deep pre-seasons all around the world. But, you know, we love the mix of guys who have played before, a couple of newer guys coming into the fold, you're seeing some guys return that have been out for a while.

"As always, we've got a bunch of selfless team-first characters that are coming in to do their absolute best for their country and do their best for our program."

Chance and Caporn have known each other since Western Australia and spent much of the past decade as co-assistants in the same program. John Rillie and Gerard Martin, of the Valley Suns, complete the staff.

Eleven of the 12 players named are on NBL rosters for the coming season. The exception is Nick Kay, the two-time NBL champion, who plays for the Shimane Susanoo Magic in Japan.

South East Melbourne supply three in Dash Daniels, Angus Glover, 27, and Tanner Krebs, 30. Melbourne United supply two in Luke Travers, 24, and Tom Wilson. Perth have Dell'Orso and Elijah Pepper, 25, Brisbane have Mackinnon and Jacob Holt, and Sam Froling, 26, comes in from Illawarra with Josh Bannan from Tasmania.

Dell'Orso arrives with the busier recent history of the two debutants. He signed with Perth for NBL27 after four seasons in American college basketball, reaching a Final Four with Arizona, and played four games for Sacramento at this year's NBA Summer League.

Both games are on ESPN.

KEY DETAILS
Australia v Syria, Friday, August 28, 7:00pm AEST, Mall of Asia Arena, Manila
Australia v Jordan, Sunday, August 30, 7:00pm AEST, Mall of Asia Arena, Manila
Competition: FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers, second round, Group E
Head coach: Jacob Chance, assisted by John Rillie and Gerard Martin
Broadcast: ESPN

THE FINAL 12
Josh Bannan (Tasmania), Dash Daniels (South East Melbourne), Anthony Dell'Orso (Perth), Sam Froling (Illawarra), Angus Glover (South East Melbourne), Jacob Holt (Brisbane), Nick Kay (Shimane Susanoo Magic), Tanner Krebs (South East Melbourne), Max Mackinnon (Brisbane), Elijah Pepper (Perth), Luke Travers (Melbourne), Tom Wilson (Melbourne)