It's all about the 'vibe' at Opals mini-camp in Berlin

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Australian Opals head coach Sandy Brondello her revealed first priority wasn't Xs and Os ahead of their first 2026 FIBA Women’s World Cup clash against Puerto Rico on Friday in Berlin.

The Opals are in the middle of a World Cup mini-camp after the WNBA went into its FIBA Break on Monday.

Brondello put the 12-player team – with nine World Cup debutants – through its paces at Max-Schmeling-Halle yesterday.

“I'm so first day in ‘how's the vibes’,” Brondello said.

“It's great, I get so much energy coming back with the Opals program.

“These girls, they bring so much of it, and it's been good; it feels like we sort of bring Australia with us to these tournaments.”

Brondello, 57, conceded that three days was limited preparation but would lean on the chemistry the Opals built at the Qualifiers in March and the gold-medal-winning 2025 FIBA Asia Cup campaign.

“A big one,” Brondello responded when asked what type of statement the Opals would make at the World Cup.

“That's the goal, just to get out there and show them what the Opals are about, building on what we did in March.

“We don't have much preparation, but we've been together for a longer campaign.

“I know we have some new players too, but we wanna be a tough defensive team, and we wanna play fast down the other end, but making sure that we're playing the ball, playing the game in the right way and player movement too.

Australia has been forced into two changes: Australian captain Sami Whitcomb (knee) and veteran Opals front-court star Cayla George, for a much more joyous reason: she is pregnant. George was a certainty to make the team.

It means only Ezi Magbegor, Alanna Smith and Steph Talbot have World Cup experience, while Jade Melbourne and Isobel Borlase both competed at the 2024 Olympics with Magbegor, Smith and Talbot.

Steph Reid, Alex Wilson, Chloe Bibby, Alex Fowler, Zitina Aokuso, Isabelle Bourne and Miela Sowah are at their first major international tournament.

“How exciting is that,” Brondello added.

“Players retire or, obviously, have babies, and it's an opportunity for to players to step in.

“The seven newcomers that we have here have earned their right to be here in the Opals uniform, and we expect them just to bring why they've made the Opals team and to bring the strengths that they've shown not just this year but in the years before.”