Ben Simmons intends to represent Australia in Paris Olympics

2022-11-06 07:09

Ben Simmons says he is going to the Olympics: "It's not a question – it's a dream of mine."

Credit: USA TODAY Sports-Scanpix, FIBA
Credit USA TODAY Sports-Scanpix, FIBA

Ben Simmons has not suited up for the Australian national team since he was drafted in 2016.

Putting his shooting numbers from long-range aside, that's another area where a Brooklyn Nets player has to step up. And his plans exactly to do so.

"I was in the middle of the shit," Simmons recalled the situation with Tokyo Olympics last year when his life entered freefall.

Ben Simmons

Ben  Simmons
Team: Brooklyn Nets
Position: SF, PF
Age: 26
Height: 208 cm
Weight: 104 kg
Birth place: Australia

"Of course, I wanted to go out there and play with Dante Exum and Joe Ingles and Patty Mills – those are my guys. But there's only so much to say: I was in a bad place, and I didn't play.

Do I want to play for Australia? One hundred percent. Will I one day? One hundred percent. I'm going to the Olympics. It's not a question – it's a dream of mine. But I'm also not going to let people tell me when and how I do things," Simmons hinted his intention to join the Boomers in the 2024 Paris Olympics, via The Sydney Morning Herald.

Simmons represented Australia at the 2012 FIBA U-17 World Championship at age 15, helping the team win a silver medal.

A year later, after participating in the Australian Boomers camp, Simmons made his senior debut for Australia in the 2013 FIBA Oceania Championship against New Zealand.

Following two games in the 2013 tournament, the 26-year-old missed the 2014 World Cup, 2016 Rio Olympics, 2019 World Cup, and 2020 Tokyo Olympics.



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