2026 Aussie Hoops Wish List
From a fix in Brisbane, to the play of the Toronto Tempo, this is our 2026 Australian basketball wish list.
As we bring 2025 to a close our attention as Aussie hoops fans moves toward 2026.
It will be another massive year, with regular competitions plus a few FIBA World Cups in the mix.
From a fix in Brisbane, to the play of the Toronto Tempo, this is our wish list when it comes to Australian basketball in 2026.
Josh Giddey the All-Star
Australia’s one and only NBA All-Star is Ben Simmons, but surely this is the season he will be joined by Josh Giddey.
The All-Star Game’s new format (USA vs World) has played into Giddey’s favour, but regardless of that, the Aussie has been truly exceptional. At the time of writing he already has seven triple-doubles to his name, which equals his season-best number, he averages 19.5 points, 9.1 rebounds and 9.2 assists, and is shooting the three-ball at almost 40%.
If the Bulls can avoid dipping too far below 0.500, Giddey should be seeing his name in lights.
An Opals World Cup medal
In September the Opals make their way to Germany for the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Cup.
The Opals have medalled in seven of the last eight tournaments, however, taking home silverware isn’t quite as automatic as it was during the early and mid-2000s.
The exciting thing for Aussie fans will be the furthered development of the young players that played a crucial role in the Opals bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Jade Melbourne, Ezi Magbegor, Alanna Smith and Izzy Borlase are likely to all be in Germany and playing a bigger role than they did a year ago.
The Aussies will need to be very good to feature in one of the last two games of the tournament, but they have the talent to do something special if they can put it all together.
Crocs show out
It’s now been over a decade since Australia’s last medal at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup.
The 2014 team that took home silver in a tight gold medal match against Team USA, featured Isaac Humphries, Jack White, Tom Wilson, Harry Froling, DJ Vasiljevic, and Kuoat Noi.
Can a new batch of Aussie youngsters cement themselves as players to watch for the future? Perhaps the time is now.
The team qualified thanks to an emphatic gold medal at the U16 Asia Cup in 2025, and if they can carry that type of play on, they should be in the mix for a chance at the final four in Turkey.
Greater WNBL parity
The first season of the WNBL with its new ownership is missing one thing, and it’s something that has impacted the competition for a while now; parity.
For the second season in a row, we are currently on track for just three dominant teams to finish the season with a win-loss record over .500. Last year there was a stunning seven wins between third and fourth, and this year that mark currently sits four with plenty of games still to play.
This is likely to be the fourth year in a row both Townsville and Perth make the playoffs, which is a testament to both franchises. Yet in an eight-team competition with only four final spots, this is far from ideal for the league as a whole - especially when the Tasmania Jewels join next season, and the league has grand plans to grow further.
It’s a very difficult thing to fix, and it is what competition around the administrators around the world strive for, but here’s hoping the gap between the top and bottom of the WNBL closes sooner rather than later.
Bullets sort it out
The NBL needs a strong Brisbane side.
The Bullets haven’t made the playoffs since 2018/19 and have only finished with a win-loss record over .500 once since they returned to the competition back in 2016.
This current campaign started out with some promise, with a proven marquee NBL import added to the squad, a great local talent recruit in Alex Ducas added to the squad and the return of key pieces in Casey Prather and Tyrell Harrison.
However, it has all fallen to pieces, they now find themselves 6-14 and searching for a long-term, stable, head coach. It seems NBL26 in now a write-off, but it will be a monstrous offseason for the Bullets.
Big season from the Toronto Tempo
To the shock of many, Sandy Brondello was fired as head coach of the New York Liberty just a year after winning the franchise’s one and only WNBA title.
It didn’t take long for new expansion team Toronto to snap up the highly regarded Aussie, taking over a team that doesn’t even have a team, yet.
We saw in the recently completed WNBA season that it is possible for expansion teams to be competitive from the jump, with the Golden State Valkyries clinching a playoff berth with a 23-21 record.
The expansion draft will be crucial, and if Brondello and her front office can nail that, there’s no doubt the star Aussie coach will be able to produce a solid first season for the WNBA’s newest team.