Where does basketball fit into Australia's top 21 and under Olympic prospects?
With the 2024 Paris Olympics in the books, it's time to cast an eye towards 2028. Here are the top young athletes (including hoopers) that will likely be representing Australia.
Statistically speaking, the 2024 Summer Olympics saw Australia achieve their greatest ever national result. With eighteen gold medals and 53 in total, this impressive haul surpassed the achievements of Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004, meets where Australia had won sixteen and seventeen golds respectively. On the basketball side, the Opals (women’s) secured bronze in Paris, while the Boomers (men’s) had picked up a third place finish of their own at the Tokyo 2020 edition. As we now look towards the Los Angeles 2028 games, here are the top young Australian athletes to watch out for, including those representing the basketball scene. For the purposes of this list, only athletes aged 21 and under will be ranked, and those that will compete at the summer games.
10. Torrie Lewis (Athletics)
At the age of 19, Torrie Lewis is already the Australian record holder over 100 metres, with a personal best of 11.10 seconds. For context, Julien Alfred won the gold medal in this event at the Tokyo Olympics with a time of 10.72 seconds, while Melissa Jefferson posted 10.92 seconds to pick up a bronze. Therefore Lewis, at the age of 19, certainly has the potential to be a top level international sprinter in years to come.
The Brisbane native is also a proficient 200 metre sprinter, finishing second in this event at the 2024 World Athletics U20 Championships. Lewis had previously run this event at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where she made the semi-finals before bowing out. The Brisbane native was even part of an Australian contingent that finished fifth at the 2024 World Athletics Relays meet, and will be a key member of national sprint relays in the future.
9. Johnny Furphy (Basketball)
Johnny Furphy is Australia’s most recent NBA draftee, earning a second round selection in 2024. The Victorian subsequently earned a roster spot with the Indiana Pacers, and made fifteen appearances thus far. Furphy has been limited to 10 minutes per game, as a rookie trying to make a name for himself, but has posted respectable per game numbers. The Aussie is averaging 3.4 points and 1.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 40.5% from the field and 41.7% from beyond the arc (1.6 three point attempts per game).
Furphy projects as a versatile forward who can spot up on the perimeter and guard multiple positions. His size and perimeter shooting will be a major asset to the Boomers in years to come, especially given the influx of talented point guards in recent years. The likes of Josh Giddey, Dyson Daniels and Tyrese Proctor will benefit from having a target like Furphy in the passing game, given the latter doesn’t have a ball-dominant style of play.
8. Cameron Myers (Athletics)
Middle distance sensation Cameron Myers has drawn comparisons to Jakob Ingebrigtsen after posting a series of impressive times at such a young age. He currently holds world age records for the the 1500 metres and mile run, among all 16 olds in history. Myers recently represented Australia at the 2024 World Athletics U20 Championships, finishing second to Ethiopian Abdisa Fayisa in the 1500 metre run. The 18 year old didn’t contest the 3000 metres at this meet, but does hold the Australian under 20 record over this distance.
Myers was unlucky to miss selection for the 2024 Paris Olympics, with Oliver Hoare, Stewart McSweyn and Adam Spencer selected ahead of him. As he progresses in the coming years however, Myers will likely improve on his personal best time of 3:33.26 minutes in the 1500 metres. In order to compete for medals with the best in the world, like Ingebrigtsen, Cole Hocker and Josh Kerr, Myers will be hoping to push for sub-3:30 times.
7. Delta Amidzovski (Athletics)
Dual-event threat Delta Amidzovski went in to the 2024 World U20 Athletics Championships after just having turned 18, and ended up being Australia’s standout performer. Amidzovski picked up a gold medal in the long jump after leaping 6.58 metres, and added a bronze in the 100m hurdles, with a time of 13.24 seconds. Her rise is very similar to that of Australian icon Sally Pearson, who ran a time of 13.30 seconds in the same event and at the same age. Amidzovski will be faced with a difficult decision in the years to come, as a prodigious talent having to choose between two events.
As a long jumper, Amidzovski also came very close to breaking the Australian Under-20 record of 6.60 metres, set by both Lyn Tillett in 1972 and Brooke Buschkuehl in 2011. Amidzovski would be a short priced favourite to eventually claim this record, as she still has all of 2025 to compete as an under-20 athlete. Buschkuehl also happens to hold the national record of 7.13 metres, which Amidzovski will be chasing in the years to come.
6. Olivia Wunsch (Swimming)
18 year old Olivia Wunsch is already an Olympic gold medallist, as a member of the Australian womens’ 4x100 metre freestyle relay at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Wunsch won five gold medals at the 2023 Junior World Championships, and projects as a high level freestyle sprinter at the senior level. The rising star has recorded personal bests of 24.45 seconds in the 50 metre freestyle event, and 53.17 in the 100 metre freestyle event. For context, that 100 metre sprint time would have qualified Wunsch for the final at the Tokyo 2024 Olympics, and she still has her whole career ahead of her.
Given the recent retirement of Dolphins stalwart Emma McKeon, Wunsch will be a key candidate to fill that void in the years to come, on Australia’s famed 100 metre freestyle relay teams. If Wunsch can translate her sprint performances to the 200 metre distance, she could add yet another relay event to her repertoire. Australia has won the womens’ 4x100m freestyle relay in four consecutive Olympics, meaning expectations will be high ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 games.
5. Dyson Daniels (Basketball)
Dyson Daniels has arguably claimed the title of Australia’s most prominent NBA player this season, after putting together a remarkable 2024-25 season thus far. Traded by New Orleans, the team that drafted him in 2022, Daniels has adjusted seamlessly to a new home in Atlanta. The 21 year old has started in all of his appearances this season, and averages over 30 minutes a night. Daniels’ averages of 13.7 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists are major improvements on last season, reflecting his offensive growth.
But Daniels has drawn more plaudits for his defence at the other end, with 3.2 steals, 6.5 deflections and 0.9 blocks per game. Daniels’ steals and deflections have earned him the nickname “Great Barrier Thief”, and his numbers in these categories place him in his own category, far from the rest of the league. The 21 year old is in the frame to win both the Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY) and Most Improved Player (MIP), given his rapid growth and defensive dominance. Daniels will be a key player for the Boomers at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as a ball-handler and one of the team’s go-to perimeter defenders.
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4. Arisa Trew (Skateboarding)
14 year old Arisa Trew became one of the youngest gold medallists in Olympic history when she won the park skateboarding competition at the 2024 Paris games. Her victory resulted in a double win for Australia, after Keegan Palmar also won the mens’ park event. Trew had already made a name for herself in the skateboarding world, after becoming the first female skateboarder to land a 720 trick in competition, just one year prior. She had also won the park event at the 2023 California X Games.
Heading in to the 2024 Olympics, in May 2024, Trew had also become the first female skateboarder to land a 900. She thus entered the tournament with a high level of expectations placed upon her, and had her work cut out for her. But Trew ultimately bested British competitor Sky Brown and Japan’s Cono Hiraki, winning by a narrow margin of less than one point. Aged just fourteen, one would suspected that Trew will be a medal contender for many years to come, as we look toward the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics and beyond.
3. Mollie O’Callaghan (Swimming)
Mollie O’Callaghan is the most decorated Olympian on this list, with five gold medals and eight total medals to her name. The 20 year old bested rival Ariarne Titmus in an epic 200 metre freestyle duel at the 2024 Paris games, and picked up two additional golds in relay events. O’Callaghan also happens to be the current world record holder in the 200 metres freestyle sprint. As a key member of Australia’s freestyle relay teams, and with her prime possibly still ahead of her, O’Callaghan projects as a big name athlete ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
In addition to her exploits over 200 metres, O’Callaghan is also a two time defending world champion in the 100 metres freestyle. And despite a fourth place finish in Paris, O’Callaghan projects as a dominant force in this event for the years to come. She is also a renowned backstroke swimmer, and will be hoping to challenge compatriot Kaylee McKeown over 100 metres in this stroke. Given her versatility across multiple events and strokes, O’Callaghan could have a major say in Australia’s overall swimming results at the Los Angeles games.
2. Gout Gout (Athletics)
Gout Gout (pronounced “Guot Guot”) recently made headlines after breaking the Australian mens’ 200 metre sprint record, at the age of just sixteen. The late Peter Norman had held this record since the Mexico City Olympics in 1968, but Gout managed to best his time in the humble setting of a school carnival, where he was representing his home state of Queensland. With a 200 metre personal best of 20.04 seconds, he is officially faster than Usain Bolt was at the same age, and also posted a scorching time of 10.17 seconds in the 100 metre dash.
One can hardly imagine what Gout’s ceiling could be, and that’s why he comes in at #2 on this list. With the strides and top speed that are reminiscent of a young Bolt, the Ipswich native could one day be Australia’s most recognisable athlete. There’s nearly four years between now and the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, meaning Gout has plenty of time to push the boundaries and post even faster times. Gout is on the cusp of becoming Australia’s first ever sub-20 second 200 metre sprinter, and the nation’s first sub-10 second 100 metre sprinter since Patrick Johnson - who achieved this feat in 2003.
1. Keegan Palmer (Skateboarding)
Keegan Palmer etched his name into Olympic history when he became a double Olympic gold medallist, and defended his title, at the 2024 Paris games. The skateboarder won the 2020 Park tournament in dominant fashion, with two runs of 94+ points that were gold medal worthy. Palmer’s final and best run of 95.83 points was nearly ten points clear of second place, making him the inaugural champion in park skateboarding, which was a new event at the time.
Palmer later had his work cut out for him at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where five contestants posted scores above 90. But ultimately his first run of 93.11 points was good enough to secure the gold, and Palmer achieved the rare feat of defending a gold medal win. In addition to his Olympic exploits, Palmer has won two X games titles in the Park discipline, and at the age of just 21, has much of his career ahead of him. There’s no doubt Palmer will be a strong contender for another medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, where he hopes to augment an already extraordinary resume.