Washington Wizards assistant Caporn hired as Australia's men's basketball coach
Basketball Australia on Thursday said Caporn would continue his coaching duties with the NBA's Wizards and that Dean Vickerman of the National Basketball League's Melbourne United has been appointed to a new role as Boomers associate head coach. Vickerman will take over the head coaching responsibilities if there's a clash with Caporn's NBA schedule.
The 42-year-old Western Australia-born Caporn was head coach of Basketball Australia's center of excellence at the Australian Institute of Sport from 2014-21 and has also worked in the U.S. as head coach of the G-League's Long Island Nets and as an assistant at the NBA's Brooklyn Nets.
Caporn also was formerly a coach at St. Mary's College in California.
Caporn worked under previous Boomers coaches Andrej Lemanis and Brian Goorjian at the last four major tournaments, helping Australia to an Olympic bronze medal in Tokyo in 2021. Australia lost in overtime to Serbia in the quarterfinals at the Paris Games last year and Goorjian left the national team soon after.
'It is an incredible honor to be part of the Boomers program. To step into the role of head coach is truly a dream come true,' Caporn said in a statement. 'I want to extend a special thankyou to Andrej Lemanis and Brian Goorjian for bringing me into the Boomers coaching staff — your mentorship and contributions to this program have been truly inspiring.'
Australia also has a similar setup with its national women's coach, Sandy Brondello.
Last month, Basketball Australia said Brondello would continue as coach of the Opals until the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles, extending her involvement with the national women's team to a seventh Olympics.
Brondello, who guided the Opals to an Olympic bronze medal in Paris last year, helped the New York Liberty win the WNBA title in October. Basketball Australia also hired an associate head coach to lead the program while Brondello has WNBA commitments in New York.
Basketball Australia said it conducted an extensive selection process over the last six months before hiring Caporn, consulting with a panel of specialists that included former NBA star and Boomers player Andrew Bogut. On Wednesday, Bogut was appointed as an assistant to Goojian, who now coaches the Sydney Kings in Australia's NBL.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
33 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Can the Celtics contend without Jayson Tatum?
Yahoo Sports senior NBA analyst Kevin O'Connor is joined by Slightly Biased to discuss Boston's outlook for the upcoming season without its superstar. Hear the full conversation on 'The Kevin O'Connor Show' and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen. View more Video Transcript From Zach Campbell, the Eastern Conference is really wide open here. He says Jason Tatum comes back in March, and the Celtics find themselves in the Eastern Conference Finals. That's slightly biased, but spot on or so wrong, so wrong. I don't think the Celtics will even be trying to win games in March. I, a couple of days ago, I was looking at their roster, and this was after the Chris Boucher move, but I was looking at their team and I'm like, Is there a reason this team is not gonna be dreadful? I mean, I'm really trying in my brain to think about a reason why this team won't be trying to purposefully lose games after the trade deadline. I think this team is probably going to be much worse than even some of the people who are low on the team think it'll be. I think that Boston is gonna be happy to be in the lottery. Ultimately, the bullish case for Boston in terms of winning and competing next year is of course, Tatum returning. But it is Jaylen Brown being not only really good, but it's Derrick White taking a leap. I streamed on Twitch the other day, and Z in the chat said, Derrick White will get a bigger role and make the All-Star team and third team All-NBA. I think this is crazy. He is not going to be an All-NBA guy, but ultimately this is the bullish case for Boston. It's Brown being even better. It's Derrick White getting better. It's Pritchard being an 18 point per game guy with a heavier role on offense. Like, there is a bull case for Boston, I do think. So I think the thing with Derrick White, and it is different whenever you have maybe one, two, or three game stretches where it's like, All right, Derrick White's gonna have a bigger role because this guy's out versus an entire season. Part of, you know, there are people who made Derrick White fringe All-Star cases over the last few years, but that's because he's so good in his role playing off of Tatum, playing off of Jalen Brown. I really love Derrick White as a player, but it's more of a complimentary, you know, perfect type of glue guy that any team would want versus a guy who could step up and be the Robin and score 20 points a game. I mean, isn't that like a prerequisite to make the All-Star game? I don't know. I'm just not. I'm not high on the Celtics, really, and like you said, I think this is a perfect season for them to just be like, oh man, like, uh, Jalen Brown tweaked his ankle February 20th. We're just gonna take it easy and shut him down the rest of the season. I mean, aren't they still over the second apron despite everything they've done? That's insane how that's even possible. Close
Los Angeles Times
34 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
UCLA stars Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Gabriela Jaquez share lessons with kids close to home
THOUSAND OAKS, California — Jaime Jaquez Jr., who is preparing for his third season in the NBA with the Miami Heat, and his sister Gabriela Jaquez, a standout player for the UCLA Bruins and the Mexican national basketball team, set aside their own workouts to lead others through some familiar drills. The siblings recently hosted a summer camp for about 180 participants ages 6 to 16 at the Sports Academy facilities in Thousand Oaks. The three-hour camp aimed to promote basketball skills, discipline and a passion for the sport among children and teens. Some participants traveled from other states to attend the camp. 'It's good to come back and give something back to the community, especially in a place where we grew up. Being able to do this is special,' said Jaime, who grew up in Camarillo, shone for four years at UCLA and has represented Mexico in international tournaments. During the event, Jaime recalled his childhood playing basketball 'from dawn to dusk' on the local courts in his hometown. The camp was also a source of inspiration for families. 'It's exciting to see Latino players succeed, one in the NBA and another possibly in the WNBA,' said Armando Castillas of Oxnard, who attended the camp with his children, Logan, 6, and Emma, 10. In addition to leading the camp, the Jaquez siblings are focused on their upcoming professional challenges. Jaime is looking for a season of redemption after a difficult year with the Heat, having been named to the all-rookie team 2023–24. 'It has always been my goal to win championships,' said Jaime, who noted that he preferred to focus entirely on improving with the Heat before making any commitments to the Mexican national team. For her part, Gabriela recently returned from competing in the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup in Chile with the Mexican national team. In the tournament, Mexico faced the United States, Brazil, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Chile, and the Dominican Republic. Gabriela averaged 12 points per game, ranking as the 10th-best scorer in the tournament, and was recognized as the Rising Star of the competition. She had previously played for Mexico, which also helped her adapt to FIBA's physical style of play and perform better with UCLA. 'It was an excellent opportunity. Playing at that level helped me a lot, especially physically,' said the 6-foot guard, who looks forward to her third season with the Bruins. 'I'm extremely proud to see her play for Mexico. I hope she can continue on that path and keep growing,' Jaime said of his sister. Both players are now preparing for their respective seasons with clear goals: Jaime is looking to take the Heat further in the playoffs, while Gabriela has her sights set on a national championship with UCLA. 'The goal is to win championships with UCLA,' Gabriela said. 'We've already made it to the Final Four, and I think we have the talent to go even further.' This article first appeared in Spanish via L.A. Times en Español.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Suns Reacts Survey: Who should start at the 4 this year?
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Phoenix Suns fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys. Devin Booker and Jalen Green are set to take on guard duties, Dillon Brooks will be one of the wings and Mark Williams will start at center for the Phoenix Suns, but it remains to be seen who will be playing at power forward for them to begin games. With the starting lineup lacking a strong defensive presence, the two main candidates two take the four spot are Ryan Dunn and Royce O'Neale: Here are their two cases. The Case for Ryan Dunn Coming off an inconsistent rookie season, the University of Virginia alum should be seen as the favorite to secure the gig. He's already got experience guarding some of the Western Conference's best wings and his speed, agility, and nearly 7'1' wingspan give him the ability to hold his own on the defensive end. Starting Dunn would also be an extension of the youth movement that the Suns have taken this offseason. He started 44 games last season, and he averaged more points, rebounds and assists than he did coming off the bench. While he's definitely the best option to start from a defensive perspective, Dunn struggled to shoot from three on a consistent basis. He shot just 31.1% from deep on 3.6 attempts per game last year. Additionally, while he only shot 39 of them in his rookie campaign, he shot a poor 48.7% from the free throw line. The Case for Royce O'Neale O'Neale is definitely the safest, most reliable option to start. He was a starter on the No. 1 seeded Utah Jazz in the 2020-2021 season and has started for multiple teams for multiple seasons in his career. Also a solid defender, O'Neale averaged a career high 9.1 points per game last year and shot a career best 40.1% from deep. With Green and Brooks not elite shooters, O'Neale would help the floor spacing in a starting lineup that is projected to struggle from deep. While his production is likely to remain the same, O'Neale is 32 and doesn't project to be apart of the team's long-term plans, and may not provide them with enough in the present to justify him taking the spot over someone younger than him who is apart of the Suns plans. With three years left on his contract and a mid-sized salary, it wouldn't be surprising to see the Suns offload his contract, or trade him for someone younger during the season. That being said, while he's on the team, he could be someone that they rely on in late game situations because of his experience and ability to stretch the floor. He's a bit shorter than Dunn and his wingspan isn't as long, but with his playoff and career experience, he's got a lot of time under his belt guarding some of the best forwards in the NBA. The Case for the Others Rasheer Flemming and Nigel Hayes-Davis are the two other forwards on the team, but due to their inexperience and talent, they probably won't be starting for the Suns at the four spot on opening night. However, like the Suns did at times last season, could the team roll out some untraditional lineups next year and have one of them, or the team's other centers, start a contest alongside Brooks? Last year, when the team was shorthanded in an early-season contest against the Orlando Magic, the Suns rolled out a starting lineup with both Oso Ighodaro and Mason Plumlee in it. The Suns traded for Mark Williams at the same time they drafted Khaman Maluach, so the possibility of a world where they share the court together could be one they are looking to experiment with at some point during the season. Koby Brea is 6'6' and could play some small forward, but with his size and natural position, the two spot, it's unlikely to see him playing the four when he plays. Who do you want to see starting at the power forward spot for the Suns? Let us know. Listen to the latest episode of the Suns JAM Session Podcast below. To stay up to date on every episode, subscribe to the pod on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, YouTube Podcasts, Amazon Music, Podbean, or Castbox. Please subscribe, rate, and review.
