Lindsay Gaze sits down with Dan Boyce on the Aussie Hoopla podcast to share how the Australia Boomers program came about and shares his stories from a career that includes either playing or coaching the men’s national basketball team from it’s inception in 1960 to 1984.

In what will be a two-part episode, Lindsay shares the stories of how basketball began in Australia and look at how it developed into the medal contender that it is today.

Topics on the show include;

• 1956 - Olympic Basketball reaches Melbourne (2:00)
• What impact Bill Russell had when the USA Olympic Basketball team competed in the 1956 Olympics (8:30)
• How basketball developed across Australia after the 1956 Olympics (10:30)
• The Australian Boomers travel by ship to reach the 1960 Olympics in Rome (16:30)
• Tokyo Olympics 1964 and how Lindsay brought the jump shot to Australia (21:30)
• Australia fails to qualify for the 1968 Olympics (26:00)
• How the shuffle offence came to Australia and its impact over the years (28:00)
• Lindsay becomes coach of the Boomers and what the Australian basketball scene was like in the 1970's (37:00)
• The basketball rivalry between Victoria and South Australia in the 70's (40:00)
• Lindsay remembers being mere meters away from the Munich Massacre in 1972 and how it changed the Olympics (45:00)
• Eddie Palubinskas scores 48 points in a game missing only one shot at the 1976 Olympics (47:30)
• A national league launches and the NBL is born (55:30)

 

All of this and a whole lot more...

Listen to our previous interviews with the biggest stars in Australian Basketball, head to Aussiehoopla.com. Check out previous podcasts featuring;

Current NBL Stars - Kevin Lisch, Rotnei Clark, AJ Ogilvy, Damian Martin, Daniel Kickert, Thomas Abercrombie, Jason Cadee, Stephen Holt, Bryce Cotton, Chris Goulding, Mitch McCarron, Cam Gliddon

NBA Stars Past & Present - Matthew Dellavedova, Stephen Jackson, Randy Livingston, Torrey Craig, Acie Earl, Josh Childress, Reggie Smith, Todd Lichti

Aussie Basketballers Abroad - Ryan Broekhoff, Brock Motum, Jack White, Ben Madgen, Clint Stiendl, Ater Majok, Rhys Carter, Clint Stiendl

Australian Boomers Legends - Andrew Gaze, Shane Heal, Mark Bradtke, Andrew Vlahov, CJ Bruton, Chris Anstey, Brett Maher, John Rillie, Tony Ronaldson, Brad Newley

The NBL's Greatest Imports - Darryl McDonald, Ricky Grace, Derek Rucker, Leon Trimmingham, Scott Fisher, Lanard Copeland, Mike Mitchell, Terry Dozier, Isaac Burton, Shawn Redhage, Willie Farley, Al Green, Corey "Homicide" Williams

Our Finest Coaching Minds - Brian Goorjian, Joey Wright, Adrian Hurley, Aaron Fearne, Rob Beveridge, Phil Smyth, Ian Stacker, Shawn Dennis, Dean Vickerman, Trevor Gleeson, Lindsey Gaze

And the men who run things - Larry Kestelman, Vince Crivelli, Jeremy Loeliger, Chuck Harmison, Jeff Van Groningen

All that and much more. Follow @AussieHoopla on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and email at [email protected]