Basketball On The Internet.

THE announcement today of the Boomers' E team to tackle incoming FIBA featherweights Bahrain and Kazakhstan in this latest World Cup qualifying window again starkly exposes Basketball Australia as reinforcing some kind of anti-Mitch Creek agenda.

Struggling to even field 12 worthy international level players - thank goodness Australia is only facing the teams ranked 84th and 65th in the world respectively - you would think BA would want to suit a few available guys who have worn the green-n-gold.

Creek, third in the NBL Most Valuable Player voting this season and in the All Star Five First Team, was available for selection for the two blockbuster games next week.

He didn't get a look in.

And he hasn't for a number of recent subpar national teams despite prioritising playing for Australia above all else. So yes, if you were wondering, he has been available for selection.

Instead, the team Dean Vickerman puts on the floor at Melbourne's State Basketball Centre tomorrow-week and the Sunday after is Kyle Adnam, Todd Blanchfield, Daniel Grida, Isaac Humphries, Nick Kay, Nick Marshall, Mitch McCarron, Mitch Norton, Mason Peatling, Nathan Sobey, Alex Toohey, Rhys Vague.

Seriously, as soon as you read the first two names, you had to be shaking your head.

Adnam very much came back to the field this season and South East Melbourne played some of its best ball when he was anchored to the bench.

Blanchfield was finally banished to Perth's bench when rookie coach John Rillie ran out of patience with his on-again/off-again game. Consistency has never been a Blanchfield strength and the fact is, when Rillie did take him out of the rotation, the Wildcats made the run which took them into the post-season.

It's great to see Tokyo Olympic Bronze Medallist Nick Kay (above) in uniform and while a case can be made for several of the others, a case against them would also have validity.

Truth is, this isn't Australia A. At best it is Australia E and, even so, it still should have little difficulty repeating the 104-50 win it already has over Bahrain and the 97-50 road rout of Kazakhstan.

So, why no Creek?

There's a widely held belief among his many fans that BA has an unwritten edict he will not be selected again for Australia due to lingering issues from his past.

Would that be his court run-in which was dismissed and charges withdrawn? Would it be that some of the Boomers' elder statesmen (none of whom are in this team by the way) have some angst with his unrelenting aggression?

There's no question Creek is a polarising figure, at times something of an alleged "wild child" the tut-tutters no doubt cannot abide. But he also is in the best three players in the NBL and the best two Aussies playing locally.

His omission is farcical.

This is so reminiscent of BA's past history. Let's try 1968 when the Boomers failed to qualify for the Mexico Olympics. Ken Cole and Werner Linde were hung out as the scapegoats for that crash and everyone in the sport knew they privately were blackballed never to rep the country again.

People have wondered for years what AJ Ogilvy did to see him consistently overlooked for senior national teams, then even extended squads. No-one thought to ask BA.

They certainly knew why. 

Just like they know now that Creek can lead the NBL in scoring, win the MVP, be rated best defensive, most improved, an All Star ... and he still won't get a BA call up.

Not even against two pissant national teams even Australia E should wipe off the court. 

And our federation still wonders why no-one trusts it or believes in it.

SO BE IT: Tokyo medallist Nathan Sobey is back representing Australia in the FIBA window.