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AUSTRALIA's latest international rival Slovenia may not have made the final cut for the 2024 Paris Olympics, but the Giannis Antetokounmpo-led Greek team did qualify and for the very first time in the history of Boomers basketball, we can finally legitimately claim we are in the fabled "group of death".

Sure, that same claim is made pretty much ahead of every major international event by an unimaginative and compliant media, even if we've drawn India, Pago Pago and Ireland at a Commonwealth Games, so it's never truly meant much.

But this time? Yes, there's definitely a case. Australia's Group A comprises Spain, ranked #2 in the world by FIBA, last year's FIBA World Cup bronze medallist Canada, and now Greece.

To move beyond the intragroup phase, a team has to finish first or second. The two best-placed third placegetters also go on to the next KO phase of proceedings.

Easy peasy? Not this time around.

But at least Luka Doncic and the Slovenians, with which our international rivalry has grown to match the well-established Boomers-Lithuania tryst, are no longer in the picture.

Few would be able to name the Hellas roster but Milwaukee Bucks superstar Antetokounmpo is a solid place to start and his younger brother Kostas also is a regular Greek international.

To Aussie basketball fans, players such as veteran PG Nick Calathes, versatile forward Vassilis Charalampopoulos, Panagiotis Kalaitzakis, Giannoulis Larentzakis, Dinos Mitoglou, Georgios Papagiannis, Dimitrios Moraitis or American-born naturalised guard Thomas Walkup may hardly be household names, but they are ballers and proud to have Greece back in the Olympics for the first time since Beijing 2008.

Regular Australian nemesis Spain is calling itself the "underdog" but don't be fooled by that self-serving rhetoric. Their roster of Santiago Aldama, Dario Brizuela, Lorenzo Brown, Alberto Diaz, Rudy Fernandez, Usman Garuba, Juancho Hernangomez, Willy Hernangomez, Sergio Llull, Xabier Lopez-Arostegui, Juan Nunez, Jaime Pradilla is experienced and smart.

Australia opens its Olympic tournament against the Spaniards on July 27, the opening game of the championship. Along with Canada and Greece, all four teams in Group A are medal contenders.

Group B is headlined by reigning World Champion Germany, as well as the host nation and medal contender France. Paris will mark the Olympic debut of NBA rookie sensation Victor Wembanyama.

Brazil knocked out World Cup surprise packet Latvia in the qualifiers and did it in  the Latvian capital of Riga. Japan completes Group B making it the "group of a near death experience".

Gold Medal favourite USA will lead the way out of Group C, which also contains Serbia, paced by three-time NBA MVP Nikola Jokic. Puerto Rico and first-time qualifier South Sudan complete this "group of no death threats".

Without a shot being fired in anger, fingers crossed Australia escapes Group A with Canada and Spain, Germany, France and Brazil look likely to advance from Group B and it is USA and Serbia from C. Of course, ruling out Greece or Puerto Rico is fraught with peril.

As part of their preparation, the Boomers head to Abu Dhabi for the "USA Basketball Showcase" against the USA and Serbia on July 16 and 17.

BRONZED CANADIANS: The Boomers simply cannot sleep on these guys.