For New Zealand to qualify in Olympic men's basketball for the first time since 2004, they must battle their way through some tough competition next July to book a spot at the Paris Olympics.
FIBA confirmed on Tuesday the draw for the Men's Olympic Qualifying tournaments, which sees the Tall Blacks going up against Slovenia, Croatia, Greece, Egypt and the Dominican Republic. The goal is simple: finish first to qualify.
New Zealand's tournament takes place in Piraeus, Greece from 2-7 July next year - it is one of the four remaining tickets available for the Paris 2024 Olympics amongst the 24 nations still in contention.
Followers of the recent FIBA World Cup will identify Slovenia as a key matchup after they finished seventh overall - led by NBA superstar Luka Doncic, who is currently averaging 30.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.8 assists per game for the Dallas Mavericks.
Tournament hosts Greece could potentially see NBA talent bolstering their lineup with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Karl-Anthony Towns in a bid to get their country through to the Olympics.
Greece plus Egypt are familiar to New Zealand, with the Tall Blacks losing 83-74 to the Greeks during the 2023 World Cup, before narrowly beating the Egyptians 88-86 - a win that secured the Tall Blacks' entry to next year's Olympic qualifier.
The stage is set! 🔥
— FIBA (@FIBA) November 27, 2023
Four Olympic tickets to be won 🎟️🎟️🎟️🎟️#FIBAOQT x #Paris2024 pic.twitter.com/W4ksYXG9lm
New Zealand's best-ever Olympic placing in men's basketball is tenth at the 2024 Olympics Games in Athens. That side included names that are now considered Kiwi basketball royalty, including Kirk Penney, Paul Henare, Phill Jones, Dillon Boucher, Pero Cameron and Sean Marks.
FIBA are set to announce the game schedule for the 2024 Men's Olympic Qualifying tournaments at a later date.