The Boomers may have walked away from the Rio 2016 Olympic Games without a medal, but the overall success of the campaign cannot be understated.They entered the Olympic tournament as the No. 11-ranked team in the FIBA standings, but victories against Lithuania (No. 3), France (No. 5) and Serbia (No. 6) should see them move comfortably into the top 10.That success comes on the heels of Ben Simmons and Thon Maker being drafted with the No. 1 and No. 10 picks respectively in the 2016 NBA draft, and hence light has never shone brighter on Australian basketball.Australia currently has eight contracted players for the 2016-17 NBA season, behind only Canada, France and Brazil on the international players list. Include New Zealander Steven Adams -- and its not like Australia doesnt have form in that regard -- and the number rises to No. 9.(Aron Baynes was also born in New Zealand, but hes well and truly Australian having played for the Boomers.)So, of the contracted NBA players from Australia and New Zealand, who is the cream of the crop?1.?Andrew Bogut (Dallas Mavericks)The No. 1 draft pick from 2005, Bogut has tasted, by far, the most success from an Australian standpoint: 2015 NBA champion, 2015 NBA All-Defensive second team, 2010 All-NBA third team, 2006 NBA All-Rookie first team.Having recently been dealt from Golden State Warriors to Dallas Mavericks, Bogut will be a bigger focal point at both ends of the floor and should look to regain the form he possessed in Milwaukee.Career figures: 10.3 points per game, 8.9 rebounds per game, 2.3 assists per game, 1.6 blocks per game.2.?Patty Mills (San Antonio Spurs)He is the quickest Boomers star of all, although Dante Exum may challenge him when healthy, and their go-to player on the international stage. Mills has led the scoring for the Boomers at the past three Olympic Games.His teammates love playing with him; they love his energy and the way he goes about his game.Spurs coach Gregg Popovich is a hard taskmaster but even he has a soft spot for Mills. Boomers assistant coach and former NBA champion Luc Longley interestingly said during the Olympic tournament that Mills was a first-string point guard or 2 man somewhere in the NBA, hes just been in a very deep and talented situation in San Antonio.Career figures: 7.5 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 1.9 apg, 0.6 steals per game.3. Steven Adams (Oklahoma City Thunder)Adams had his coming out party during the 2015-16 NBA playoffs, asserting himself as the Thunders go-to man behind megastars Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant.With Durant fleeing town, the No. 2 position is open and Adams is primed to become the Robin to Westbrooks Batman off the back of averaging almost a double-double during 18 playoff games.Career figures: 6.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 0.7 apg, 1.0 bpg.4.?Matthew Dellavedova (Milwaukee Bucks)Dellavedova is taking his championship experience from Cleveland to the youngest side in the league, where hell likely play second fiddle to Michael Carter-Williams but should see much increased average minutes.Off the back of a stellar Olympics campaign, in which he finished with the highest number of assists, Delly will be looking to translate that form into the coming NBA season.Career figures: 5.7 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 3.4 apg, 0.5 spg.5. Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers)The new Australian poster boy; there hasnt been this much attention placed on a draft pick since a kid named LeBron James.Simmons took home the SEC Freshman of the Year and USBWA National Freshman of the Year awards for 2015-16, while also being named a consensus first-team All-American and first team All-SEC.Taken with the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA draft, Simmons has the weight of Philly on his shoulders as he is expected to lead them toward salvation.Career figures (college): 19.2 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 4.8 apg, 1.9 spg.6. Dante Exum (Utah Jazz)Returning from a significant knee injury, Exum has a new point guard from whom to learn his trade. The Jazz traded away Trey Burke and brought in George Hill to deliver a clear indication to Exum; the future point guard position is in his hands.Having the trust of the team behind him, Exum will be given plenty of opportunity to flourish and should help the Jazz climb the rankings out West.Career figures: 4.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 2.4 apg, 0.5 spg.7. Aron Baynes (Detroit Pistons)The Pistons are looking to push up the rankings in the Eastern Conference, and Baynes is looking to make his mark playing behind Andre Drummond in Detroit.The Boomers second-highest scorer and leading rebounder in Rio, the man who looks like he could walk onto the set of Vikings is set to take on a bigger role.His offensive game still needs work, but his defensive intensity and hustle will go a long way in the NBA.Career figures: 6.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 0.6 apg, 0.6 bpg.8.?Joe Ingles (Utah Jazz)Ingles went to the NBA as a seasoned player, and he brings a mature head to Utah. Playing behind Joe Johnson, Ingles will never be expected to be the go-to player for the Jazz.He will be a much-needed asset in Utah as long as he can play serviceable minutes and bring a veteran presence to the second unit.Career figures: 4.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 1.7 apg, 0.8 spg.9. Thon Maker (Milwaukee Bucks)Maker represents the unknown. He declared for the NBA draft early, and most teams had him likely to be available in the mid-to-late first round. Milwaukee stepped forward to take him at No. 10.Combining height (213cm) with exceptional skills and athleticism, Maker is a star in the making; when schools such Kansas, Kentucky and Indiana throw offers at you, you know youre doing something right.He recorded double-doubles in the NBA summer league, and he can be expected to climb the rankings once he gets more game time under his belt.Career figures: N/AKey questions for the futureBogut retains his place atop the pile, but will he remain there by seasons end? Who will topple him from his perch?Can Simmons prove earlier than expected that he is Australias golden boy?Will Mills or Dellavedova take their Rio form into the NBA? Will a surprise take the reins?The players will have plenty of opportunities to showcase their worth during the 2016-17 NBA season. Who can grab them with both hands? Comprar Yeezy Originales . Siddikur, whose previous win on the circuit came in Brunei three years ago, finished his bogey-free round with a birdie on the 18th for a total of 17-under 199. Indias Shiv Chowrasia, who has finished runner-up in this tournament twice, was in second place after a 66. Adidas Yeezy Baratas . Woodson said during a radio interview Thursday that the Knicks Carmelo Anthony doesnt get the same calls as other superstars. http://www.adidasyeezybaratas.es/ .R. Smith realized how easily basketball can be taken from him, and he wasnt going to take his place in the NBA for granted anymore. Adidas Yeezy Boost Baratas . The International Olympic Committee released the official list of bid cities on Friday after the deadline for applications had passed. The candidates -- all previously announced in their own countries -- are: Almaty, Kazakhstan; Beijing; Krakow, Poland; Lviv, Ukraine; Oslo, Norway; and Stockholm. Zapatillas Adidas Yeezy Baratas . With the first unit struggling of late and Amir Johnson - one of the teams iron men - hobbling on an injured right ankle, Patterson knew he could get the nod in a challenging matchup against one of the leagues up and coming players at his position. LONDON -- In an instant, Paul Lakes mind goes back more than three decades to a soccer field in Manchester and Barry Bennells tricks with the ball.The youth team coach flicked the ball between his feet, knees, shoulder, and head, impressing the youngsters hoping to break into the game, and their parents.He was a person you would completely trust, recalls the 48-year-old Lake, who says he was 11 or 12 at the time. He would do keepy-up, ball skill sessions in front of all the parents and they would be clapping and cheering him.It was like, `Wow. This guy is a fantastic footballer. And he was great with the kids. He said the right things; he was encouraging; he looked the part; he was fit; he was powerful. All of our parents would see how good he was and see how he was with each individual boy.That was the public face of Bennell, the man entrusted by parents with turning their children into professionals. In private, Bennell was sexually abusing some aspiring players linked to Manchester City and later Crewe Alexandra in the 1970s and 80s.He was the pied piper, he knew how to manipulate the environment to suit his needs and his desires and his horrible behavior, Lake told The Associated Press. He could gain trust from parents unwittingly under the guise of being this caring coach who could get your son to be a professional footballer.Only now, after receiving three separate jail terms in the United States and England from 1995 to 2015, are the full horrors emerging of what Bennell subjected the children in his care to.Lake can now recall only one training session with Bennell because he was in a separate coaching group around Manchester City feeder teams. But David White and Paul Stewart, future teammates in the City first team, suffered in private for years before this week waiving their anonymity to tell their stories of abuse at the hands of Bennell and an unnamed coach.There were muted conversations around and suspicions around Barry Bennell even around that time, Lake said. It was dismissed because there is no way that person -- because hes a football man and kids love him -- would be an abuser of young men because hes wearing club badges. So hes got to be legitimate.Im not knocking City or Crewe because no one knew, or came forward. No one pointed the finger. Football wasnt ready with how to deal with it. So many young lives were traumatized, carrying burden.Bennell was first convicted in Florida in 1995 after being charged with raping a boy and repeatedly sexually assaulting a player from a youth team he had escorted to the United States. Baack in England, Bennells crimes were the subject of a television documentary in 1997, and a year later he was convicted again, receiving a six-year sentence for 23 offences.dddddddddddd.Then the story stopped, with no deeper scrutiny until now of the role of Bennells employers, and no demands for public inquiries to discover how entrenched pedophile coaches were in soccer.Looking back at that particular time, there was an overriding trust in individuals, Lake said. The likes of Barry Bennell sourced the most vulnerable and they understood how much it meant to that boy to be a professional footballer, to make it at the top.They sussed out the families. They showered the families with gifts, saying the right things.With it, Bennell gained their trust and the ability to convince parents to allow their children to stay in his home.Not for one instance was there a thought there was an ulterior motive, there was this underhand and vile individual that was preying on your child, said Lake, whose wife Jo is assisting David White on his autobiography featuring details of abuse by Bennell.In society you knew these people were around, but they were almost stereotyped as being as a person with greasy hair and wore a rain coat and were a real loner. Thats never the case. Barry Bennell proved he was the complete antithesis of that.Lake, whose City career was curtailed by injury, went on to be an ambassador for the team. Now working for the Premier League as club support manager, Lake wants officials to be proactive in the welfare of players.Chairman and CEOs need to be more responsible, said Lake, who attended a player care seminar on Friday organized by the Premier Sports Network. Its too easy to be dismissive and say `Thats somebody elses responsibility. The chairman at Crewe is now talking about how upset and how frustrated he is around Barry Bennell.They should have made more efforts to find out because that information was out there. Instead, there are lives that have been broken, disrupted, and shaken in a negative way.Crewe announced on Saturday that external lawyers will investigate how the club responded to child abuse allegations in the past. It came after Hamilton Smith, a Crewe director from 1986 to early 1990, said the club retained Bennell despite being aware of claims against the coach, only opting to prevent boys being alone with him.---Rob Harris is at www.twitter.com/RobHarris and www.facebook.com/RobHarrisReports ' ' '