SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Brian Goorjian has stepped down as head coach of the Australian men’s basketball team, the national body said Wednesday, after two stints in charge of the Boomers.
California-born Goorjian, 71, who led the Australians to the quarterfinals of the Paris Olympics, has left to coach national league side the Sydney Kings, Basketball Australia said.
In his first stint from 2001 to 2008, Australia won gold under Goorjian at the 2006 home Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. He returned as head coach in 2020 as Australia went on to claim bronze — the Boomers’ first Olympic medal — at the Tokyo Games in 2021.
Peter Lonergan, general manager of Basketball Australia’s center of excellence in Canberra, said Goorjian’s influence was widespread.
“Brian’s impact on basketball in this country is profound and will continue to be so post his time with the Boomers,” Lonergan said in a statement.
“His generosity of spirit has impacted generations of athletes and coaches and his legacy will continue to build.”
Former Boomers team captain Andrew Gaze, who won the National Basketball Association title with the San Antonio Spurs in 1999, said Goorjian’s impact on basketball in Australia went beyond his role as national team coach.
“Brian’s legacy extends to players that have represented Australia even when he wasn’t coaching the national team — his legacy includes the development of the game as a player, a coach and an advocate,” Gaze added.