Kyrie Irving was a part of the USA Gold Medal winning team at 2016 Olympics.
Dallas Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving is trying to switch his national team for the upcoming edition of the Olympics. Irving, who won gold with team USA during the 2016 Olympics, wants to represent his birth country, Australia in the forthcoming Olympics, scheduled to be held in Los Angeles in July 2028.
Irving was born in Melbourne, Australia and his family moved to the United States when he was two years old. The 32-year-old holds joint American and Australian citizenship, and now wants to play for the Boomers at the global stage.
As per media reports, Irving has already taken the steps which are necessary for him to switch the team and is already in the middle of the formalities required.
“Man, we’re in the process of that right now, just trying to figure out the best route for me to be eligible. There’s a lot of paperwork involved. Obviously, USA still has a decision to make, but for me, I’m just trying to do what’s best,” Irving said.
The nine-time All-Star also expressed his desire to play in golden and greens at the quadrennial tournament by stating, “If I can be an Aussie at one point in my career and play for the Australian team, that would be great.”
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This is not the first time that Kyrie has talked about his desire to play for the Australian team at the global tournament. Averaging at 24.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game this season for the Mavs, Irving first expressed the thought of switching the team after he was left out of the US’ 2024 Olympics squad, which went on to win their fifth consecutive gold.
As per Grant Afseth of Athlon Sports, Irving was disappointed when he was snubbed from the national squad despite expressing his interest to play for the side to USA Managing Director Grant Hill.
Another reason for him switching the teams could be that Irving will be 36 by the next edition of the Olympics, which might lead him to face tough competition from youngsters. Talking about the Boomers, the 2020 bronze medalists finished sixth in Paris last year.
As per the rules of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA), players who have played for one country before they turned 17 can play for a different country only if both countries agree. In case they don’t, the FIBA Secretary General will decide.
The global organization has an exception which allows the Secretary General to authorize a nationality change to a player’s “country of origin” only if it is “in the interest of the development of basketball in the country”.
The rules protect the integrity of the competition and prevent players from changing the teams at their convenience. The exemption is made by the Secretary General only if it is in the best interest of the sport, and that too under specific conditions.
Notably, Irving was in action at the 2025 All-Star weekend, and was a part of the 2025 All-Star Game winners, Shaq’s OGs. In the final, he added seven points, three rebounds and two assists to help the OGs take down Chuck’s Global Stars to win the game 41-25.
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