Aussie guard Tom Wilson eyes Bogut, Exum, Dellavedova NBA footsteps

Australian shooting guard Tom Wilson will join the 2016 recruiting class of the Southern Methodist University Mustangs to play for Hall of Fame coach Larry Brown.

Wilson, who was both captain of the Australian U17 and U19 teams, pledged allegiance to SMU’s program after declining offers from Connecticut, Gonzaga, Boise State and California. According to NBC Sports, Wilson is the Mustangs’ second commitment in the Class of 2016, joining fellow guard Dashawn McDowell.

“The opportunity to play, the coaching staff and people around the program, and my opportunity to win,” Wilson told FoX Sports Australia. “Those were the three things I was looking at, and they were all ticked.”

Brown, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame Basketball in 2002, was the major factor in Wilson’s decision. Brown has been coaching for more than 40 years, and has won an NBA Championship as head coach of the Detroit Pistons, who beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals after winning the series 4-1.

Brown also won an NBA Coach of the Year award as head coach of Allen Iverson and the Philadelphia 76ers. Wilson revealed he was a fan of Iverson growing up and had watched all of the ex-NBA star’s documentaries, which led him to knowing more about Brown.

Wilson will also join NBL team Melbourne United as a member of their development squad, but will only suit up for a short time as preparation before heading the US in June. Along with his stint with the Mustangs in NCAA’s Division 1, the Melbourne-born shooting guard also hopes to follow the NBA footsteps of fellow Aussies Andrew Bogut, Dante Exum and Matthew Dellavedova.

“It’s been a dream of mine to play in the NBA, since I started playing basketball,” Wilson added. “There’s a lot of work to be done, and there’s a lot I need to achieve, but it’s a big goal of mine.”

Wilson has a scholarship with Basketball Australia’s National Centre of Excellence in Canberra, and has plenty of international experience with the nation’s U17 and U19 national team. The 6-foot-3 shooting guard averaged 6.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists in this summer’s FIBA U19 World Championships, where Australia finished 7th place with three wins and four losses.

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