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Angola is still reeling from their surprising defeat in the African Championship last year, but they look confident as their old reliable players are back in their fold.
Olimpio Cipriano and Carlos Almeida, who were key figures for Angola in the past, was selected to the preliminary squad after missing the Afrobasket 2011 in which they lost to Tunisia in the finals.
Newly-installed coach Jose Carlos Guimaraes, who signed a one and a half year pact with the Angolan Basketball Federation, named his 17-man preliminary squad for the 2012 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, where three more Olympic slots are at stake.
Among the players selected in the 17-man pool, ten players were named to the squad despite not making the final lineup of the team that competed in last year’s Afrobasket in Madagascar.
Despite losing to Tunisia last year, Guimaraes confidently said that they are still the best team in Africa and he also expressed optimism about their chances in the upcoming Olympic Qualifiers.
“Even though we lost the African title last year, I still think that Angola is the best African team,” Guimaraes said. “We will correct the mistakes we made at the Afrobasket and improve our style of game. We will play on the counter-attack and encourage our three-pointer shooters, as we always have.”
The 17-man squad will start training on May 28 in Spain and will be competing in friendly games prior to the 2012 Olympic Qualifier that will run from July 2 to 8 in Caracas, Venezuela.
Angola Preliminary Roster for 2012 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament
- Leonel Paulo
- Carlos Almeida
- Armando Costa
- Kikas Gomes
- Felizardo Ambrósio
- Carlos Morais
- Paulo Barros
- Roberto Fortes
- Divaldo Mbunga
- Paulo Santana
- Jorge Tati
- Eduardo Mingas
- Milton Barros
- Olímpio Cipriano
- Luís Costa
- Yanick Moreira
- Valdelicio Joaquim
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