Teen basketball prodigy Alex Toohey proud to represent ACT and Australian Boomers ahead of US college adventure with Gonzaga

"I haven't seen it yet. I'm still waiting for them to pull it out," Toohey told The Canberra Times as he wraps up his appearance at the Australian Under 20s National Championships for the ACT.

The handful of Boomers in the 12-man squad that won bronze at the Tokyo Games give Toohey a glimpse into what he can achieve should he continue on his current trajectory.

The 19-year-old is the youngest Boomer named for two FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers against Bahrain and Kazakhstan starting on Thursday.

He's on track for a bright future in the green and gold, and is determined to continue Australia's success on the world stage.

"Seeing what they did in Tokyo and guys like Patty [Mills] coming from Canberra as well, it's really inspiring," Toohey said.

"It's always a great experience being called up. The team's never going to be the same, so having some guys there I know and some that I'll be meeting for the first time, that's exciting."

The teenager isn't hung up on how many minutes he'll get, instead eager to use the camp as an opportunity to soak up as much as he can before heading off to US college Gonzaga on a basketball scholarship in July.

Few young American freshmen recruited to colleges have played international basketball, but it's a unique feature in Australian basketball that many top up-and-comers like Toohey have donned green and gold before heading to the States, giving them a valuable taste of the professional level that awaits after college.

And that's a deliberate strategy by Australian basketball, to ensure the national program delivers results.

"Just being in that Boomers environment, even if I don't play too much, it's all a great learning [experience], which is the biggest part of it," he said.

"The opportunity to represent the country is worth any amount of minutes, so I'm not not too fussed, I just want to help the team any way I can."

Toohey is another success story from Basketball Australia's Centre of Excellence and the NBA Global Academy at the Australian Institute of Sport, following the same pathway as Josh Giddey, Dyson Daniels and Tyrese Proctor that is fast becoming a star-studded production line of elite basketball talent.

It wasn't long ago Toohey called those players teammates, and he's enjoyed watching their careers blossom so quickly from afar.

"It's definitely exciting to watch," he said.

"They were where I am now and how they've moved on to bigger and better things, that's really motivating and puts everything into perspective - everything that we do now is worth it.

"They always seemed much older and much stronger and now I'm one of those guys in the academy, so it's really cool to see that cycle."

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Toohey and the ACT men's team didn't make it to the finals at the Under 20s nationals, notching three wins and three losses before bowing out, however the proud Canberran was still glad to represent his roots.

"Canberra basketball has done so much for me and my brother," Toohey said. "I'm trying to cement the ACT as a legitimate basketball location on the map.

"That's something that I find really special. With everything that we've been given, and the opportunities I've been presented with, it's great if I can try and repay everything they've done for me.

"My ACT teammates are all so supportive and want me to achieve my dreams. We're really all just a big family," he added.

Australia vs Bahrain - Thursday, February 23, 7pm, State Basketball Centre in Victoria

Australia v Kazakhstan - Sunday, February 26, 3pm, State Basketball Centre in Victoria

Boomers squad: Mitch McCarron, Mitch Norton, Nathan Sobey, Kyle Adnam, Nick Marshall, Daniel Grida, Todd Blanchfield, Alex Toohey, Rhys Vague, Mason Peatling, Isaac Humphries, Nick Kay.

Training players: Rocco Zikarsky, Alex Condon and Ben Henshall from the Centre of Excellence.

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