The door has slammed shut on disgraced Aussie basketball player Liz Cambage ever playing for her country again.
Controversy has courted the towering centre since her international debut in 2008 and Opals head coach Sandy Brondello said there will now be no more second chances.
The Australian Opals crashed out of the Tokyo Olympics in the quarter finals after a bitter divide opened between the players and Cambage over alleged racist remarks she made against Nigerian players in a practice match.
With the Opals now looking to qualify for the Paris games, the question has been raised over whether prodigal child Cambage would be welcomed back into the fold.
Brondello’s response was blunt.
‘No, it’s our decision,’ she told News Corp.
Cambage made her international debut for the Opals in 2008 but will not be part of the team’s qualification process for the Paris Olympic Games
Opals head coach Sandy Brondello said that culture is important and there will be more second chances for Cambage in the Aussie squad
Cambage is now playing in Israel after being punted from both the Australian Opals and the Los Angeles Sparks in the WNBA
‘In the Opals program you have to fit in with the culture that we had. Liz did some great things for the Opals, but it was too much hard work near the end, and we don’t need that. We have a short time together and one player can’t overrule the team.
‘It’s all about the culture. We spend a lot of time on culture and if you can’t buy into the culture, I won’t pick you. It is as simple as that.’
Cambage left the national program in disgrace ahead of the Tokyo Olympics following an incident where she allegedly called Nigerian players ‘monkeys’ and told them to ‘go back to your third world country’.
Fellow Opal Ezi Magbegor is of Nigerian descent and Cambage’s alleged comments during the 2021 practice match fractured her relationship with teammates.
Cambage would ultimately quit before the Olympics started and former Opals captain Jenna O’Hea said she would never be welcomed back.
Cambage, pictured playing against Opals teammate Ezi Magbegor in a WNBA match, caused friction with her alleged behaviour against Nigeria in a 2021 practice match
Former Opals captain Jenna O’Hea had also previously said that Cambage would no longer be welcomed in the Australian squad
Cambage divides her time between playing basketball, DJing and modelling, including for her OnlyFans account
Speaking on ABC show Offsiders in May, host Kelli Underwood asked O’Hea about Cambage’s behaviour in that scrimmage with Nigeria.
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‘This all started in that training game, or in the pre-Olympics game, when you played Nigeria,’ Underwood said.
‘And it’s never really emerged what happened, but I’ve had it confirmed from a few sources, is it correct that you were playing Nigeria and Liz Cambidge had her feathers ruffled and she turned to them and said “Go back to your third world country”.
‘And, of course, Ezi Magbegor is originally Nigerian and a Nigerian who is now living in Australia and playing for your team, and as a result there was a brawl that erupted and since then you haven’t spoken to her?’
O’Hea responded: ‘That is all 100 per cent correct.’
Fellow guest Caroline Wilson then asked O’Hea would Cambage ever represent the Opals again.
‘No,’ O’Hea replied.
Cambage put both her national and WNBA teammates offside with her alleged comments against Nigerian players in Tokyo
Cambage was also sacked from WNBA side LA Sparks in July 2022, despite trying to claim she quit after a locker room outburst at teammates.
It came after Nigerian-American teammate Chimey Ogwumike roller her eyes at Cambage during a press conference after the comments she allegedly made to Nigerian players in Tokyo.
‘I can’t do this anymore. Best of luck to you guys,’ she said, according to sources.
However the club quickly set the record straight.
‘It is with support that we share Liz Cambage’s decision to terminate her contract with the organization,’ Sparks Managing Partner Eric Holoman said in a statement.
‘We want what’s best for Liz and have agreed to part ways amicably. The Sparks remain excited about our core group and are focused on our run towards a 2022 playoff berth.
Cambage signed with Israeli State Cup holder Maccabi Bnot Ashdod in the professional Israeli Female Basketball Premier League, also known as Ligat ha’Al, in March this year.
The side includes former WNBA players Natisha Hiedeman, Shatori Walker-Kimbrough, Amanda Zoe and Kalani Brown.
