Nick Kay says seeing his Olympic bronze medal hanging up brings back "plenty of fond memories".
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It was just over a year ago that the Tamworth export and the Boomers beat Slovenia to clinch Australia's first-ever men's basketball Olympic medal.
"It's fantastic for all the players that came before me and is a good promotion for the next group of Boomers coming through," Kay told the Bendigo Advertiser.
He is currently in Bendigo preparing for the Boomers' FIBA World Cup qualifier against Iran at Red Energy Arena on Monday night.
The Boomers are fresh of a win against Bahrain on Friday in the Middle East.
"The way that we came together as a group against Bahrain, especially defensively, showed exactly what we are about at the Boomers program," Kay said.
The Boomers' squad will include Kay, Mitch McCarron, Luke Travers, Angus Brand and Sam Froling.
Kay said he enjoyed being able to share his experience on the court with some of the younger players on the line up.
He also said Iran's experience was going to be the biggest challenge for our national team.
"They've got a very experienced line up that includes guys that dominate within FIBA basketball," Kay said.
"We need to force them into our style of basketball and limit easy baskets because when they get hot, they are tough to stop."
Kay himself grew up in regional Australia and some of his earliest memories in Tamworth are hitting the court with the Thunderbolts.
"Growing up in a country town I know how important sport is for the community and I can't wait to play in front of our fans," he said.
Iran also heads into the match on Monday on the back of a win after defeating Japan by 11 points on Friday in another of the World Cup qualifiers.
Boomers v Iran, 6.30pm tip off Monday August 29 at Red Energy Arena.
