Abby Bishop will miss the Opals' pre-Olympic tour of Japan as the Australian basketballer continues to recover from a life-threatening medical condition.
Bishop, as expected, was among a handful of big names absent from coach Brendan Joyce's 12-woman squad on Tuesday following the discovery of blood clots last month.
Veteran stars Penny Taylor and Erin Phillips are also unavailable as they head back to Phoenix and Dallas to play with their respective WNBA teams.
Laura Hodges is still away playing in France, while Marianno Tolo remains injured but on track in her rehabilitation.
Liz Cambage and Suzy Batkovic headline the roster, which will play three games against Japan - first in Nagaoka on May 7 and then back-to-back clashes in Tokyo on May 9 and 10.
"The tour will add to our preparation for Brazil but also give the coaching staff a chance to trial the players and give the players themselves some international experience," Joyce said.
"We feel that the 12 selected players are certainly in contention for the final team but we are unable to select Erin Phillips and Penny Taylor due to WNBA commitments while Marianna Tolo and Abby Bishop are still injured."
The Opals won two of three games against Japan before last year's Oceania Olympic qualifiers.
Joyce said they were a good team to play in the build up to the Rio Games, where they are chasing a sixth consecutive medal.
"They are very quick and are good off dribble penetration which is reflective of many European and South American teams," he added.
The Opals have just wrapped up the second of four pre-Olympic team camps, with the last two scheduled in June and July.
They'll tour Europe in between following their warm-up games in Japan.
"By then, Laura Hodges will be home from her commitments in France and hopefully Marianna Tolo, who is way ahead of schedule with her rehabilitation, could be back to even play a few minutes in Europe," Joyce added.
Opals squad: Rebecca Allen, Suzy Batkovic, Sara Blicavs, Natalie Burton, Elizabeth Cambage, Katie-Rae Ebzery, Cayla George, Rachel Jarry, Tessa Lavey, Tess Madgen, Leilani Mitchell, Stephanie Talbot.
Injured: Abby Bishop, Marianna Tolo. Unavailable: Laura Hodges (Bourges, France), Erin Phillips (Dallas Wings, WNBA), Penny Taylor (Phoenix Mercury, WNBA).
Share
