The 213-centimetre teenager, whose grandfather played for Carlton, receives regular calls from Giants recruiters.

But Malone has not been swayed by the pressure to switch from basketball, the game he loves, to AFL.

''Even if they started throwing million-dollar contracts or something at me, I'd still be saying no,'' he said.

''I haven't got any passion, I haven't got any love for AFL at the moment - I'm still quite focussed on doing the best I can with what I like doing.

''If I can make it to the NBA or play in the Olympics with basketball, then that's what I want to do, I don't want to run around on the football field.''

It's a loss for the Giants, but with Malone now sporting a silver medal from the under 17 basketball world championships, he's had a taste for the world stage.

''It's a whole new world of basketball, you play against the best people in the world, the best athletes, the best minds, the best staff,'' Malone said.

''You stand there as the national anthem plays and looking up at the flag, it's just one of those experiences you can't put in words, you feel something going through your body.''

Although the Americans were ultimately too strong, beating Australia 95-62 in the final in Lithuania, Malone's team returned triumphant.

''It's still representation that we're one of the best teams in the world,'' he said.

It's good news for the future of Australian basketball, especially with Malone years off his peak.

At 17, doctors say he still has another four years of growing to do.

But his mother, Angela Maher, has seen the most growth only recently.

''It's not just about his height, it's about him being a really good athlete and his commitment, and he's grown as a person just over the last couple of months, he's very patient,'' she said.

''He didn't have a lot of [game] time, but when he did get out there he really did what he could.''

Malone was a late inclusion in the Australian team, added to bolster tall stocks, and used sparingly off the bench, a fact which didn't worry the Canberran in the slightest, having only taken up the sport four years ago.

''I'm more of a development player at the moment, I have to keep on developing, keep on becoming a better player and learn the game better,'' Malone said. For now, the ACT Academy of Sport scholarship holder is looking less at the future and more at finishing Year 12 at Lake Ginninderra College, where continued good results could be his ticket to a top US College, having been approached by Princeton among others.

''[Just] because he's seven foot tall, it's not an automatic ticket into a good college,'' his mother said.

''They have to get the grades.''