There
will be Basketball played
(In
Australia)
Amid the uncertainty of the NBA season being played, the
2011-2012 Australian NBL
season is nearing its start.
The New Zealand Breakers
will be out to defend their crown after a remarkable run in the 2010-2011
campaign. Last season, the Breakers finished the season with a 23-6 record,
five games in front of the nearest contender. The club will once again be
loaded for bear in the front court with Mika Vukona, Dillion Boucher, Alex
Pledger and steady import Gary Wilkinson (Utah State).
Swingman Tom Abercrombie will bring his usual effort and athleticism to the
fray while the backcourt will be steadied again by Captain CJ “Smooth” Bruton
who has announced that this will be his farewell season. Sharpshooter Daryl
Corletto travels across the Tasman to join the Breakers backcourt after
spending his entire NBL career with the Melbourne Tigers.
The Breakers will once again figure into the
championship equation and may well repeat. The team opens the season on the
road with a double, visiting the Gold Coast Blaze to start the season on
October 7 and drop into the ‘Gong to face the Wollongong Hawks on October 9.
The club will not play at home until the last weekend of October when they host
the Sydney Kings October 28.
In North Queensland, the Townsville Crocodiles are
serious about going to the next level after last season’s 17-11 second place
regular season effort. The Croc’s will be missing big man Luke Schenscher who
is out with an injury to start the season and have signed journeyman Greg
Vanderjagt to fill in. The team also welcomes imports Eddie Gill (Weber
State) who has considerable NBA experience and will bring that to the point
guard position. He will be joined by swingman Elvin Mims (Southern
Miss) who will bring versatility and explosiveness to the team.
Until Schenscher’s return, the Croc’s will look to
Russell Hinder, Michael Cedar and Ben Allen among others to hold the fort.
On paper the Croc’s will be strong again and should
make the playoffs. How far they go into the post-season will depend on keeping
front court players healthy and the teams’ chemistry as the season progresses.
The Croc’s travel to North Queensland neighbours Cairns
to start the season on 8 October 2011.
The Cairns
Taipans (16-12) will look to go a step further this year and have added new
imports Jamar Wilson (Albany)
and Andrew Warren (Bradley)
to anchor the back court. They will join Ian Crosswhite, Brad Hill, Alex
Loughton and the reliable Dusty Rychart to form the nucleus of another solid
team. They will also have pesky defender and original Taipan Aaron Grabau
coming in off the bench to turn up the heat.
Cairns could well be there in the Championship series
again this season. They host Townsville on the weekend to kick off the
2011-2012 campaign.
The Wollongong
Hawks (15-13) as always it seems will be in the playoff picture at seasons
end. The Gold Coast Blaze,
though in the playoffs last season would love to improve on their 13-15 record
for 2010-2011.
In Sydney the Kings (8-20) have
improved their roster…now to translate that into a finals appearance will be
the trick. Adelaide’s 36ers (9-19)
hope to get just a little good luck this season with the injury bug and on
court in an attempt to improve and contend.
OneHD will again be
covering NBL games for fans who wish to tune in over the weekend and during the
season.
For my personal prediction, see the playoff teams at
the end of the season being the Perth Wildcats, New Zealand Breakers, Cairns
Taipans, Wollongong Hawks, Melbourne Tigers and the Townsville Crocs to vie for
the title.
I reserve the right to change/adapt the above if on
Andrew Bogut decides to enter the fray…rumours say he will land in Sydney or
Perth??
To my friends overseas…you can see complete NBL
coverage on the NBL Website.
Back with updates and a WNBL preview soon.
You can follow my various sports rants on Twitter @ChuckDownUnder
