The Man returns!!

Finally, JR Returns to a venue near you

By

ChuckE

It is a time honoured tradition in Australian sports for well serving sportspeople to have a Testimonial Season or Match. Over the years we have seen it happen for the likes of Wally Lewis, Alfie Langer, John Eales, LeRoy Loggins and countless others from all sports. While the practice has occurred several times in the sport of basketball, this year, supposedly due to financial reasons, the Townsville Cocs saw fit to part ways with John Rillie. Though this did not cause ripples and outrage around the sports world, most in Townsville and any true basketball fans in general were left puzzled. Many remember his commanding performance against Perth in the 2008-2009 NBL playoffs where he led from the front with a captains know of 34 points that included 10 three point bombs.

In the NBL off season there was a reshuffling of the competition with the league cut to eight teams and more local players left without teams. Upon his release by the Crocs, Rillie remained a presence in Townsville whether popping up at North Queensland Cowboy NRL matches or posting rapid fire information to his blog (http://jronfire.blogspot.com).

Fast forward to Wednesday 10 November 2009 and good ol’ JR has arrived on the scene in New Zealand. Visualize a Wild West theme with the new Gunslinger riding in to save the locals. The New Zealand Breakers were the media darlings of the NBL preseason, pick to finish at or near the top of the table. After an opening win against the Gold Coast Blaze, the team has sputtered to a four win, five loss season record. Along the way there have been nagging injuries to a few players with Kirk Penney out from an injury for another two to three weeks. The Breakers made their move on Tuesday releasing import Awvee Storey and signing Rillie.

The move gives the Breakers another veteran player with a winning attitude. Rillie will possibly see his first court time Thursday night as the Breakers host none other than the Perth Wildcats who will be hoping that Rillie on the horizon will not be a bad omen.

Hopefully this will give John Rillie the chance to finish his career on his own terms, not saying that this will even be his last season due to him always being in basketball shape. The NBL will only gain from the return of JR to the game he not only loves but lives.

Previously in a few articles written by yours truly, I have given John the nicknames of “Three Shooter”, due his long range capabilities or “Johnny the Sponge” because in my very first encounter with the very young Toowoomba kid back in the early 1990’s, he had a thirst for knowledge of the game and soaked up any and everything basketball. He was a total devotee to the game and at the time idolized George “Iceman” Gervin and Reggie Miller along with Mr. Jordan. That thirst for knowledge took him on an odyssey the went from Toowoomba to Tacoma and Spokane Washington in the United States, back to Queensland for a stint with the Brisbane Bullets, on to Adelaide for a title run with the 36ers. From there it was a stop in Sydney with the West Sydney Razorbacks before returning to Queensland to captain the Townsville outfit over the last three seasons.

The New Zealand Breakers now have in place upon the return of Penney a very potent long range attack. I am already throwing out the nicknames and thinking of the marketing potential. First up could be “The Posse”, sticking with the western theme featuring John “Three Shooter” Rillie, C.J. “The Kid” Bruton, and “Killer Kirk” Penney. The trio could also be marketed Indiana Jones style as “Raiders from the Three Arc”.

Previously in my blog (http://cdstarrbblog.blogspot.com), I have referred to the NBL with the slogan “Not Bad Lately”, now with the season roughly a third of the way through, things seem to be heating up. If there is a game in your area, get out and have a look. Alternately tune in to the weekly broadcasts on FOX. In conclusion, good luck JR and all other sportsmen plying their trade in these tough economic times.

In Ball Today

Greetings fellow Ballaholics. We are now in our essence with action in the NBL, NBA, WNBL and the ASEAN leagues in full throttle.

In the NBL, Wollongong and Perth top the table with the other eight teams neck and neck heading towards the mid point of the season. There are still a number of top notch players out due to injuries so the power base could shift as they return. Most recently, the Gold Coast Breakers pulled off a huge upset of the New Zealand Breakers last night in NZ.

Meanwhile in the WNBL, Bulleen and Townsville remain undefeated at the top of the ladder. On the bottom rungs sit the AIS and Perth both of whom are hungry for a win. Defending champs Canberra continue to have an up and down ride at this stage of the season but never count them out.

Remember the Singapore Slingers?? Well guess who sits atop the ASEAN Basketball League ladder?? So far the Slingers are undefeated after four matches in the newly formed competition. Have a look through the rosters of the teams on the league website and you will see a few former SEABL players along with a few others who have played here in Australia.

And finally, in the last week, we have gotten our NBA fixes!! Early on, the Denver Nuggets have to be the team of note with Carmelo Anthony lighting up the score sheets. The Orlando Magic are also looking ominous. Defending champion LA Lakers have a few injured players but are winning close games through the scoring of Kobe Bryant. San Antonio rookie DeJuan Blair has proved to be a future double/double machine with his ferocious efforts off the glass.

Oh, don't forget, for us true fans, the NCAA kicks off its season in the next week or two...go Heels!!

Basketball junkies, your fix is on the way!!

Well it is here, the 2009-2010 NBA season kicks off Tuesday night in the US. There are lots of new faces in new places this season along with some familiar ones returning from injuries. For a start I will just make my fearless forecasts.

In the East I see the Orlando Magic, Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavs as the teams to beat while out West, look for a Spurs resurgence in San Antonio along with the always tough Lakers and Dallas as the best picks.

Other surprises could come from the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trailblazers, Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets. In the end I’m going for a Spurs vs. Magic finals series.

Roundup of Aussie action

Round 5 of the 2009-2010 NBL season kicked off with Melbourne pulling off a huge win on the road in Adelaide beating the 36ers 81-70. Mark Worthington went on a tear in the final 10 minutes of the game for the Tigers scoring 15 of his game high 29 points to lead from the front.

Thursday nights action across the Tasman saw the New Zealand Breakers limit the effect of red hot Corey Williams and held on to beat Townsville 92-82. The when came in home game number 100 for the Breakers.

On Friday night, the Gold Coast breakers ambushed Cairns 80-63 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre. Winning on the road is proving to be an Achilles Heel for the Snakes.

Saturday night saw the continued slumping form of Corey Williams as Townsville went down for the second consecutive game losing 99-77 to Wollongong on the road. The Hawks remain at the top of the table with only one loss in five outings.

The poor form of North Queensland teams did not change in Cairns on Saturday night as the Snakes fell heavily to the visiting 36ers 106-89. The win was a quick fix for Adelaide after their loss to the Tigers to start the round.

On Sunday Perth recorded their 500^th win in the NBL by squeaking past Melbourne 93-90 in a battle of the Cats at Challenge Stadium. Perth now sits at number two on the NBL ladder.

In the WNBL, the students from the AIS were given another basketball lesson on Friday night, this time at the hands of Adelaide by a 77-52 count. It was a reunion of sorts for the eight players on the Lightning roster who are graduates of the AIS programme.

Friday night also saw a seesaw battle in Sydney where the Canberra Capitals got a much needed 74-72 win. The defending premiers are out to turn their season around after early struggles.

Also on Friday night, Townsville overcame foul trouble throughout the game to pull away from the visiting Perth Lynx 97-81. The win kept the Fire in sight of table toppers Bulleen.

On Saturday night Bulleen dumped Dandenong 80-67 in the Melbourne Derby. In Sunday action Canberra continued its reversal of fortunes by handing the Adelaide Lightning their first loss of the season 100-73 in the nation’s capital. The win helps Canberra make their first appearance in the top half of the ladder and sends an ominous warning to future opponents. Sunday’s other games saw the Logan Thunder top Perth 76-65 at Logan and Dandenong pick up their first win of the season on the road no less beating up on hosts Bendigo 88-72.

So far this season

So far this season on the Aussie basketball scene, the NBL has proven to be a competitive competition with only 2 games separating the penthouse (top spot) from the outhouse (last place). Surprise packets, the Wollongong Hawks sit atop the table while early favorites New Zealand and Melbourne are struggling due to injuries after four rounds.

The top player so far this season is none other than Corey “Homicide” Williams of the Townsville Crocs. Adelaide import John Gilchrist has also proven to be a fan favorite so far this season.

In the coming weeks, look for a resurgence from New Zealand and Melbourne along with continued excitement from Townsville and Wollongong as the 2009-2010 season heads towards the half way point.

In the WNBL, Bulleen have put an early stamp on the competition by racing out to a 4-0 record. With names like Tom and Robyn Maher, Michelle Timms, Gary Fox and Gaylene Mackay associated with the team, success is as close to a given as you can get. On the floor the team has size, speed and power.

The Adelaide Lightning and Townsville Fire are also off to quick starts while defending champions the Canberra Capitals have broke even in their four matches so far this season.

Jawai Traded

Fresh from: basketball.net.au

MAVERICK JAWAI TRADED TO TIMBERWOLVES

Australian Boomers forward Nathan Jawai has been traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Minnesota Timberwolves less than a week before the start of the NBA's regular season.

The Mavericks received a conditional second round draft pick in 2012 and cash as part of the deal.

Jawai will get more opportunities for court time with the Timberwolves than he would have had at Dallas and is not worried about the frigid temperatures common in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes”.

“I’m used to the cold weather after playing in Toronto,” Jawai told Basketball Australia.

“I’m finishing up a couple of games with Dallas and then heading to Minnesota at the end of the week.

“I’m looking forward to getting on court as the T’Wolves don’t have many big men and I’m excited about being in Minnesota.”

Jawai was the first indigenous Australian drafted into America’s NBA when he was chosen by the Indiana Pacers in the second round of last year’s draft.

He was subsequently sent to the Toronto Raptors where he overcame a health scare to appear in six games.

Jawai was then bundled into a four-team trade in July that took to him to Dallas along with All-Star forward Shawn Marion.

After representing Australia with distinction throughout the 2009 international program between June and August, Jawai returned to the US in September for the NBA pre-season where he received limited playing time at Dallas on a roster stacked with big men.

In Minnesota, injuries to Kevin Love (broken hand) and Al Jefferson (recovering from torn ACL) decimated the Timberwolves’ front line and opened the door for Jawai’s move north.

Minnesota’s President of basketball operations David Kahn said however that the Timberwolves were considering the Jawai trade before Love broke his hand.

"Nathan is a young project who likely will add depth to our roster at his position," Kahn said on the Timberwolves website.

"We were contemplating this trade prior to Kevin Love's hand injury, so this move is not intended to replace Kevin in the short term by any means. That would not be fair to Nathan. Rather, this move provided us an opportunity to work with a young player with size, and later determine if he could be a fit for us."

Australia has some history with the Timberwolves, with Basketball Australia and Sport Australia Hall of Famer Luc Longley drafted to the franchise with the seventh pick in the 1991 NBA Draft.

Longley was traded to the famed Chicago Bulls after two seasons with the Timberwolves and subsequently won three NBA Championships from 1996 to 1998 as a team mate of Michael Jordan.

In other NBA news, WA’s Luke Nevill was yesterday waived by Cleveland.

Nevill, a 7-foot-2 centre, averaged 2.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in 8.8 minutes per game over four games with the Cavaliers but received invaluable experience banging bodies at training with the legendary Shaquille O’Neal.

Nevill's departure leaves four Australians in the NBA: former number 1 draft pick Andrew Bogut (Milwaukee Bucks), power forward David Andersen (Houston Rockets), point guard Patty Mills (Portland Trailblazers) and Jawai.

The NBA regular season starts on October 28, Australian time, when Cleveland takes on Boston.

Houston opens its season on the road against Portland on October 28, Australian time, Minnesota hosts New Jersey on October 29 and Milwaukee opens its season on the road against Philadelphia on October 31.

Can you say Overwhelmed!!!!!

Ok, I have been furiously trying to do all things hoops since the inception of this blog but it is tough for a one man operation to fill so many niches so starting tomorrow I will do three or more features per week that will serve as a wrp-up/review type of offering.

Also, in the future I wil start to post interviews as I get them in the can along with featuring teams, associations and other basketball entities from around the world so I may be sending questions your way soon!!