A strange evening, but worth it
MELBOURNE (Paulo Kennedy's View from Downunder) - This Friday night was the debut of the NBL's ground-breaking new online broadcasting service - NBL.TV - as the league got underway for 2012-13. Earlier this week I had bought the cables required to connect my laptop to my TV so I could watch it on a bigger screen, and did all the requisite tests to make ...
MELBOURNE (Paulo Kennedy's View from Downunder) - This Friday night was the debut of the NBL's ground-breaking new online broadcasting service - NBL.TV - as the league got underway for 2012-13.
Earlier this week I had bought the cables required to connect my laptop to my TV so I could watch it on a bigger screen, and did all the requisite tests to make sure it worked.
All looked in readiness, so I rushed home from work today to settle in and watch the New Zealand Breakers and Perth Wildcats battle it out in a replay of last year's epic grand final series.
So on goes the computer and television, I log into NBL.TV, select the game and …..
Nothing!
I couldn't believe it. My first reaction was NBL.TV is having an opening night disaster, but as I got onto various social media platforms all I read were fans praising the new service - good quality picture, few bumps in the stream, all that jazz … just not at my place.
After trying everything I pulled out my wife's i-pad to try and get the game that way. I got into the app and tapped on the game and …..
Nothing!
What a miserable evening. Had my house decided to be an NBL.TV free zone? After trying everything within my limited technology realm I gave up.
Perhaps it was FIBA's way of telling me to stop watching basketball and write my column?
So that's what I did, or started to do, until a message came through with a suggestion on how to get NBL.TV going on the i-pad. I tried it and …..
It worked!
So I settled in to enjoy my night of two basketball games. In Auckland the Perth Wildcats were extracting some stylish payback for their heartbreaking loss in last April's title decider.
They were slick, quick, physical and skilful. You name it and they did it. You name it and the Breakers didn't do it - not well anyway.
There were a couple of boys, who realise pushing into the Boomers team this year is essential if they are to play in the inaugural FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain, who played some great basketball.
Damian Martin was the last cut before the London Olympics and played like a man with a renewed goal tonight. In fact, two renewed goals - an NBL title and a World Cup spot.
While his performance and numbers (9 points at 60%, 7 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals) were impressive, centre Matt Knight was just plain dominant.
The size of a power forward but with the strength of a centre, the 2.04m Knight has been missing from the Australian team because of an assortment of injuries.
With a new strength and conditioning coach in Perth this year, Knight has dropped weight and is moving superbly. The Boomers need a replacement for Matt Nielsen, and if Matty keeps replicating his 20 points at 57% and nine rebounds from tonight then he will be that man.
It's not just players battling it out for international berths either.
Word is Brett Brown won't be applying for the Boomers job again and his assistant Andrej Lemanis has been campaigning strongly behind the scenes to be his replacement.
Lemanis also coaches the Breakers had has made almost every post a winner with back-to-back NBL titles the past two years.
His main opposition for the Boomers job, and in the NBL, is Wildcats coach Rob Beveridge - coach of the 2003 U19 World Championship winning team and former assistant of the Boomers.
With the decision to be finalised in coming months every big win for Perth can only help push his case a little. He would have loved a championship win over Lemanis last season.
His real strength though is who he has coached. In that 2003 side was Martin, Knight, Andrew Bogut, Aleks Maric and Brad Newley.
Since then he has tutored the likes of Julian Khazzouh, Luke Nevill and
who will all be battling for a 'big' spot in 2013 and 2014.
Wildcats import and NBL MVP Kevin Lisch, who had 20 classy points tonight, has just received his Australian citizenship. Perth super-sub Jesse Wagstaff is a leading contender to replace
if he hangs up his respected international boots.
So it's not out of the question the majority of the 2014 team could be made up of former Beveridge pupils, and as a rule his players rave about him.
Of course, Lemanis has relationships with all squad members as a current assistant, and through his NBL role has intricate knowledge of New Zealand basketball - the team Australia has to beat to get to the Rio Olympics.
It all just adds more spice to this brilliant New Zealand v Perth rivalry.
The other game tonight was Wollongong vs Sydney, and it was fantastic to see a crowd of over 4300 in the 'Gong - one of the regional city's biggest ever opening night turnouts - to cheer their Hawks to a 79-76 victory.
The story of the game was old man river,
, who after a disappointing 2011/12 season wound back the clock tonight to score 21 points, 15 in the second half.
There were triples, drives, post-ups, sweet assists and even less complaining to the refs than we usually see from the grizzly veteran.
All up, it was a good night of basketball, well worth the wait.
Shame there's only one game tomorrow night…
Paulo Kennedy
FIBA
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