NZL - Battle-hardened Frank keeps Tall Blacks place

AUCKLAND (FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament) - Tall Blacks coach Nenad Vucinic has opted to go with veteran forward Casey Frank as his naturalized player at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) in Caracas.

American Marcel Jones, who only last week received his citizenship in New Zealand, competed with Frank for the roster spot but the incumbent won out in the end and will now try to help the Kiwis when they go into battle against Angola and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM).

Frank, who hails from New York, has been an important member of the Tall Blacks since making his bow in a major competition with the team six years ago at the FIBA World Championship in Japan.

Vucinic elected not to take him to the 2008 OQT in Athens, however, and instead went with a center, American Nick Horvath.

There are no hard feelings from the Wellington Saints player about the competition for the naturalized spot this summer.

"The Tall Blacks are only as strong as their weakest link so if there's somebody out there that's a better player than I am, then I'd expect them to get the job," the 34-year-old Frank said.

"It's not a job for life, it's a privilege while you're there and while you have the opportunity you really have to savor it.

"I think everyone on this team understands that."

What is not in question is that New Zealand have their backs against the wall already.

Veteran sharpshooter Kirk Penney and high-flying Tom Abercrombie, two of the side’s most important players, are out of the squad because of injuries.

Vucinic has decided to take Frank, Lindsay Tait, Josh Bloxham, Jarrod Kenny, Everard Bartlett, Hayden Allen, Tai Webster, Leon Henry, Mika Vukona, Jeremiah Trueman, Alex Pledger and Rob Loe to the OQT.

Vukona, one of the most established players in the squad and a fierce competitor in the paint, is the team's captain.

Steve Adams and Isaac Fotu are two up-and-coming Tall Blacks who stood an excellent chance of making the squad but will not be with the national side in Caracas.

Fotu elected to get a head-start on his academics at the University of Hawaii before playing his first year of basketball there this season.

The absences of Penney and Abercrombie opened the door for Allen and Webster to make the team.

Allen, 32, has tried to make the Tall Blacks roster for the past several years but was unsuccessful while Webster is the younger brother of Tall Black, Corey Webster.

To illustrate how inexperienced and young Tai Webster is, Vucinic allowed the 17-year-old to leave the Tall Blacks camp on Saturday night to attend his high school ball.

Frank is optimistic that the Tall Blacks can be competitive as they go after one of the three spots on offer at the OQT for the London Games.

"The history of the Tall Blacks, the sum of the total has always been bigger than the sum of the parts," he said in the New Zealand media.

"We don't have that crutch of Kirk's scoring to rely on and while other guys probably won't be able to play up to that level, I think our system will be able to create points when we need them and give us the opportunity to win."

FIBA