MELBOURNE (Paulo Kennedy's View from Downunder) - This week's column was meant to be about the USA, Spain, deliberate fouls, 3x3 and all things that might open up the court a little bit and give us a bit more speed.

Instead though, I'd like to pay tribute to someone who opened up the court in a different way - with his incredible three-point shooting - and has this week hung up his boots.

I first came across Aaron Grabau when I was a junior playing for the Sandringham Sabres basketball club in the mid 1990s. 'Bo', as he is known, pulled off one of the best junior dunks I have seen.

After he scooted along the baseline and skied high for a jam, a Sabres player (who happens to be a good mate and shall remain nameless as he may seek some form of retribution!) elevated to block the attempt but only succeeded in hitting Grabau's elbow, forcing the ball loose.

Somehow Aaron, still on the way up, regained control of the ball mid-flight and managed to jam it on the offending player's head!

So as you could imagine, when I heard Aaron Grabau had signed to play in the NBL I wasn't really surprised.

If you'd told me he would still be there in 2013 and announce his retirement a still sought-after player I most certainly would have been.

You see, while he was a tough, physical, athletic and very competitive player, he didn’t stand out in terms of the fundamental skills of the game - as shown by his 23 per cent three-point shooting in his first year or the fact opposition players dubbed him Aaron ‘Grabhold’ for his uncultured play!

But sure enough Aaron worked on his game, slowly but surely adapting to what was needed as his athleticism waned, becoming a legendary 14-year role player with the Cairns Taipans.

Remarkably, in his final two seasons he connected on the three-ball at almost 49 per cent, by my calculations the second best two-year percentage in NBL history, despite the recent extension of the three-point line.

(Special mention should also go to Wollongong's Oscar Forman, who set what I see as the NBL two-year record by hitting over 49 per cent of his triples the past two seasons)

While Grabau's effort puts him alongside some very well respected names like CJ Bruton, David Barlow, Phil Smyth and Forman, in announcing his retirement, one basketball website said Grabau developed 'a reliable outside shot'.

That was always the way for Bo, undervalued by many but hugely respected by teammates and opponents.

Aaron, congratulations on a hard-working career, many can take inspiration from the way you went about it.

Emerging Boomers
I had the pleasure over the past week of staying up and watching the Emerging Boomers storm through the Stankovic Cup in Lanzhou with a 5-0 record.

You couldn't get a bigger early tick for new coach Andrej Lemanis than the way this group played together and had all the answers for some serious questions posed by more experienced opponents.

Their ability to meld aggressive full-court defence into impregnable half-court D was remarkable for a new group, restricting opponents to just 62 points a game across the tournament.

The group also showed a number of traits Aussie teams haven't always been known for, such as the ability to win close half-court games down the stretch, withstand opposition runs and then turn the tide, and somewhat consistently being able to exploit teams in transition.

Much credit for those last two should go to Jason Cadee, who was Lemanis' go-to man when things started to look shaky. He was near unflappable making sure the offenses got run and the right people got shots, and his passing in transition was superb.

He certainly showed the benefit of playing the past two full seasons in such a guard-strong professional competition as the NBL.

As he did in the Sino-Australian series, Cam Bairstow continued to impress with his hardnosed work inside. He reminds me of a young Matt Knight, and that's a big compliment.

Knight won a gold medal with the Australian U19 team, then claimed repeat All-Team honours over his career with Loyola Marymount in the NCAA's West Coast Conference.

In his second year as a pro he was named All-NBL Second Team, and while injuries slowed him for a while last season he was widely acclaimed as the NBL’s best big and made the All-NBL First Team.

In Bairstow I see the same toughness, same ability to beat bigger opponents, same never beaten attitude and same unfashionable and rugged inside-out game. On that form I expect a big senior year at New Mexico.

As for the team, with wingmen Clint Steindl, Ryan Broekhoff, Owen Odigie and Todd Blanchfield all showing exciting form and Lemanis cooking up an excellent team broth, they should be aiming high at the World University Games.

Emus
Finally, best of luck to the Emus tonight in their Quarter-Final against Spain at the FIBA U19 World Championship and their two following games, whether they be for a medal or places 5-8.

After their disappointing second-half fade-out against China, it showed great character to beat Russia so convincingly, with their four key players - Dante Exum, Emmett Naar, Nic Duncan and Dane Pineau - all having big games. That’s class.

There's no doubt a couple of performances have been very disappointing, just as there's no doubt the loss of star point guard Mirko Djeric in such devastating circumstances would have taken its toll.

But if the Emus can produce three more strong performances like the Russia game, they can leave Prague with their heads held high no matter where they finish.

Paulo Kennedy

FIBA

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