Well the season has started with a bit of a whimper, but for me it is about to get into full swing on Friday night at the Distinctive Homes Dome with the 36ers playing Townsville.
I think we are up for an interesting year, with 3 teams out of the competition we should expect that teams will be stronger and I think for the first time in a while the 36ers go 10 deep and the second 5 don’t lose much over the starting 5.
My Starting Five
Aaron Bruce
Brett Maher
Mark Tyndale
Adam Ballinger
Luke Schenscher
I think this team will be quick up and down the court (apart from Luke), but they will also be able to hold other teams defensively. In the 2 games I have seen, Aaron Bruce and Mark Tyndale have only played 1 game but they were impressive with limited minutes.
Bruce is a genuine ball carrier and controls the point as well as anyone we have had in that position before and yet he is still young (Boomers with Bruce and Pat Mills in the future will be a formidable pair).
Tyndale is quick and loose, a little too loose in the game that I saw at times but will only get better in the system. Defensively he seems to be able to guard anyone from 1-3 and possible even a short 4, but that is yet to be seen. He gets his hands in on the ball which may see him score a few fouls but will also seem him create some nice steals. He passes well and along with Bruce and Brad Davidson the rest of the team will need to be on their toes for some precision passing this year.
Schenscher was slow and seemed out of place in the first game I saw, but came out a lot stronger in the second, I think he blocked Dusty Rychart 2 or three times in one play against the Hawks. His presence in the key will be invaluable and should lead the league in blocks unless his team mate David Cooper gets jealous and tries to out do him (wouldn’t that be an awesome sight). If our ball carriers can create mismatches we can also expect to see some monster hooks and dunks from Schensch also and should play a significant role on both ends of the floor.
Ballinger will keep doing what he does, he wont have to play on the bigger players much if at all this year which should see him dominate even more than he did last year. Not sure if he will score as much as he did last year, due to the fact that he wont be relied on as much as he was, but will still be a major contributor throughout the year.
Mahersy what can be said about him, it is supposed to be his last season, but I think with some clever coaching from Scotty we could see his career extended. Reduce his minutes and Maher could maintain last years scoring output but could also see him extending his career. Will continue to be our Mr Clutch and will do so for a while if his minutes are well managed.
The Bench
Brad Davidson - PG
Brad Hill - SG
Paora Winitana - SG/SF
Ryan Kersten - PG
Erik Burdon - PG/SG
Peter Hoban - F
Jacob Holmes - F
David Cooper - C
Brad Davidson our number 1 point guard last year I believe will take a backwards step to allow Bruce to start in the PG role. Davidson will still play a pivotal role but with a back complaint that has kept him out of some of the preseason he should be eased into the year and therefore will mean he has to take the back seat.
Good to see Brad Hill back, lets hope he can return to the form he was showing with us previously. I still rate him as a SG/SF not as a PG so hopefully he plays that role and backs up the others well, far from being a starter at the moment, but hopefully he progresses well and gets the court time to start forcing his way up the pecking order.
Winitana is the pick up of the year I believe, its tough not having him in the starting line up, but the spark he can create off the bench will get the crowd involved in the game and oppositions wont like him one bit. He is quick and likes to get to the basket - will be a big lose in the few sunday games that we have, but on the court will make an impact.
Kersten back from NZ, needs to shed a few more kilos (pot, kettle, black I know), will play limited minutes but hopefully can be groomed as a replacement for a few years time when Maher and Davidson will be retired.
Erik Burdon will fight with North Adelaide team mate Kersten for minutes and may actually come out on top. Was impressive on very limited minutes last year and I can see him stepping in front of Kersten early on.
Peter Hoban rookie NBL year - wont play a lot of minutes
Holmes returns from South Dragons with Shane Heal’s attitude in his back pocket. I am not impressed with where Jake has taken his game, unless he can find some air in his shots and stops pouting I would rather see him cheering from the bench. Having said that he is a scrapper and will hopefully get onto some offensive rebounds and get some valuable points. I am not convinced he was a good pick up yet.
Cooper with limited minutes behind a fit Schenscher will be useful, hopefully we get the shot blocking Cooper back from a couple of years ago, he was impressive in defense. Probably doesn’t need to score a lot looking at the rest of the team, but needs to rack up blocks and rebounds.
All in all I am looking forward to the coming season, and there is supposed to be a new PA system and the Dome so that should be fun - still no new scoreboard, hopefully once Eddie “Mr Bankrupt” Groves sells the dome we might get one.
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