U.S. tour for N.Z. basketball team?

Press, 29 October 1981, Page 40

U.S. tour for N.Z. basketball team?

By

MIKE JOHANSSON

The New Zealand senior men’s basketball side may tour the west coast of the United States next year. This was one of the outcomes of a visit to the United States earlier this month by the New Zealand Basketball Federation’s executive officer, Mr Joe McLeod, of Christchurch. Mr McLeod said yesterday that a promoter in the United States had offered "to pick up the tab” for a tour by the senior men’s side. This would mean that the

only cost to the federation would be the preparation of the team and the return air fares, he said. The proposal could not have come at a better time for the federation. In the senior men’s build-up for the 1983 Commonwealth basketball championships, to be played in Christchurch, the only international competition scheduled had been the William Jones international tournament in Taiwan in the middle of next year. Mr McLeod said he would put a firm proposal to the federation’s annual meeting

in December. He hoped that a 25 to 30 day tour in November, 1982, including up to 15 matches, could be arranged. Depending on whether the federation wanted to make money on the tour, the senior men’s side could play varying strengths in the United States College basketball scene, he said. If the New. Zealand side was prepared to "get a thrashing” in all of its games from some of the top college sides, it would be able to pick up between S5OOO to $lO,OOO in guaranteed game fees.

Mr McLeod said that another proposal he would be looking at if the tour could not take place was to hold an "international” standard mini-tournament in Christchurch as a build-up for the Commonwealth championships. He - said that up to two teams from Canada, the United States or South America could be brought to this country early in 1983 and along with Australia and New Zealand could play a quadrangular tournament in the weeks leading up to the

Commonwealth championships. Mr McLeod said that for the men’s championships, four countries had indicated they would definitely attend and another eight had indicated they would probably be sending teams. In the women’s section of the championships two countries had definitely entered and six had indicated they would probably Come. Mr McLeod said August seemed the most likely time to hold the championships, although as yet he had received no word from some

African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. The New Zealand delegation to the F.1.8.A. (the international basketball administering body) fiftieth anniversary celebrations in Munich, next June, would be seeking further entries for the Commonwealth championships, be said. If there were vacancies in the competition the N.Z.B.F. would look at entering the national junior women’s and men’s sides in the tournament, possibly in a B division, he said.