Basketball first for national team

Press, 14 January 1986, Page 3

Basketball first for national team

By FRANK DUGGAN The New Zealand men’s basketball team will compete for the first time in the world championships. Twenty-four teams will compete in Spain from July 6 to July 20.

New Zealand’s inclusion is the greatest step forward, internationally, that the sport here has experienced and is recognition of a rapidly-improving playing standard in recent years and the work of the Basketball Federation, particularly its executive director, Mr Joe McLeod.

For the last three years Mr McLeod has been “pushing” New Zealand’s case for a place in the world championships. Automatic inclusion in the tournament has always depended on the Oceania qualifying series against Australia and New Zealand has never made it. Only late last year Australia won the qualifying series in Australia, two games to nil. The objective of the federation and Mr McLeod has been for the national team to perform creditably in Asian and South-East Asian tournaments in the hope of receiving one of the two “wild card” invitations to Spain in 1986. New Zealand has done just that in the last few years and its performances were sufficient for the world governing body, F.1.8.A., to extend an invitation.

A hurried meeting of the national executive has now confirmed that New Zealand will compete in Spain. The federation is faced with a budget of more than $lOO,OOO for air fares to and from Spain. Mr McLeod is confident that any monetary difficulties will be over-

come. “The Spanish authority organising the tournament said that it would pay all expenses in Spain, apart from air fares,” he said yesterday. It was originally thought that Brazil and Japan would be extended “wild cards.” Brazil qualified, however, at a recent tournament and Mr McLeod is uncertain of Japan’s fate. “Japan was taking part in a qualifying tournament over ChristmasNew Year and I haven’t heard any results,” he said. Seven venues will be used for post section play. The championships will be broken into four groups involving six teams and after a round-robin tournament the top three teams in each section will move to Madrid for semi-final and finals competition. Teams which fail to qualify will leave Spain on July 12 unless they want to stay longer at their own expense. “Don’t let us get carried away about our prospects,” said Mr McLeod. “You have to look at the whole matter objectively, but New Zealand’s aim should be to finish in the first 12 to 16. Anything better and it would be a bonus,” he said. “The federation’s point of view is that an invitation to be ranked among the top 24 basetball countries in the world is the biggest kudos New Zealand basketball has ever been granted,” said Mr McLeod.

“Now we have to make sure we stay in that 24 bracket.” Mr McLeod sees a tremendous task ahead for the New Zealand team and the head coach, Bob Bishop, and his assistant, Keith Mair, both of Christchurch.

The first regional national clinics will be held in March

and squad trials are scheduled for Easter. “The final squad will have to have some tough competition before going to Spain,” said Mr McLeod. The University of Nevada will tour between June 1 and 8, and Mr McLeod is now looking for another overseas team to visit.

“It’s a dream come true,” was his reaction to F.1.8.A.’s invitation. “Basketball has always been given minimal Sports Foundation funding because of its low world ranking. Australia has always been a stumbling block and we’ve never got anywhere in world standings because of that,” he said. “The New Zealand federation has always thought that two Oceania zone teams should qualify for world or Olympic competition. Now it looks as if F.1.8.A. has recognised the standard here.

“Perhaps the Sports Foundation will now give us some more money,” said Mr McLeod.

New Zealand’s going to the world championships will effect the playing strength of several Countrywide league teams. The league finals will be held in Wellington on August 15-16, and it is expected that national squad players will not be available for up to four weeks at a vital stage of the league season. If New Zealand should make the final 12 their unavailability will be much longer. In Canterbury’s case, John Rademakers and John Hill will almost certainly go to Spain; Dave Edmonds, another New Zealand representative last year, is another strong possibility, along with lan Webb and Andy Bennett.