THE South West Slammers have added Kate Fielding as they attempt to be a women's SBL contender again in 2015 while the naturalisation of playing-coach Ty Harrelson should only help in the men's push to be right in the mix as well.

The Slammers women were defending their 2013 championship in last year's SBL but the result was a ninth place finish with them missing out on the playoffs altogether.

However, the signing of Fielding fresh off a WNBL season with the West Coast Waves along with two solid imports and the Slammers should again be around the mark again in 2015.

And the men's team was already around the mark in 2014 with Harrelson playing as an import, but his naturalisation now means the Slammers can add a second import and that should only help them improve further during 2015.

Despite still having a strong squad on paper in 2014 on the back of the historic 2013 championship victory, the Slammers' women failed to click and ended up losing their last five games in a row to slip out of the top eight and give up their playoff spot to the Willetton Tigers.

That gave the Tigers a small measure of revenge after the Slammers came from eighth position to beat the minor premiers in the quarter finals the previous season, but now South West's women will have plenty of fire in the belly to make up for what happened last year in 2015.

Fielding provides that experience and scoring punch to the Slammers and with two imports who they will be hoping provide big production, then the Slammers have every reason to expect to be right up near the top of the table again this year.

And the Slammers men have been able to keep the majority of its group together coming off a 2014 where they ended up in eighth position with a 14-12 record before losing to the Geraldton Buccaneers in a competitive quarter-final series.

And now not only is Harrelson back but he is an Australian citizen and won't be taking up an import spot in 2015 meaning the Slammers have been able to sign Tre Nichols and Brian Voelkel.

Add Harrelson, Nichols and Voelkel to the group that continues to include Clive Weeden, Wade Hitchcock, Josh Weir, Paddy Phillips, Brendon Canzirri and Mitch Keller while Jordan Hickert appears on track to be right to go after missing the entire 2014 through an ankle injury.

Voelkel joins the Slammers with the power forward fresh off his four-year college career at the University of Vermont where he left as the all-time leader in rebounds and assists to go along with a solid six points a game.

He is the only NCAA player in history to record more than 1000 (1168) rebounds and 600 (679) assists and after being named the America East Defensive Player of the Year in 2014, he arrives at the Slammers ready to make a real impact in his first season out of college.

And then there is scoring guard Nichols who attended Boise State and since leaving college has spent two seasons in the American Basketball Association putting up some impressive numbers.

The 180cm guard has experience running the point and is a good shooter so should be the perfect fit to help Harrelson lead the Slammers further up the men's SBL standings in 2015.

WHAT THE EXPERTS SAY
MEN

STEPHEN CHARLTON
Could easily be placed higher, and won't be surprised if they are by season's end. Yes we're all going to joke about 4 imports, but rules are rules, so get over it. They biggest risk that I see here is on-going injuries. They have a couple of bodies that have not held up recently, but hopefully with added depth this will ease some of this concern. The upside to me isn't even the import thing. With the locals all fit, healthy and here, we might be about to see a true resurgent Slammers. Local depth is the keystone to all successful programs, and these guys are starting to get there.

My Prediction: 5th

MATT CECINS
The Slammers possess one of the tallest line-ups in the league. Having Weeden and Harrelson as Australian Citizens is monumental for the club. Nichols and Voelkel will be excellent additions as imports and the Slammers will be tough to beat on their home floor.

My Prediction: 6th

CHRIS PIKE
Ty Harrelson becoming an Aussie in the off season has allowed the Slammers to add another import to an already strong line-up which I feel has the potential to push for the Championship this year.

My Prediction: 5th

WOMEN

CRAIG MANSFIELD
Missing the finals last season was an anomaly with the loss of players and injuries. They are very well coached by Darren Austin, have reloaded with the addition of two imports and Kate Fielding, plus some of the local girls will have benefited greatly from the additional minutes last season. I have concerns about their guard depth but they always recruit strong imports so you have to assume one of them can get the ball-handling duties done. K Fielding will have to play a lot more consistent and efficiently than she has for a few years in WSBL for them to be a factor after the first round of the finals.

My Prediction: 4th

MATT CECINS
The Slammers will be one of the big improvers this year with two new imports arriving and the signing of Kate Fielding. Darren Austin is a fantastic coach and will have his very young squad primed to improve from the disappointing season in 2014. The Slammers will be a tough team to beat on their home floor down in Eaton.

My Prediction: 5th

CHRIS PIKE
The addition of Kate Fielding fresh off a WNBL season with the Waves plus two solid imports gives the Slammers a real chance of cracking into the top 4 this year.

My Prediction: 4th