24 INVITED TO TALL BLACK TRIAL CAMP IN JULY
Tall Blacks head coach Nenad Vucinic has invited 24 players to attend a camp in Auckland on July 8/9 with a view to ultimately earning a spot on the roster for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain.
 
And with that sort of incentive on the line as reward for strong performances in the lead up and during the camp, it is not surprising that Vucinic has agonized over the initial list of names.
 
“Selecting players to attend Tall Black trials is not necessarily simply picking the ‘best’ players in the country. As always it has the elements of immediate need as well as looking towards the future to ensure a consistent flow of players for the times ahead. Therefore it made our job even harder, but we are happy with the mix of youth and experience that we have and are looking forward to seeing them battle against each other.”
 
The 24 include of a strong core of veteran Tall Black players with previous World Cup experience, including Kirk Penney (2002, 06, 10), Mika Vukona (2006, 10), Tom Abercrombie (2010), Benny Anthony (2010), Lindsay Tait (2010), Casey Frank (2010) and Alex Pledger (2010).
 
Vucinic says that while no one is guaranteed of a spot in Spain, an experienced core of players is vital to any team’s chances of success at the sports pinnacle event.
 
“International competition is always at least one level above any league that our players are used to, therefore players that have played a lot at this level are invaluable to lead the team.”
 
Contrasting those who have tasted a World Cup before is a generation of young talent eager for their first experience. There are 11 players aged 22 or younger in the 24, including 6 teenagers. Amongst that young group invited to the two-day camp are Jack Salt (18) who debuted last year before heading away to College in the States and Tai Wynyard (16) who emerges from the Super City Rangers NBL team and Breakers Academy and a recent MVP performance at the Nike All Asia Camp in China.
 
Vucinic says the camp is a chance to see whether the youngsters are ready to take the step up into international basketball.
 
“Young players come with a lot of talent, confidence and enthusiasm into Tall Black camps. Playing against experienced players is not easy for them and some struggle while others take the challenge well. For us coaches it is a unique opportunity to test them in a pressure cooker environment.”
 
Meanwhile Leon Henry, Shea Ili and Reuben Te Rangi were not considered, Basketball New Zealand CEO Iain Potter explained the rationale.
 
“The situation with Leon, Shea and Reuben has been an unwelcome one. As has been well documented the basketball community has reacted as you would expect to the assault charges laid against the three, for which they face sentencing on August 1^st.
 
“Right now Nenad and the team need to fully concentrate on preparing as best they can without distraction. All three pleaded guilty and have expressed great remorse over their part in the New Plymouth incident. But after discussion with the coaching staff and the Board of Basketball New Zealand, the decision was made to not include them in the mix, regardless of the outcome on August 1^st.”
 
For the 24 players given their chance in Auckland, there will be a number of steps along the way to ultimately earn a ticket to Spain, starting with the naming of 16 players at the conclusion of the two-day camp to feature in a rare home series against Korea to follow on from Auckland. The three game series in Wellington (15^th), Tauranga (17^th) and Auckland (19^th) against fellow Spain bound side Korea will be the perfect start to a busy build up to Spain.
 
Vucinic expects that competition for places on the roster for the Korean series will be intense over the two days in Auckland.

“The Korea series is great for us not only to play in front of our own fans, but also to test and prepare players for what is ahead of them. We will also try to work on different combination of players throughout those 3 games.”
 
24 players invited to the July 8/9 Tall Black camp/trial in Auckland:
 

 
Tall Blacks Coaching and support staff:
Nenad Vucinic                    Head Coach
Paul Henare                       Assistant Coach
Pero Cameron                    Assistant Coach
Claire Dallison                    Trainer/Team Manager
Anousith Bouaaphone        Physiotherapist
Shelley Moana Hiha           Massage Therapist
Peter Kadar                        Operations Manager National Teams