Nelson Giants

Fico Finance Nelson Giants 2012 Season Tickets open 31st Jan, get the best seat in the Hangar!!!!Welcome to the launch of our new website! Click Here to give us your feedback.Thanks to ALL our 2012 Sponsors! GO GIANTS!!

Newsletter: Nelson Giants Basketball 2012 - Jan 1, 2012 - Dec 31, 2012 [Archive]

Official 2012 Fico Finance Nelson Giants -Pete McNae

Phill Jones must sometimes think he has wandered into a creche instead of a training session.
At 38, Jones is the grand old man of the Fico Finance Nelson Giants, 23 years older than rookie big man Gus Riley. There will always be a place in the Nelson team for Jones, one of the finest basketballers this country has seen at least while he can still bend to tie his bootlaces but the Giants continue to be a hothouse for young players.
Alongside Riley in the 2012 squad named by head coach Chris Tupu today are fellow teenagers Mike Karena, Aaron Dempster, Scott Cameron and Ollie Shallcrass.
Josh Bloxham, Ben Wright and Sam Dempster are in their early twenties but already have up to seven seasons in the national basketball league behind them.
``It's nice to have young Nelson players knocking on the door,'' Tupu said.
``These boys have grown up in the game here and played their way up to the national league.''
The bolter is Riley, a year 12 student at Nayland College. The 15-year-old cuts an imposing figure at 2.02m tall and 110kg and, though he has been involved with national age group teams in the past, Tupu said his development had been dramatic over summer.
``Gus has worked really hard on his game and his conditioning and being named as one of our development players is reward for his effort.''
Riley, Cameron and Shallcrass officially sit outside Nelson's squad but might well see game time during the Bartercard NBL season.
Riley will travel with the Giants to the Blitz tournament in Porirua this weekend and is sure to get on the court, because Nelson plays four full games in two days.
``It's a bit of a surprise, being chosen this year,'' Riley said. ``I've had to put in a lot of work to come back from an injury and I suppose that has worked in my favour.''
Riley was in Australia with a New Zealand Korus selection a year ago when he shattered his leg five minutes into his first game. The break kept him off the court for six months but Riley came back to basketball determined to see what he could achieve.
Earning a scholarship to a US college is his goal. Riley said he had learned a lot working against the Giants over the summer and knew he could keep improving.
``We've trained almost every day for a few months and I went to as many as I could. At first I just wanted to be fitter to try to avoid another injury but working against NBL players all the time helps you learn a lot in a short time.''
The Blitz tournament will also be the first outing for American forward Pete Campbell who arrived on Tuesday. He impressed at his first full training on Wednesday evening.
``I think Pete showed he has a very well-rounded game,'' Tupu said.
``He's not going to be a player who dazzles us with athletic ability but he does a lot of things very well.
``He's a smart guy, he's been coached well and he's got a range of skills.''
Mika Vukona and Mike Harrison will miss this weekend's pre-season tournament with Vukona tied up in the Australian league with the Breakers, and Harrison committed to a playoff season with AEK Larnaca in Cyprus.
The Breakers are releasing Bloxham for this weekend, and the Giants are managing Daryl Jones through another calf injury and might choose to rest him.

The 2012 Fico Finance Nelson Giants are: Josh Bloxham, Ben Wright, Aaron Dempster, Phill Jones, Daryl Jones, Sam Dempster, Bronson Beri, Michael Karena, Gareth Dawson, Mika Vukona, Pete Campbell, Michael Harrison.
Development players: Gus Riley, Scott Cameron, Ollie Shallcrass.
Coach: Chris Tupu. Assistant coach: Tony Rampton. Manager: Gary Williams.

New Giant embraces the team-first ethos - Pete McNae

Making the most of opportunities involves being in the right place at the right time and, for American Pete Campbell, here is the right place and now is the right time.
Campbell arrived in Nelson on Tuesday, the first of the Fico Finance Giants' two overseas recruits for the National Basketball League season, which begins early next month.
The 27-year-old forward was still stretching the travel kinks out of his back and the folds out of his legs yesterday, but already he had formed a fair idea of what his new home was like.
"No one knows me yet but everyone is very welcoming - they're smiling at me in the street. I've heard Nelson is a basketball town in a rugby country, and that sounds good to me, " Campbell said.
The 2.01m Indiana native has been signed to bolster the Giants' offence after setting college records for three-point accuracy while at Butler University.
He's quick to stress that Nelson fans shouldn't be blinded by shooting statistics.
Four years on the professional scene, briefly in the NBA's Development League and the remainder of the time in Germany's Bundesliga and Pro A competitions, have helped him round out his game.
"At school, with the team we had, my role was to hit a spot and, when the ball came to me, I was there to knock down the shot.
"I've been shooting all my life so that wasn't a problem, really, " he said. "Getting overseas, teams still want you to make shots, but you have to bring other skills to the table."
Giants coach Chris Tupu believes Campbell offers something few other teams have - a big man with guard skills who can draw defenders away from the basket with his shot, then punish them when they find themselves in unfamiliar ground on the perimeter.
He will also be pleased to hear Campbell preaching the "team-first" ethos. After starting his college career at in-state IPFW, where family members living nearby could watch him play, Campbell transferred to the higher-profile Butler in Indianapolis after sitting out a season.
His arrival coincided with a purple patch for Butler, capped by a runner-up finish in the national college championship last season.
Campbell said Butler was the perfect fit.
"We had the guys who slipped past the recruiting services - maybe we didn't play on the teams that got the publicity and the sponsored backing from Nike or whoever - but were still very skilled, just not so obvious, " he said.
"We understood fundamentals and the value of playing as a unit.
"That's why I have enjoyed Germany but didn't get the same satisfaction from the D-League.
"Even though you think you are one step, one good game, one scout contact, away from making the NBA, it's not that cut and dried.
"I found quickly that it wasn't a league that emphasises team-first and I was a bit of a fish out of water."
Instead, he returned to Germany, joining Bayreuth and helping them win a championship and earn promotion to the elite Bundesliga.
He said the German league attracted high-level American talent because it had a reputation for treating players fairly and, because there was a strong emphasis on practice and fewer games, players were able to develop.
"I definitely think I have more strings to my bow now than when I left school, when I got invited to a camp with the [Indiana] Pacers, or when I had that short time in the D-League, " he said.
"Two of my uncles played professionally overseas and it was always a goal of mine in the game to be able to reach a standard where I could do that, too."
However, arriving in Germany straight out of college was still something of a shock for the lad from Muncie, Indiana (pop 70,085). Campbell said the feeling was different as he stepped onto the tarmac at Nelson airport.
"I've only been here 24 hours but you get a feeling about a situation straight away, " he said. "It's not too bad being able to smell the ocean from your front door.
"But, you know, I'm not here for a vacation. This is my job, and that comes with expectations.
"I have always felt that the best way to gain acceptance somewhere new is to be humble, work hard, bring the effort every day, and maybe give the fans something to celebrate.
"That's a great ice-breaker . . . winning games with the home team."

Harrison makes Giant Stride Again - Pete McNae

Like Halley's Comet and Winston Peters, Mike Harrison never really goes away.
The lanky American basketballer played for Nelson in the 2008 season and bounced back to the city in 2010 as the Fico Finance Giants' sole import after he spent a year in Romania's top pro league.
Last year, he would have been back again if not for a finger injury suffered as he was about to sign on as MaineJer Green's replacement.
Therefore, it's no real surprise that Giants coach Chris Tupu has opted for the proven player to fill the second import slot in his roster for the coming Bartercard national basketball league season. Harrison committed this week to his third stint in Nelson.
At 2.06m tall, the 27-year-old is an explosive forward who can cover all three frontcourt positions. He's athletic and a willing rebounder and shotblocker.
``What I like about Mike, what I have always liked about Mike, is his versatility,'' Tupu said.
``He can guard a centre, he can guard a three-man [forward], he can block shots and he can finish at the rim.''
The only fly in the Giants' ointment is that Harrison can't get here until his AEK Larnaca team is bumped from the playoffs in Cyprus.
The post-season is about to begin there, although rules in the Cypriot league allow teams to load up with extra players for the playoffs and AEK has chosen to go with their current roster, putting them at a slight disadvantage.
In Tupu's ideal world, they will lose in round one and Harrison will be able to join the Giants soon after the season opens on March 1.
``Mike's worth the wait,'' Tupu said. ``We have committed to him and he'll come straight from Cyprus when he's available.
``It just means the other guys have to hold the fort until he arrives.''
Harrison will be in shape and he's already familiar with most of his Giants' team-mates and the plays they run.
He's also been required to expand his game while in Cyprus. After working against well regarded 2.1m centre Jojo Garcia in training, Harrison had to man the middle when his towering team-mate went down with an injury.
That means Harrison, who is a threat from the wing too tall for opposing guards, too quick for rival forwards can also operate effectively around the basket, where his shotblocking and rebounding will help the young Giants baseline pair of Gareth Dawson and Mike Karena.
With American shooter Pete Campbell arriving in Nelson on Tuesday, the Giants already have proven scoring punch, allowing Harrison and fellow latecomer Mika Vukona to spark the defence.
``He gets after it at the defensive end,'' Tupu said. ``He gets steals and blocks shots and he's so long … teams think they have a layup and Mike H will take two huge strides and wipe it out.
``I know Auckland were chasing him hard but he wanted to come back to Nelson. He has friends here and he's enjoyed the two seasons he has been with the Giants.
``It's about unfinished business for him now, helping Nelson win a title which he's been close to but not achieved yet and putting a championship on his resume.
``Mike's been playing well in good leagues since we last saw him so we're expecting him to come in and help right away.''
Tupu will name his final squad for the season next week, with a five-team tournament scheduled for Wellington next weekend. The Giants will play four full games in two days as they prepare for their season opener in Nelson against the Manawatu Jets on March 3.

Pete Campbell, Shooting Star - Pete McNae

When Pete Campbell walks into a gym, the basket is in range.

The Fico Finance Nelson Giants hired instant offence with their first overseas recruit for the coming national basketball league season, the 2.01m forward building a solid college and professional career around his ability to put the ball in the basket.

Campbell, from the basketball burg of Muncie, Indiana, played at IPFW (Indiana-Purdue Fort Wayne University) before transferring to the higher-profile Butler programme for his final two seasons of collegiate basketball. In his senior year at Butler, he averaged almost 12 points a game but it is how he got those points that is notable. In his two years there, he made three-point shots at a 50 per cent clip to set a school record that still stands.

He later took part in a training camp with the Indiana Pacers NBA franchise and has played in the NBA's Development League but, of late, has been in the German Bundesliga and Pro A competitions. Now, with four years as a pro player under his waistband, he's been attracted to Nelson and the Giants.

Head coach Chris Tupu said Campbell's name only came up through a friend of a friend in the coaching ranks but he addressed many of the areas Nelson were hoping to fill.

"His YouTube video is seven minutes of three-point shooting and that's obviously an area he excels in, but I have seen tapes of Pete playing full games and he isn't just a one-dimensional gunner.

"He's got good size, he can rebound and defend and his ability to score the ball is hopefully going to create issues for opposing teams."

Campbell is a legitimate 2.01m (6'7") tall and weighs 100kg, giving him the frame to be able to work around the basket. Get him the ball on the wing, though, and it's money in the bank.

"Recruiting is always a lottery but Pete's played in a reputable programme under a very good coach and Butler have made their mark in college basketball in the last few seasons," Tupu said.

"I'd say that, four years into his pro career, he will come to Nelson looking to make a mark and will show that he has a range of guard skills in the body of a big man. That could create mismatch options for us.

"The fact he's been a solid contributor in German division one, where teams load up on American players, says to me that he has the talent to be an impact player but we'll see when he gets here."

That's February 14, in time for a five-team pre-season tournament in Wellington.

Ad Feedback Tupu will still be looking for a second American forward at that stage and Mika Vukona will be busy with the Breakers but he is hoping to be able to field the core of his Bartercard NBL squad, including Breakers guard Josh Bloxham, who might be released for at least part of the tournament.

The Giants have just finished beach fitness work with trainer Claire Dallison and are about to hit the hardwood, with Tupu determined to involve young Nelson players where possible.

"The way our squad is coming together, there will be opportunities for these young guys to push through," he said.

"It's important Nelson relates to the Giants as their team so I'm hoping some of the boys who have grown up here and played their high school basketball here will show they can cut it in the NBL."

- © Fairfax NZ News - Pete McNae

Mike Fitchett Joins...

Fitchett joins ex Tall Blacks Coaching Club - Pete McNae

Mike Fitchett wasn't going to wait to be pushed.

At 29, he's decided to retire from all basketball, ending a 13-year national league career with Nelson, Otago and Waikato, also opting out of the international team after four seasons with the Tall Blacks.

Fitchett, who left Nelson late last year to take up a management post with the Auckland Basketball Development Trust, had been expected to sign with the Auckland Pirates in the national league this year, but is now glad he didn't.

"I'd been close to getting it done [signing a contract] before Christmas but it was dragging on a little," he said. "We came back home for the holidays and I had a few scrimmages and it just wasn't there.

"I'd been turning the future over for months at the end of the last Giants season and then a pretty disappointing Tall Blacks trip. It finally just confirmed what I probably already knew."

Fitchett said he had discussed his decision with Auckland coach Judd Flavell and his Tall Blacks mentor, Nenad Vucinic, along with Claire Dallison and his father, Steve, who are directors of the Fico Finance Nelson Giants.

"I hadn't made anything official ... nothing's official until it appears as your Facebook status," Fitchett quipped.

He said last season's domestic and international seasons were a step back from where he had been in the previous four seasons, when he had won national league titles with Nelson and Waikato, made his international debut and played in a world championship tournament with the Tall Blacks.

A nagging hip injury and a demanding job as Nelson's Coachforce development officer meant he was off his best for the Giants, contributing 9.7 points and 2.7 assists in 29 minutes a game. That fed into a Tall Black series against Australia where, by his own admission, Fitchett "wasn't up to it".

"I felt like I was stealing somebody's spot," he said. "I didn't do myself justice and I knew as the tour went on that it wasn't going to get any better."

With the Auckland job already keeping him busy, Fitchett has also secured the head coaching role at Dilworth School in Auckland.

A private school run by the Dilworth Trust Board, all of its students are boarders on full scholarships, covering education and accommodation.

The trust's charter dictates that the school is for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, offering them opportunities their families could never provide.

Ad Feedback "It's not a school for kids with behavioural issues," Fitchett said. "They are great kids from situations that Dilworth can help address."

With coaching his main basketball goal now, Fitchett is looking forward to helping Dilworth become a regular participant at the secondary schools nationals.

"I need game-coaching experience and the chance to see if I can coach away from just a training situation, because that's where I hope to head now."

He is comfortable with drawing a line under a career in which he has been called "too slow", "too short" and "not nuggety enough" – whatever that might mean.

After making his Giants debut as a 15-year-old, Fitchett has worked hard on his frame and his game, becoming the classic floor general point guard, a tidy ball handler and an accurate shooter from range.

"I was never a guy who could turn up and get by on physical gifts," he said. "I had to be in the gym five days a week, putting shots up and moving my feet.

"Without the time and commitment to do it properly, the drop-off was always going to come and it started for me last season.

"It's time for me to go before somebody had to tell me to leave."

The Giants squad begin beach fitness training with Dallison this weekend after a month of workouts as a wider group involving players down to under-15 level.

Source:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/basketball/6252894/Fitchett-joins-ex-Tall-Black-coaching-club

New Website!

Welcome to the launch of our new website!  Tell us what you think?

We would really appreciate your feedback on our new logo and website. Please use our feedback form to tell us how we're doing.

Bloxham Recommits

Josh Bloxham doesn't think he'll ever be a big-city boy.

That's part of the reason why the New Zealand Breakers guard has renewed his commitment to the Fico Finance Nelson Giants, signing on for another season in the national basketball league.

Bloxham will be on the Breakers' bench tonight when they host Perth in the Australian national league, soaking up the atmosphere as a development player with the North Shore-based franchise. While he's loving his ANBL experience, he's not as fond of living in the Auckland environs.

"It's nice over on the Shore and we are close to all our facilities and to school [Massey University's Albany campus] but I don't like going across the bridge and into that traffic," Bloxham said this week.

"I don't have to face that, or the changeable weather, when I'm in Nelson."

But there's more than roads and rain behind Bloxham's decision to spurn offers from other NBL franchises to return to the Giants.

He's very close to his family, dad Johnny, mum Leonie and brother Chez, while the Giants have become a second family to him since the Bloxhams moved from Blenheim when Josh was 15.

"It's not my time yet to move away from mum and dad," Bloxham said. "I get homesick up here and miss Nelson and the family. This change of scene is great for my basketball and for me, personally, but returning to Nelson and all the Giants boys wasn't a tough decision."

Bloxham has been a Junior Tall Black and hopes to see some court time with the Breakers as the season progresses but his immediate chances to contribute lie with the Giants. He started last season as a significant contributor but slipped off that pace as Nelson's playoff push saw the minutes divided between fewer players.

Nelson coach Chris Tupu believes Bloxham is on the verge of being a major player, maybe even cracking the starting five.

"JB and I talked minutes and where he wants to go with his game and we're both on the same page," Tupu said.

"He knows that if he continues to work and improve, those chances will be there and he's good enough to take those chances.

"He's a great kid and he definitely features in the Giants' plans. He's going to be exposed to some new things with the Breakers and he's bound to come back to Nelson even better than when he left."

Bloxham has had his eyes opened by the incumbent Breakers point guards, CJ Bruton, Paul Henare and Kevin Braswell.

"I'd watched them on TV and thought they were pretty good ... tough, smart, all that. Then you get in the gym with them and it's all that, times 10.

"But they are really happy to teach, if you're willing to listen and learn. They've played my position in leagues around the world so this is a huge bonus for me."

New Zealand Breakers versus Perth Wildcats, Australian national basketball league, North Shore Events Centre, live on Sky Sport 1 from 7.30pm.

- © Fairfax NZ News
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/sport/basketball/4253130/Bloxham-recommits-to-Giants

Next Piece in Puzzle

It's hard to play basketball on one leg, even for someone as tough as Darryl Jones.

After two seasons blighted by recurring calf injuries, the Nelson Giants swingman has points to prove to his coach, to the fans and to himself.

The latest player to commit to another season with the Fico Finance Giants, Jones needs to get back to the levels of performance he delivered in his first Nelson season – 10 points and five rebounds a night, 46 per cent three-point shooting and the ability to defend three positions.

"It's never, ever a matter of DJ not being willing to play at that level, his body just hasn't allowed it," said Giants coach Chris Tupu yesterday.

"We haven't seen him playing the basketball he's capable of in the last two seasons but he's working hard to fix that."

Jones has a training programme geared around strengthening the calf muscles that have betrayed him in the past two national basketball league seasons and is working on his fitness and conditioning.

The 1.93m tall construction industry trainee yesterday became the third person to commit to the Giants for 2012, behind captain Phill Jones and former Southland centre Gareth Dawson. Tupu said there was an extra urgency around gathering the core of his roster for next season. A hefty overlap with the Australian NBL season will mean that key player Mika Vukona will have an abbreviated Giants campaign.

"The overlap is four weeks, minimum," Tupu said. "The further the Breakers go in the playoffs, the longer it will be before we see Mika and maybe JB [Breakers development player Josh Bloxham].

"That's why Phill and DJ and the young guy [Dawson] were at the top of my shopping list at the start of the signing period.

"We need to have a solid group of 10 who will carry us through those first few rounds in good shape."

While Phill Jones is still a premier performer as he enters an incredible third decade in the NBL, both Darryl Jones and Dawson are younger players looking to establish and enhance their reputations.

"DJ was great for us two seasons ago but, for obvious reasons, he hasn't played his best basketball since then and Gareth is a big man who has potential and the ability to step up his game in all areas," Tupu said.

"They are key pieces of the puzzle for us and putting three parts in place so early is great news for the Giants."

- © Fairfax NZ News
http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/sport/basketball/5821495/DJ-next-piece-in-the-puzzle

Shark Gareth Dawson

This time last year Gareth Dawson was a wide-eyed rookie sitting on the bench for the Manawatu Jets hoping for court time in his debut New Zealand NBL season.

Twelve months on, though, and the 2.05m 113kg Southland Sharks behemoth has to almost pinch himself after experiencing the best year of his basketball career.

It all started midway through the Jets season when Dawson was given extended opportunities after a spate of injuries in the Manawatu frontline. He went on to average 19 minutes a game and was the shining light in a dismal Jets season – picking up the team's most improved and rookie of the year awards.

Those performances caught the eye of Wollongong Hawks Australian NBL coach Gordie McLeod, who was coaching the Wellington Saints in the New Zealand league, and led to Dawson securing a spot in the Hawks' squad as a development player.

Dawson's time in the Australian league seems to have been extremely valuable for his play, with the 21-year-old showing promising signs in the Sharks' season opener against Hawke's Bay on Saturday night. Dawson poured in 10 points and seven rebounds in his 28 minutes on court and did enough to suggest that he will be a handy acquisition for Southland this season.

The big power forward said spending time in the Australian league and working with Gordie McLeod during the New Zealand off-season was extremely beneficial for his game.

"It was a pretty big step up. The players are of a really high calibre. It's one of the toughest leagues around," he said.

Dawson hopes to return to Wollongong next season as a development player, his goal being to cement a permanent place on their roster in the future. His Hawks side – which also features Sharks captain Luke Martin – takes on Perth in the third and deciding game of the Australian NBL grand final series tomorrow night, and he was hopeful the Hawks could take out the title.

The Timaru local has seen some raucous crowds at Wollongong Hawks home matches at "The Sandpit", but said the boisterous support at the Sharks' season opener on Saturday night was right up there. "I couldn't really believe the support we had from the crowd.

"They were very vocal. It's a big help when you get a crowd who is so enthusiastic."

On Sunday, Dawson and the Sharks' big men face a task of massive proportions against NBL title favourites Harbour Heat away from home, with the Auckland-based side oozing talent right across the court.

Dawson said one of the Sharks' main strengths was their size, and he was optimistic he and fellow Southland big men Martin Iti and James Paringatai would be able to cause Harbour plenty of problems close to the basket.

"They're a pretty tough team this year, but we're looking forward to the challenge ...

"That's one of the areas we're focusing our team play towards. We're looking to take advantage of our height and intimidate some of the other teams."

Meanwhile, Sharks coach Richard Dickel is confident skipper and former Australian international Luke Martin will be available for Sunday's match against Harbour. Martin will be involved in the deciding game of the Australian NBL grand final series with his Wollongong team tomorrow night against Perth.

GARETH DAWSON AT A GLANCE

Born: February 22, 1989, in Timaru
Height: 2.05m (6ft 9in)
Weight: 113kg
Position: Power forward/centre
2004-2005: Roncalli College First V
2006-2007: Waitaki Boys' High School First V
2008: North Otago Penguins (CBL)
2009: Manawatu Jets (NBL)
2009-2010: Wollongong Hawks (Australian NBL)
2010: Southland Sharks (NBL)

- © Fairfax NZ News
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/sport/3432618/Shark-Gareth-Dawson-credits-Aussie-experience

New Look for Giants

The Nelson Giants are giving themselves Christmas gifts this year, a new online look and a new logo part of their push towards another national basketball league championship.

The Fico Finance Giants today unveiled their latest branding, a revised logo created by Nelson design company, Hothouse. It will appear on their playing strip, merchandise, signs, cars and advertising.

Marketing and events manager Sharona Gordon said a fresh look was needed with Hothouse blending "non-negotiable" features into the new logo.

"We had to keep the Giant," she said. "He's been with us almost six years but we wanted more energy.

"We're stoked with the result. We have it in three colours; navy, white and a lighter blue, and you'll see it on everything that identifies the Giants around town and around the league.

"The response we have had has been really positive."

Allied with the fresh brand, the Giants are about to launch an updated and improved website through New Orleans-based Benson Technology.

Rob and JoDan Benson, whose brother Neil set up a computer diagnostic firm in Nelson, are partners in Benson Technology and sought the Giants' business.

The upgraded website will be based on sites provided by Australian national basketball league teams, Gordon promising a "more interactive and informative" place to source Giants news when it is launched by January 6.

Read Full Article

Source:  http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/sport/6178400/Giants-get-fresh-for-2012/
Photography: EVAN BARNES/ShutterSport




See Old News: Archive