Abercrombie impatient for Breakers season to start on Sunday

SKYCITY Breakers basketballer Tom Abercrombie cant wait for Sunday afternoon to roll around, the Australian Basketball Leagues premier swingman is jumping out of his skin to get the new campaign underway, and is looking forward to getting a monkey off the back in the shape of the Cairns Taipans at Spark Arena.

Abercrombie is not alone in looking forward to taking on the team that swept them 4-0 last regular season, and in the process denied the four-time championship winning Breakers a place in the post-season.

"No one likes being reminded of that sort of record against any one team, even more so given they made the post-season and we missed out by one game. But that was then and we are very much focused on this season and a new campaign. So yeah, while we feel we owe them something, it is more about this season, protecting our home gym and getting the season off to a strong start in front of a big crowd."

Like Abercrombie, many of his team mates are in an unfamiliar position of having had a lengthy off-season. Typically, most of the team play through the winter, either in Europe or with New Zealand NBL teams, before suiting up for the Tall Blacks, leaving minimal time to refresh and recover for another ANBL campaign.

But this year has been different, with Mika Vukona, Rob Loe, Alex Pledger and Abercrombie all having lengthy time away from the office, as all sat out the recent Tall Blacks Asia Cup campaign to ready themselves for bigger games down the track.

The by-product of that is a team raring to go and looking to hit the floor running on Sunday afternoon and while Abercrombie did have a short stint in Europe on the back of the last season, he has had plenty of time since to get in shape for the new tilt at a championship.

"You can feel the difference as well as literally see the difference on the floor. Players are just that much sharper and mentally ready to go. And while pre-season results ultimately count for nothing, it is perhaps no coincidence that we have gone four and two, including good performances against the likes of Melbourne, Adelaide and Cairns.

"I know from my own experience that I have loved the chance to have a good break with the family, then get in the gym and focus solely on strength and conditioning, all of which hopefully sets myself up for a strong season."

Abercrombie likes what he has seen from the newcomers to the roster too, with imports Edgar Sosa and DJ Newbill showing glimpses of their potential in a 4-win, 2-loss pre-season campaign, while Kiwi forward James Hunter has slotted in seamlessly after an impressive winter with the New Zealand Select and Tall Black programmes.

"Edgar and DJ have been superb, both have come in and understood who we are as a club first and foremost and know our values and what we are looking to achieve in the community. But importantly, they can both play and have shown that over recent years at high levels in the States and Europe. Fans are going to love what they bring and what we will do as a team.

"That is also down to the Kiwis on the roster, from the young to the not so young! The likes of Finn, Shea, Jimmy, Jordan and Derone are that much more experienced and ready to play their part. It should be a fun season for the fans, we cant wait to reintroduce ourselves to Breaker Nation on Sunday and hope to see a big crowd at Spark Arena."

- This story has been automatically published using a media release from Basketball New Zealand