Basketball: Americans eye Tall Black slot

American basketballers Ed Book and Willie Burton, who have become naturalised New Zealanders, will vie for a Tall Blacks singlet in Christchurch next week.

They are among 19 players assembling for a week-long training camp culminating in the North-South all-stars match here on June 2.

New Tall Blacks coach Tab Baldwin yesterday confirmed that Book and Burton would be vying for the one place allocated to naturalised players under International Basketball Federation rules.

"We need a big player to help bolster our size at international level and they fit the bill."

Both are aged over 30, although 2.11m centre Book, of Palmerston North, has just passed that age while Burton, of Hawkes Bay, a muscular rebounder, is almost 40. Burton has been an almost permanent fixture in the national league since the mid-1980s and just last weekend dragged down his 4000th rebound.

Book has been with the Manawatu team for the past five seasons and has always been a skilful post player.

Another new name on Baldwin's list is Ben Simmons, a young forward who was raised in Alaska, but has a New Zealand mother and is now with Nelson.

Most players at the camp will feature in the North-South team to be named today. Mark Dickel and Tony Rampton will return from Australia for the camp but not American-based Sean Marks and Kirk Penney.

- NZPA

TALL BLACKS SQUAD

Dave Langrell, Luke Ruscoe, Andrew Gardiner (Canterbury); Hayden Allen (Otago); Damon Rampton, Phill Jones, Judd Flavell, Ben Simmons (Nelson); Tony Rampton (Cairns); Mark Dickel (Victoria); Lindsay Tait, Daryl Cartwright, Paul Henare (Auckland); Chris Pollard, Willie Burton (Hawke's Bay); Ed Book, Glen Newbold (Palmerston North); Pero Cameron (Waikato); Brendon Cathie-Pongia (North Harbour). Unavailable: Dillon Boucher (Auckland).