KEY POINTS:
Breakers coach Andrej Lemanis hopes Tall Black star Kirk Penny will sign with the club this week.
Penny, one of two New Zealanders to have played in the NBA, met Lemanis on Sunday and is considering an offer while staying with his parents in the Bay of Plenty.
"He seemed really positive about the situation and we're hoping to get an answer from him by the end of the week," Lemanis said.
Penny heads into camp with the Tall Blacks on Sunday and Lemanis expects to have an answer by then.
"I think we've got a really good chance," Lemanis said.
With Craig Bradshaw signing with Brisbane ahead of the Breakers, the New Zealand franchise's hopes of constructing a side founded on home-grown talent now rest with snaring Penny. If he opts to go elsewhere, then Lemanis is resigned to having to spend big in the American import market to field a competitive side.
"I don't want to have superstar imports, I want us to play as a team. But in order to get that done, we need another local who can carry the load for us. Given that we missed out on Craig, certainly if we miss out on Kirk you get in the position where you are going after the superstar imports again."
All plans were on hold until Penny had made his decision, Lemanis said.
"Until we know what [Penny] is doing it's hard for us to move because we won't know exactly what we need and how much money we have."
