Basketball: Enjoy the moment, champs

CJ Bruton of the Breakers celebrates shooting three points during the final between the Breakers and the Taipans. Photo / Getty Images

It might sound a bit hollow considering he has four titles but CJ Bruton has urged his team-mates to enjoy their championship because they don't come around that often.

There's a perception the Breakers will be a continued force in the Australian NBL. They have established a production line of fresh talent to help ensure that's the case, but Bruton uttered a cautionary note only moments after their 71-53 win over the Taipans on Friday night. At 35, he knows his time is coming to an end and wants to make sure he gets his point across.

"I want to pass on my knowledge before I leave here," he says. "As I told them after the game, you don't win every day, you don't win every year. I have seen so many guys win one and not get back there again. They might say, 'oh, it's going to happen again'. It doesn't happen like that."

Bruton is something of an evangelist these days. He has a vision of the Breakers playing in front of sold-out audiences every week ("I will not be satisfied until this place is packed every game," he says looking out over the North Shore Events Centre). He sees continued success based on the formula they have created over the past few years ("I have never played for a family organisation like this"). And he can visualise New Zealand basketball improving exponentially
("when fans come to watch games, it becomes powerful").

Bruton can still make the big plays. He doesn't assume the sort of dominant role he did earlier in his career on his way to three previous NBL titles but he always seems to know when to step up. Like midway through the fourth quarter when he nailed the two three-pointers that sealed Friday's win.

He increasingly takes a back seat to the likes of Kirk Penney, Tom Abercrombie and even the maturing Alex Pledger but he's okay with that. It's part of the reason why he came to the Breakers from Brisbane in 2008 in the first place.

Bruton's contract is up but the club are likely to exercise an option they have on him - and his wife ("she makes the decisions") is keen to stay.

His experience will be key in the back court, especially with Paul Henare having played his last game for the Breakers.

Bruton is, however, something of an anomaly in the squad. On top of the two American imports, Gary Wilkinson and Kevin Braswell, he's is the only non-Kiwi in the playing ranks. The American-born Australian plays alongside nine New Zealanders.

Coach Andrej Lemanis, an Australian, believes it's the New Zealandness of the club that has made them so successful.

"What is special about this club and about New Zealanders is the passion with which they play sport together and for each other," he says. "We need a lot of New Zealanders in the team to be successful.

"There's something special about that synergy that you can't create by throwing bunches of people together. There's a certain mana about New Zealanders doing it for each other. It's special to see from the outside and fun to be a part of and, ultimately, good for Kiwi basketball."

Penney is undoubtedly the best of that bunch. He is also, arguably, the best player in the league and Cairns made it their priority to shut him down. As well as they did that, however - and Penney was restricted to just 11 points on Friday - they couldn't shut down the rest of the Breakers.

Penney admitted afterwards he feared he might not play in the match when injuring his back in training on Wednesday. He looked in agony after the game on Friday night, especially during the interminably long presentations, but the satisfaction of victory and a few beers were helping to dull the pain.

"I was nervous when I first injured my back, because of my history but ... this is a sweet, sweet feeling," he said. It helped ease the disappointment of missing out on an NBA contract earlier in the season.

Almost all of the Breakers squad will be back next season, and Bruton was pestering Lemanis only minutes after their win about when they could start work on defending their title. It seemed Bruton wasn't heeding his own advice.

"We have learned not to get too high on the highs and too low on the lows," said Lemanis, who has had plenty of doubters in his six years as Breakers coach. "But we have also learned to embrace success. I think sometimes New Zealanders are scared to say we are good. They get a little embarrassed by it.

"As a club we have gone through that and accepted being good is okay. We will embrace it and enjoy it for what it is. It's a remarkable achievement. We shouldn't be scared to celebrate that."

As the Breakers gathered at Dillon Boucher's place last night, it's exactly what they intended to do.