Shawn Long played 18 NBA games for the Philadelphia 76ers. Photo / Getty Images
Shawn Long lost his sister and biggest supporter on the eve of the NZ Breakers' preseason preparations. He speaks to Joel Kulasingham about playing to make her proud.
Shawn Long was back in the NBA, but not in the way he had imagined.
The former Philadelphia 76ers centre dribbled his way into the paint and sunk a soft floater over the outstretched hands of No 1 draft pick and Phoenix Suns centre DeAndre Ayton, giving his side the lead early in the first quarter.
On that chilly October night in Phoenix, Arizona, it wasn't the branding of an NBA team decorating the 25-year-old's chest, but that of the New Zealand Breakers.
"It felt great being back on the NBA floor," Long says of the pre-season game against the Suns.
"Getting to see some of my old friends that played for the Suns that was cool. Just being back home, it was good. I enjoyed it."
The Breakers performed admirably against the Suns, coming within five points of an historic upset.
Long – who was tasked with defending the 20-year-old Ayton, who many believe will someday become one of the best players in the world – played his role well; strong in defence throughout and leading his side in rebounds, as he often does.
"I was pumped man. I thought we played really well, especially towards the end, I thought we would get it," the Louisiana native says.
"Just a couple mistakes here, couple shots that we missed, but outside that I thought we could've got it.
"So that was good going into the season to know that we stuck with an NBA team and you know I think that right now, it's starting to show what kind of team we are."
It wasn't long ago that Long was himself one of the fresh-faced young talents in the sea of athletes trying to make it on basketball's greatest stage.
Long has had an up and down career after first signing with the 76ers in 2016. Despite a few strong performances in the NBA – including 13 points on debut, a 45 point game in the development league, and even dunking on LeBron James – Long still ended up finding himself on the outer, such is the competitive nature of the league.
In 2017 he was traded to and waived by the Houston Rockets, and eventually landed on a team in China.
When the option to come to New Zealand opened up, Long saw an opportunity to develop as both a player and a person, as well as a shot at winning a championship - something he's never done before. He joined the Breakers in September.
"I just wanna say that I was a part of something, you know a winning culture.
"They have that here, I just wanna be able to say I contributed to that and I brought that back here with my teammates. And I think we can do this."
But just as he starting getting used to life abroad and adjusting back to the preseason routine, tragedy struck at home. While training with the Breakers, Long got the news that his sister Shelly, who suffered from the autoimmune disease lupus, had died.
"It was tough on me, it still is. That's life man. It comes and goes sometimes.
"I was good with it because I knew my sister knew I loved her. We had a great relationship. It kind of made me at peace with it. She wasn't going through what she was going through anymore, so I tried taking the positives out of it.
"But it's always hard losing a loved one. I lost my father when I was 12, so it's nothing I'm not familiar with. But you just gotta grow from it and do your best to make them proud. So that's what I'm trying to do now."
Long jumped on a plane back home to be with his family just as the Breakers started to prepare for the season ahead.
Long says the loss made him refocus on why he does what he does, and ultimately underpinned his mentality and passion for his craft.
"It kinda just motivated me more. My sister was like, if not the best supporter I had, one of the best supporters I had so I just wanted to make her proud, my father, and just my family in general."
In a time when career frustrations and personal tragedy were heavy on his mind, Long turned back to the sport he loves and decided to rejoin the Breakers for their game in Phoenix.
"I feel like she would've wanted me to play in the game. She actually planned on coming to it. But it didn't happen."
Since then, Long has made long strides towards becoming one of the Australian NBL's best players in his first eight games for the Breakers – sitting among the top three in blocks and the top five in rebounding. He's also starting to enjoy his time in New Zealand.
"Everybody is cool (here). It's kinda like being at home.
"We got a few American guys, cats from the same area I'm from so it's kinda like being at home. Everyone speaks English, it's cool man. We get along great.
"Great food out here too. Everything seems fresh so I like that."
And that's what Long looks to take from his time in New Zealand, a chance for fresh food, and a fresh start, with the ultimate goal of getting back to the NBA.
"The biggest thing, in terms of myself, is just to make sure that when I leave I help this team win something and I grow as a person – and not just as a basketball player.
"I feel like a lot of times you just focus on basketball, [but] the better person you are it will reflect on your basketball game."