KEY POINTS:
Point guard C.J. Bruton is the surprise inclusion in the Breakers for the top-of-the-table clash against the South Dragons in Melbourne tonight.
The Australian was expected to miss at least another week with an ankle injury but a partial return to practice has convinced coach Andrej Lemanis that the influential player is worth including.
"The instruction from the physio is that the ligament [ankle] is sufficiently healed to withstand limited action and C.J. has made it through about 60 per cent of our last couple of practice sessions to indicate he can play some part in the game.
"Seven or eight minutes from C.J. might be all we can expect but his influence within the group is considerable whether on or off court. But by the same token we are not going to take any undue risks with C.J. and will be cautious in our approach.
"We have options when he is not involved, it is just a matter of better execution than we showed last week against the Hawks and Spirit."
Bruton admitted he is not good at sitting on the benches during a game.
"I don't handle it very well."
The 33-year-old native of Wichita, Kansas, ran reasonably comfortably at training this week but he was not confident he would be on court tonight.
"I am back on the court, which is a positive, but it still doesn't feel strong enough to be a full threat out there on a consistent basis," he said.
The Dragons knocked the Breakers off the top of the table after the Breakers' back-to-back losses last weekend to the Wollongong Hawks and the Sydney Spirit.
Both were played without Bruton, who said he was busting to get on court for such a big game.
- NZPA
