Basketball: Dude, where's my team?

Australian import Tim Behrendorff says he's looking forward to playing for the Breakers. Picture / Dean Purcell

It's been a bit of a weird introduction to the Breakers for back-up centre Tim Behrendorff. He has yet to meet most of his team-mates.

The bulk of the team have been away with their New Zealand NBL sides and are now in China with the Tall Blacks.

So he and starting centre Ben Pepper have been scrimmaging with help from some Auckland and North Harbour players. As far as developing the Breakers' game goes, they've spent plenty of time working with big man John Dorge, who was assistant coach at Cairns after a long career in the league.

Dorge is teaching them the finer points of working on the inside, which head coach Andrej Lemanis identified as one of the team's weaknesses last season. That has involved lots of footwork drills, back-to-the-basket moves and other skills-based learning and practice.

Dorge is also working on improving the defensive work rate of the "bigs" at both ends of the court.

Also from Cairns - where he got his start in the Aussie NBL - Behrendorff and Pepper are two of the biggest players in the league so channelling their efforts in the right direction might produce more blocks and steals.

Behrendorff said the coaches at Cairns and the Breakers told him he would get more court time with the Auckland team than when he was in Cairns, where he was number three behind Chris Burgess and Kiwi Tony Rampton.

Rampton has since moved on to the West Sydney Razorbacks but Behrendorff does not regret his shift.

"It's a young team here, it should be an exciting season. I think I can offer more to the Breakers than I could to Cairns."

Behrendorff grew up on the Gold Coast at Nerang, where he played half-court with two older brothers who played through the junior grades. "I grew up with it," he said. He represented Queensland at age-group level and Australia in the World University Games.

Then followed four years in North Carolina at Gardner Webb University, playing in the national college championship where he was back-up centre for two years then starting centre for two.

"I learned a lot. It was very competitive so you improve a lot. I enjoyed my time there."

He graduated with a maths degree, intended to teach and was not really aiming at a sporting career but went with the flow. After a year as a development player with the Taipans he and wife Becky decided the shift would be good.

There's only one problem and that is Auckland's mid-winter weather. "Where's the heat knob?" asked Dorge.

Behrendorff is quick for a man his size, Dorge said. He has a good dribble. He can deliver a jump hook shot "and when it's a guy as big as him doing that it's impossible to defend". Scoring from long distance jump-shots might be his best quality, Dorge said.

"He's got great potential. It's a big step up for him. But he's young and the big guys come on better as they get older and bulk out - we expect him to keep improving."

The Breakers are still awaiting the outcome of their chosen import's run in the NBA summer camps and hope he does not get picked up by an American team. If he does there will be a last-minute rush to fill another forward spot.

Also confirmed is 34-year-old Canterbury forward Clifton Bush, veteran of the local league since 1997 when he started with the Rams before shifting to Waikato, the Jets and back to the Rams. Born in Little Rock Arkansas, Bush has residency so does not count as an import.

He made an impression on and off court when players were given trials during the Breakers' April trip to China, said head coach Andrej Lemanis.

"He helped get the best out of the other guys and he's going to be a hugely positive influence on the team with his experience and enthusiasm.

He may not be as quick as he used to be but he's more than making up for it with his basketball brain, commitment and skills.

He's an important piece of the puzzle in terms of our on-court focus and team dynamic," Lemanis said of Bush.

Import Mike Chappell does not arrive until the end of the month, as will the second American.

The Tall Blacks are with the Breakers for a handful of days late this month, then play in Australia and the Oceania series here, so the Breakers have 12 days with the full squad together before playing their opening game.

TIM BEHRENDORFF

* Born: September 26, 1981, Gold Coast

* 2.12m, 100kg, centre

* Queensland under-20 rep

* Four years at Gardner Webb University North Carolina playing NCAA

* 2004-2005 season as a development player with the Cairns Taipans

* Signed with the Breakers for 2005-06