Basketball: Vucinic trims Tall Blacks squad

Nenad Vucinic has made the first round of cuts to his playing roster ahead of the World Cup in Spain in August. Photo / NZPA

Tall Blacks head coach Nenad Vucinic has made the first round of cuts to his playing roster as the side builds towards the World Cup in Spain in late August.

Following two days of trials in Auckland, Vucinic has named a squad of 17 for the upcoming three-test series against Korea, with the first game in the capital next Tuesday.

The players to miss out following the Auckland camp are Finn Delaney (Nelson Giants), Jordan Ngatai (BYU Hawaii) and Dyson King (Waikato Pistons), while Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa (Wellington Saints) and Duane Bailey (Super City Rangers) were not considered due to injury and Richie Edwards (Canterbury Rams) withdrew from contention prior to the group assembling in Auckland.

The 17-man squad is notable for the number of bigs in the group, including youngsters Tohi Smith-Milner, Tai Wynyard and Jack Salt, an area that has proven difficult to cover in the past.

"We have got a lot of big guys at the moment where in the past we have suffered from a lack of size," Vucinic said. "That is why at this point we have included Jack, Tai and Tohi into this training squad for the [Korean] series, we hope they will benefit a lot from their involvement over the next ten days, being around some experienced players."

If the Tall Blacks have depth in the front court, the point guard position is an ongoing area of concern for Vucinic though.

"What we have identified is we are maybe a little thin in the guard line. Tai [Webster] boosts our stocks in that regard when he arrives on Monday. He was with us a couple of years ago and has enjoyed a good season with Nebraska and we are hoping that he comes back in good shape and good form and is able to slot in quickly."

There is also an intriguing battle developing between big men Casey Frank and Nick Horvarth.

"Nick and Casey are battling for the one naturalized spot, but that doesn't mean we will eventually have a naturalized player on the team for Spain, they still have to fight for a spot on the team," Vucinic said.

Centre Rob Loe won't play during the Korean series as he is playing in the NBA's Summer League in Las Vegas.

Vucinic will confirm his final 12-strong squad on the eve of the World Cup which gets underway on August 30 with the Tall Blacks' Group C opener against Turkey.

Tall Blacks squad to play Korea:

Thomas Abercrombie (26, Breakers, Forward, 198cm)
Benny Anthony (25, Wellington Saints, Forward, 198cm)
Everard Bartlett (28, Hawkes Bay Hawks, Guard, 191cm)
Joshua Bloxham (24, Nelson Giants, Guard, 186cm)
Isaac Fotu (20, University of Hawaii, Forward, 203cm)
Casey Frank (36, Waikato Pistons, Forward, 203cm)
Nick Horvath (33, Manawatu Jets, Centre, 208cm)
Jarrod Kenny (28, Hawkes Bay Hawks, Guard, 186cm)
Kirk Penney (33, Trabzonspor (Turkey), Guard, 196cm)
Alex Pledger (27, Breakers, Centre, 215cm)
Jack Salt (18, Waikato Pistons, Centre, 205cm)
Lindsay Tait (32, Wellington Saints, Guard, 190cm)
Tohi Smith-Milner (18, Super City Rangers, Forward 206cm)
Mika Vukona (32, Nelson Giants, Forward, 198cm)
Corey Webster (25, Wellington Saints, Guard, 185cm)
Tai Webster (19, University of Nebraska, Guard, 193cm)
Tai Wynyard (16, Super City Rangers, Forward, 201cm)