Basketball: Familiar names dominate Tall Blacks' Games squad

Tall Blacks coach Tab Baldwin is relying on team stability and the skills of assistant Nenad Vucinic to give the squad momentum leading into the Commonwealth Games.

The NZ Olympic Committee yesterday released the 12-man team as Baldwin and captain Pero Cameron jetted in from Turkey for a three-game series against India ahead of the Games.

There are no newcomers.

Troy McLean, who was at Wellington but has signed for North Harbour this year, played briefly against Australia last year and American-born Casey Frank joins the team officially after being awarded New Zealand citizenship last weekend.

He has played for the Tall Blacks in a series in China that was not covered by the rules of international governing body FIBA.

FIBA rules do not apply at the Games either, allowing New Zealand to include Frank alongside fellow American Ed Book who has been the one allowable foreign-born player used at the Olympics and world championships.

At this year's world champs in Japan mid-year there will be room for just one of them and that competition was healthy going into the Games, both Baldwin and Frank agreed.

The Tall Blacks are without regulars Mark Dickel, Kirk Penney and Phill Jones who were not released by their European clubs for the Games tournament. They will all be available for the FIBA-sanctioned tournament in Japan.

But the Tall Blacks still expect to do well in Melbourne.

They should beat England and Nigeria in their pool and earn a gold medal shot against Australia.

Baldwin admitted that it was a handicap not being involved fulltime with the national team given his and Cameron's commitments with Banvitspoor in Turkey but he had enjoyed coaching this year more than any other in his career.

Both said they were primed for the Games. The extensive experience Baldwin had with assistant coach Vucinic and the players, and the trust factor between them allowed a smooth if limited build-up, he said.

India are an unknown quantity, ranked 47 in the world, with limited basketball programmes and international exposure. Their players are small but athletic.

"We want to hit them pretty hard and try and shake them up a bit with the kind of intensity we understand," Baldwin said, although admitting the weakness of the opposition was "not ideal".

Baldwin has asked Cameron for his assessment on the more experienced English team after the captain's two seasons with the Chester Jets.

England and Canada loom as the main challenges to New Zealand's Games hopes, with Australia clear medal favourites.

Baldwin said the Boomers could be beaten despite their relatively easy handling of the Tall Blacks in recent encounters.

Coach Brian Goorjian's champion Sydney side's clean-sweep defeat by Melbourne in the ANBL would have some impact on them, he felt.

Cameron said what he most expected from the Tall Blacks during the India series was "to play well and then we can make adjustments, it's all about gelling".

TALL BLACKS SQUAD

Pero Cameron (c), Ed Book, Dillon Boucher, Casey Frank, Paul Henare, Mike Homik, Troy McLean, Aaron Olson, Tony Rampton, Lindsay Tait, Mika Vukona, Paora Winitana.