SHAMIR: Great Start to Life In Melbourne

The apartments are the same, the training facility is the same, but the atmosphere is different in the Sky Sport Breakers’ camp as the team settles into Melbourne life ahead of NBL22.

There is a comforting familiarity about the surroundings for the senior players Tom Abercrombie, Finn Delany, and Rob Loe, having spent so much time in Melbourne last season.

The team arrived Tuesday, and the players have settled immediately.

They know they will not be bouncing around states like last season following Victoria’s decision to relax COVID restrictions and focus on returning to everyday life.

“We are in a good place mentally, and we are excited about it,” says Head Coach Dan Shamir.

“We are in the best possible shape with our whole team together, and we’ve got everything we need to prepare properly.”

Star import Jeremiah Martin, who played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA earlier this year, has joined the roster in tip-top shape.

His speed and skill have impressed everyone in his first two training sessions.

“Just seeing him in person and knowing he’s a good guy to be around and knowing his skillset is exciting,” says Shamir.

The Breakers are now focusing on building team chemistry and combinations with Martin and their other star recruit, Peyton Siva.  They have the pre-season Blitz to look forward to with games against the Hawks, the Kings, the Phoenix, and champions Melbourne United.

“Everyone needs warm-up games, and the Blitz is essential for us,” admits Shamir.

“Like every other team, we come into this season having not played for six months, so we need to get everybody going in real game settings.

“I wouldn’t say results don’t matter because we want to set a good tone, so from the outset, we will be trying our best.”

Their first opportunity to set that tone will be against United, at the Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre in Albert Park Saturday week.