Basketball New Zealand

Former Denver Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik

Former Denver Nuggets coach Jeff Bzdelik will headline a Harbour Basketball Coaches Clinic this week.

Opportunities to learn from former NBA coaches come rarely in New Zealand but Bzdelik will attend the Harbour clinic at the New Zealand Breakers training facility on the North Shore, on Saturday, April 26.

Bzdelik coached the Nuggets for two-and-a-half seasons from August 2002 to December 2004, posting a 73-119 (38 percent) record and leading them to the NBA Playoffs during the 2003-04 season, coaching the likes of Carmelo Anthony, Marcus Camby, Kenyon Martin, Andre Miller and Nene.

The 55-year-old has 16 years of NBA experience as a scout, assistant coach and head coach, with stints with the then-Washington Bullets, New York Knicks, Miami Heat and Nuggets, and over 30 years coaching experience, including at NCAA level.

He took over as head coach at the United States Air Force Academy in 2005, helping the Falcons to a 50-16 record and NIT semifinal appearance in two seasons, then became the University of Colorado head coach, as the Buffaloes went 12-20 last season, missing the NCAA and NIT Tournaments.

Anthony Corban, general manager of basketball operations for Harbour Basketball has organised the visit, making contact with Bzdelik, who is currently in Australia - spending time at AIS and networking and scouting players in Melbourne and Sydney, through Bill Tomlinson, the then-assistant, now-head coach of the Sydney Kings.

“I think it’s a coup for the game of basketball in New Zealand, coaches, players and fans, that Harbour Basketball has been able to bring a coach and person of this calibre and quality to this country,” Corban said.

The coaching clinic runs from 10.30am-12pm, with a cost of $10.

For more information contact Harbour Basketball coach development officer Dave Mackay on 021 201 4242 or dmackay@harbourbasketball.co.nz.

Harbour Basketball Coaches Clinic Flyer (227KB pdf)