NBL Round Five Guide
Tagged in: NBL
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Everard Bartlett has arrived back at the right time for the Easy LPG Bay Hawks.
Bartlett, who returned from Iceland on Monday, will suit up in Hawks black for the first time in the 2008 Dominion Finance NBL on Thursday night at Pettigrew Green Arena in Taradale, against the Century City Wellington Saints.
The Hawks, beaten finalists in 2007, have made a scratchy start this season – one win from three games – and as coach Shawn Dennis explains, Bartlett’s arrival could be a catalyst, his speed and 36.7% career three-point shooting percentage giving them a long-range threat lacking in the first four rounds.
“Everard started last year so when you get a starting player back from a team that made the final series, it’s always a big boost,” Dennis said.
“And certainly from an outside shooting perspective, that’s going to help. Teams that have beaten us have been able to go into a zone defence and we haven’t been able to combat that.”
Indeed, the Hawks have shot 27.1% percent from beyond the arc (seventh in the league) and made 4.33 three-pointers a game (ninth), struggling to stretch defences without consistent perimeter shooter.
While having Bartlett back offers more pluses than minuses, it does give Dennis a playing rotation issue, having to juggle minutes for captain Paul Henare, Aidan Daly and Bartlett in the guard positions, with all three able to play from the point guard spot.
“That’s just something we’ve got to look at for tomorrow and Everard’s coming back and he just can’t come back in and get minutes back, he’s got to earn them and he understands that.”
Bartlett has just completed a season in the Icelandic division one league with Hottur, with Waikato Pistons forward Ben Hill – who will be back for their game against the Appliance Shed Harbour Heat on Saturday – a team-mate and former Waikato Titans, Hutt Valley and NZ Breakers coach Jeff Green coaching. Hottur finished eighth with a 5-13 record.
The Hawks were pegged by the TAB as prohibitive favourites – albeit without playing a game and influenced by reports of a Tall Black Craig Bradshaw signing – in the early rounds of the NBL, at $2.50 but since have eased back to $4.50.
“I don’t really understand how we could’ve been. I guess people just didn’t know a lot about it, a lot of teams were unknown quantities,” Dennis said.
And Dennis is not ready to panic.
“I think it’s too early to get concerned yet,” the fifth-year coach said.
“Tomorrow night is an important game, one that we want to win. We can’t afford to lose too many and drop behind and we don’t want to lose games at home. It’s not panic stations yet.
“We haven’t really started well. It was only in my first year here that we started well. It’s always been a battle and then we’ve built momentum going into the playoffs, so that’s why I’m not concerned.”
The play of imports Kevin Smith and Kareem Johnson, along with returning Hawks Callum Baynes and Paora Winitana, has been a big reason for that.
Smith, one of the new pieces to the Hawks puzzle along with Wellington recruit Damien Ekenasio, has averaged 19 points in three games, while Winitana has averaged 17.3, Johnson 15.0, Henare 14.3 and Baynes 11.7.
NBL Round Five Guide (702KB pdf)
