Basketball New Zealand

Pete McNae, Nelson Mail

Marcus Watts joined the ranks of the ex-Giants on Monday, the 23-year-old forward becoming the second import cut this season by Nelson’s national basketball league franchise.

The Blue Chip Giants opened the season with 33-year-old Faron Hand on the frontline, but he was released after seven games in which he averaged 17 points and seven rebounds.

Seeking more speed and athleticism, Watts was recruited from Florida three weeks ago but struggled to make an impact in the Dominion Finance NBL. He had his best game in last Thursday’s win over North Harbour, with 11 points and six rebounds, but managed just seven points and five boards a game through his five outings.

While Watts had been an impressive performer in his previous pro job in Denmark, the step up to the New Zealand NBL proved too challenging.

“It is a tougher league than people think,” Giants coach Nenad Vucinic said.

“It was a hard call to make because Marcus gave us the energy and the positive spark we were looking for. His skills needed work, though, and we were running out of games to spend time developing him.”

With a 5.30pm Trafalgar Centre game against Otago coming up this Friday, Vucinic has returned to the recruiting trail for his second import player.

Barring administrative or agent issues, 2.01m forward-centre Jamil Terrell should arrive in Nelson tomorrow and be available to play the Nuggets.

An impressive defender and rebounder at the college level, Terrell also performed solidly in the strong Slovenian league and played in the American Basketball Association for the Niagara Daredevils.

Vucinic is hoping it’s third time lucky for the Giants.

“Recruiting a big player who can help a team and fit in is a difficult exercise,” he said. “I think Jamil will bring defence, rebounding, some toughness inside and, from what I have seen, he can run the floor and finish strong, but there’s always a grey area.

“This past week has been a prime example – Marcus was everything his agent said he was, but the fit wasn’t right for our particular situation.

“Changing players is an expensive exercise, but it can be more expensive to sit still and do nothing.”