A year from hell followed by an off-season upheaval has left Rob Beveridge with a chip on his shoulder, and there is no better place to spark a resurgence than back where it all began.
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Illawarra coach Beveridge will return to his hometown when the Hawks host the Adelaide 36ers in front of a sold-out Tuggeranong Basketball Stadium on Friday night.
All 1090 tickets were sold four days before the game as the Hawks begin to establish a presence in the capital, with an eye on a GWS Giants-style deal with the ACT government.
The club is considering hosting regular season matches in the capital over the coming seasons with Illawarra set to plug the gap left by the Canberra Cannons, who went bust in 2003.
Now the likes of Cedric Jackson, Brian Conklin, Jordair Jett and David Andersen will set up camp in Canberra as part of a new-look Hawks outfit eyeing a return to the playoffs after some of Illawarra's top talent was snapped up by their wealthy rivals.
"It’s been a long time since there has been NBL basketball in Canberra, so it’s just awesome and I’m really looking forward to it," Beveridge said.
"We were one or two games outside the playoffs and we had some really bad injuries last year, a lot of stuff just went down and it was one of those things.
"Now we’ve got eight new players, new staff, a new team, a slightly different style of game we’re going to play. It will be good to finally get them all together, this will be our first official hit-out as a team so it’s what we need, just to see where we’re at leading into the season."
Illawarra general manager Mat Campbell says a push into Canberra is not a step towards relocation but a way to shore up the foundation club's future and bolster the ACT's high performance pathway.
The NBL showdown will prove how valuable Canberra's top level program is as clouds of doubt hang over the future of the Gunners and Capitals Academy.
Uncertainty surrounding the future of the SEABL could hurt the ACT's pathway but Hawks young gun Marshall Nelson is an example of its worth, having earned an NBL contract off the back of a stint with the Gunners.
"We’ve been trying to develop a relationship now with Canberra for a long time," Beveridge said.
"Something we’re really trying to develop is sending down some of our fringe players so they can get plenty of court time playing with the Gunners.
"[Nelson] obviously had a few injuries playing with the Gunners and stuff like that with his broken hand and broken nose and stuff like that, but he’s a super talented kid. He’s got a huge upside to him and he will 100 per cent be playing, we’ll throw him in the deep end."
Illawarra's foray into the capital will come less than a month until the Hawks open their regular season against Melbourne United at the Wollongong Entertainment Centre on October 12.
"The way I see it is, we study, and we’ve got an exam this weekend," Beveridge said.
"I don’t expect 100 per cent at all but I’m hoping we can put on a really good performance and get our eight new players to understand the style of game we want to play. It will be absolutely tremendous for us."
The Canberra Capitals will open their WNBL preparations with a clash against Japanese outfit Aisin AW Wings at Belconnen Basketball Stadium on September 25.
NBL PRE-SEASON
Friday, September 14: Illawarra Hawks v Adelaide 36ers at Tuggeranong Basketball Stadium, 7.30pm. Tickets from Eventbrite.
