Family helps United star to stay on message
THE number of text messages on Casper Ware’s phone after Melbourne United games is usually indicative of his performance.
The feedback is direct, often live and never sugar-coated, but Ware, 27, would not have it any other way.
He beams when talking about the senders, his parents Casper Sr and Autheia, who sacrifice sleep in Long Beach, California, to watch his NBL games on the league’s app.
“It’s tough but they find ways to watch the game — they try to stay up, (but) most of the games are at midnight for them,” Ware said.
“It’s one of those things I have with my family, where if I have a bad game I know I’ll hear from them.
“I get text messages during games — ‘What the hell (is) going on? Why (did) you do this? Why (did) you do that?’”
Ware hangs off every word. His father is revered in the Drew League, an invitational summer league in Los Angeles in which NBA stars, retired legends, international players and college standouts face off.
When Ware Jr helped Long Beach State to the 2011 Big West title, the LA Times headline was “Here comes the son”.
“We have that relationship that’s like no sugar-coating. He’ll tell me the real, ‘You didn’t do this, you didn’t do that, you’ve got to get going’, and stuff like that,” he said.
Ware Sr spent two weeks in Melbourne last month to watch his son play live for the first time in about five years.
The dynamic point guard didn’t disappoint, helping United past Brisbane (away) and New Zealand.
Fittingly, Ware engaged in a mouth-watering duel with Breakers firebrand Edgar Sosa, who dropped 16 points in the first term but faded under close checking in the second half. It threatened to boil over in the third term when Sosa confronted Ware mid-court.
“Oh yeah, I feed off that. I love that,” Ware said. “When he started talking that’s what got me going.
“I’m like, ‘All right, let’s go’. I got four (brothers and sisters), we’re competitive.
“It brought that competitive nature out of me, especially with my dad sitting there ... it felt like I was back home.”
Ware has form when he is confronted, having dropped 27 points in a quarter, including six consecutive threes, after a similar incident in the 2016 Drew League championship.
But his father had one piece of advice after Melbourne stung nemesis New Zealand.
“Start earlier,” Ware said. “Don’t wait until somebody starts talking to you to get going — you got to start with that energy.”
Ware is ready for Game 1 of the best-of-three semi-final series against Breakers tonight. His dad will be at home, watching with phone at hand.