NBA opportunity knocks for Breaker
New Zealand Breakers point guard Shea Ili has been offered the ‘‘opportunity of a lifetime’’ having been invited to attend an NBA mini-camp this month.
The camp is run by the Dallas Mavericks on June 18-19 and Ili will be among a bunch of free agents all hoping to impress NBA officials searching for players to feature in the NBA Summer League in July.
Breakers coach Kevin Braswell believes Ili is definitely capable of getting picked up after the 25-yearold from Auckland was voted the NBL’s most improved player for the 2017-18 season.
‘‘I’m really just looking forward to being in the environment and soaking it all up, it’s going to be pretty cool playing against some of those guys. It’s going to help me heaps in terms of development,’’ Shea said in a statement.
Braswell said it was the opportunity of a lifetime and an ‘‘unreal’’ chance for Shea to catch the eye of NBA officials.
‘‘James Ennis who used to play for the Perth Wildcats was given a similar opportunity a while back, and he’s been playing in the NBA for a couple of years.
‘‘When you go over there you get to build relationships with key NBA decision makers, which is how opportunities present themselves.’’
Shea was voted the most valuable player and the male player of the year at the Basketball New Zealand awards a few years ago.
He claimed a bronze medal with the Tall Blacks at the Commonwealth Games in April and has played in New Zealand’s national league with the Super City Rangers (2013), the Southland Sharks (2014-15) and the Wellington Saints (2016-present).