Brantley finds the fire: ‘I don’t
After being ghosted at the NBL awards, standout Breakers power forward says he’s more than motivated to lead his team to special territory. Marc Hinton reports.
Aless dignified individual might have fired up at a snub like Jarrell Brantley endured at the NBL’s awards in Melbourne at the start of playoffs week. The Breakers’ most complete player was ghosted at the league’s celebration of excellence – but if it bothers him he’s doing a heck of a job disguising it.
Just days from the Breakers’ return to post-season NBL hoops when they open their best-of-three semifinal series against the Tasmania JackJumpers at Spark Arena this evening (6pm tip, in a house that will be bulging at the seams), you ask Brantley about the outrageous oversight. Anyone who knows anything about hoops recognises this 27-year-old from South Carolina as one of the class acts of the league, yet there was no room for him in either of the two all-NBL selections (fellow Breakers Barry Brown Jr and Dererk Pardon were both secondteamers), or even as a finalist in any award category.
Brantley is as good as it gets in this league. Immensely strong, with a deft touch when required, the 1.96-metre powerhouse can hurt you from inside, outside, and all points in between. He averaged 16.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.6 steals for the second-ranked Kiwi club, shot 49% from the floor, 40 from beyond the arc and 81 from the line. Short of mopping the floor, there was not much else he could have done for his side, yet he remained unselfish throughout, picking his moments to dominate and, at others, happy to let teammates have their shine.
In many ways there’s a higher purpose to Brantley that almost lifts him above something as trivial as an awards snub, and at the same time fits the rejuvenated New Zealand Breakers to a tee.
This is a man, remember, who has played 41 times in the NBA, believes he is on a journey back to that plateau.
‘‘You can use that stuff. It’s a part of it,’’ he tells Sunday News. ‘‘The other part is I don’t play for awards. I don’t play for what men think is right.
‘‘I play for different reasons. Who picks those awards? The coaches, other teams’ players. Who brought me here? Coach Mody [Maor]. If you ask Mody or Tom Abercrombie, I think they pick me. As long as my teammates and coach have my back, I’m fine.’’
Brantley is what you might call in fine fettle, with a game to match. He’s adamant he’s on an improvement arc that has a way to go yet.
‘‘Every day I step on court I’m trying to get 1% better,’’ he says. ‘‘I didn’t come here wanting to win awards. Six months ago I was playing for Charlotte’s G League team, then in Puerto Rico, then I did a bunch of NBA workouts, then I went to Summer League. I’ve been on a steady incline. I’ve been cutting fat every day for the last year and will be in my best