Deadly Dillard denies disrespect
Breakers talisman Kevin Dillard is sorry he upset Illawarra Hawks coach Rob Beveridge, but makes no apologies for playing with the fire and intensity he believes his new club needs to continue its charge towards an unlikely playoff spot.
Beveridge, one of the most respected coaches on the Australian NBL scene, raised eyebrows when he launched a post-game attack on the 27-year-old Breakers replacement import following Friday night’s upset 95-86 victory by the Kiwi club in Wollongong to keep their post-season charge alive.
Dillard posted a game-high 26 points (to go with six boards and seven assists) as the now 11-12 Breakers won their third game on the trot to continue to prosper in their self-appointed ‘‘playoff mode’’. They now host the Perth Wildcats at Vector tonight (7pm tipoff) knowing that a victory would catapult them back into the top four.
But Dillard, who leads the NBL in scoring with 22.75ppg in his four games since joining the club, clearly got under the skin of Beveridge when the two had some words sideline during the third quarter.
The Hawks coach fumed to the media that Dillard was ‘‘talking I can’t apologise for my passion and my aggression. crap’’ and had ‘‘to damned manners’’.
‘‘For him to run down the sideline and get in my face, I thought it was totally disrespectful,’’ Beveridge said, confirming he talked to both Dillard and opposite Paul Henare about the perceived slight afterwards.
But Dillard, speaking exclusively to Fairfax Media on his arrival back from Wollongong yesterday, was unrepentant about his retort which came as he made a big shot during a 26-14 game-changing third quarter from the Breakers.
‘‘I made the shot, and I turned around and said ‘goddamn, that was tough’. I didn’t think that would be disrespectful,’’ Dillard learn some said. ‘‘If he took it that way I apologise. But I play with passion and that’s what’s been able to take me over the top to this point.
‘‘I can’t apologise for my passion and my aggression. If he took it some type of way I apologise for that. But that statement wasn’t derogatory at all.’’
Dillard said he had been hearing comments from both the Hawks crowd and their bench all game and was just happy he had been able to make a big play for his team.
‘‘I let my game do the talking. I like when people talk to me because that gives me a reason to kill them. I’m a basketball player. I’ve been playing basketball forever, and I’ve never heard something like that upset a coach to the point where he put something out in the media.
‘‘But the race is competitive right now. Everybody needs to win. I don’t know if they’re nervous because they have a tough schedule coming up. I just go out and play ball and try to get my team to win, and that’s what we’ve been doing lately.’’
Henare backed his new import’s version of events.
‘‘He’s an emotional guy that plays to the crowd and to the situation. As far as I’m concerned he said nothing disrespectful, so let’s leave it at that.’’
Henare is also rapt by the continued elevation of the team under Dillard’s stewardship as both a playmaking and shotmaking point guard.
‘‘He’s really taken the bull by the horns and the team has relished that, and enjoyed having someone taking the reins, making plays and also getting everyone involved and allowing players do what they do best.’’
Dillard has certainly found his groove after being thrown in at the deep end of a big home defeat to Adelaide. Since then the Illinois native has racked up 19, 28 and 26 points respectively in victories over Sydney (home), Brisbane (away) and now the Hawks (away).
Henare backs his new on-court general’s decision-making. ‘‘There were a couple of questionable shots and he had a few turnovers trying to create stuff but for the minutes he’s playing he’s got a really good balance in terms of trying to look for his team-mates and searching for his own options as well.’’
Dillard is just happy he’s been able to do his part in turning a tight situation around, but says he will continue to need the likes of Kirk Penney, who had 23 points against his old team in Wollongong, playing their part.
‘‘I wouldn’t be able do my job if they weren’t making shots and in a position to score. Teams can’t focus on me because I have players like Kirk and Paul [Carter] on the wing, I have Akil [Mitchell] inside, and I’ve got big [Alex] Pledger inside. It’s a whole unit.’’