Teen mixes with Tall Blacks heroes
Max Darling has been destined for a Tall Blacks singlet, ever since he started dunking a basketball at 12.
His junior coaches spoke of their amazement after watching their young star leap over other kids on the way to the basket.
They were also taken by surprise when opposition players hung around after games to get his autograph or pose for a photo. Remember, he was just 12.
‘‘There was no one else who could dunk a ball and he was dunking over the top of people,’’ Nelson Giants captain Sam Dempster, who coached Darling, once said.
Born in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the 1.93m tall prospect has always been a special talent. But for the most part Darling ignored the hype. Despite being able to dunk a basketball earlier than anyone else in Nelson, he knew he had a lot to learn if he was to make a career out of the sport.
‘‘I try and ignore most of it but I take some of it as motivation. Other people can say what they want but I have my own goals,’’ Darling said.
Those goals are to play for the Tall Blacks and to make a career out of the sport. So in order to achieve them he decided to move south to Christchurch, where he would learn from Canterbury Rams coach Mark Dickel.
After a breakout National Basketball League season where he is averaging 10.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game for the Rams, it didn’t take long for the under-19 MVP to catch the eye of Tall Blacks coach Paul Henare.
The 17-year-old, who has recorded a vertical jump personal best of 91cm, is one of five teenagers training with the wider Tall Blacks squad in Lower Hutt, as Henare takes a closer look at the future of the national team.
Although the squad will be trimmed from 20 to 12 ahead of next week’s World Cup qualifiers against Hong Kong and China, Darling said he wasn’t just making up the numbers and planned to do everything in his power to survive the cut.
‘‘It’s definitely a learning curve but I’m definitely trying to make the team. It’s not just a training for me, it’s like a trial for me too. Mika [Vukona] and Finn [Delany] were like my favourite players too so it’s pretty exciting being here with them.’’
Once the NBL season is over, Darling said he plans to pursue a professional contract overseas, deciding to bypass the United States college route. He hopes that will lead to further involvement with the Tall Blacks and maybe one day, an international debut.