Can Webster snap out of scoring funk?
The Corey Webster conundrum hangs over the Breakers ahead of a pivotal clash tonight against the Illawarra Hawks in Hamilton.
Kevin Braswell’s men snapped their five-game Australian NBL losing skid in Cairns last Sunday to improve to 5-8, and can make further inroads with a homeaway-from-home victory over former star Cedric Jackson and the Hawks at Claudelands Arena.
It’s a game with plenty riding on it as the 6-8 Hawks are one of four teams, along with the Breakers, Brisbane Bullets and Adelaide 36ers, all within one loss of each other seemingly battling for the fourth and final playoff spot even at this halfway stage of the season.
It’s why Webster’s dramatic form slump hovers over the Breakers. He was one of their key off-season signings and was recruited to provide a solid scoring thrust from the shooting guard position.
The problem is over the last five games Webster is providing less a spark than a damp whimper. Since he exploded for 31 points in the defeat to Melbourne in Invercargill he has managed just 21 points at 4.2 a game, while shooting 20 percent from the floor and 19 from beyond the arc.
The conspiracy theorists are no doubt reading plenty into this abject patch from a world-class player who, at his best, is one of the premier scorers in this league. But all the messages from the club are positive, and several sources indicated that this was nothing more than a form slump that the player has to work through.
Coach Braswell, who recruited Webster heavily and backed himself to get the best out of the at-times troubled Tall Blacks star, puts his star’s slump down to fatigue, nothing more, nothing less, and remains confident a turnaround is only a game away.
‘‘He’s been going all year round with no break, and at some point it catches up with you,’’ Braswell told Stuff. ‘‘He went to China (after Israel) and played maybe 40 games in three months. It happens. Even Pat [Richard] has been in a slump the last couple games
‘‘The scary thing is if all these guys can play good basketball at the same time we are going to be very hard to beat.
‘‘Corey is world-class scorer, and it’s going to come. I’m sure he’ll find his groove. Maybe we’ve got to put him in better positions on the floor to score.’’
Braswell said he would further ponder his rotations, after the decision to bench Webster and start Richard hardly set the world on fire. Not only has Webster been misfiring, but Richard has a combined 5 points on 2-of-13 shooting over his last two outings as a starter.