Shamir: Business as usual
First-year Breakers coach Dan Shamir stands on the precipice of something quite remarkable, yet the game face might as well be painted on.
Shamir, of course, is right to be steadfast. This week of all weeks.
His Breakers have battled back from the precipice of an Australian NBL season on the brink of implosion and now might be just two wins from the most unlikely of playoff runs.
First they have to get past the red-hot Brisbane Bullets at their place on Friday night in what is essentially a playoff before the playoffs.
Win and the Breakers will still have a shot of nudging the Queenslanders out of the fourth and final post-season spot. Lose and the quite special last couple of months will all have been in vain.
The Breakers – still awaiting official confirmation that their ‘‘rained-out’’ Sunday clash in Illawarra will stand as a victory – are literally poised at their season crossroads, and the fact that it’s their former coach Andrej Lemanis and club legend Mika Vukona who stand in their way makes the do-or-die Friday night matchup even juicier.
At 13-13 the Kiwi outfit must defeat Brisbane and then South East Melbourne Phoenix in Christchurch the following Friday in their regular season finale to have any chance of a playoffs spot on 15-13.
The Bullets, on 14-11 after winning six straight, still control their own destiny.
A win over the Breakers would likely seal the deal, but they also have tough outings at Perth and then at home against third-placed Cairns to follow that.
Melbourne United, at 12-13, are also in the race and the permutations are numerous. The non-negotiable for the Breakers is they have to keep winning.
After two double-digit victories over the weekend (Sunday’s in Illawarra was called off because of a leaky roof with the Breakers leading 65-52 deep in the third quarter and declared provisional winners), the Kiwi club now has the best points percentage of the three vying for fourth spot – potentially vital as that will be tie-breaker should teams finish on the same record.
Exciting times indeed, especially when you consider that the Breakers were 4-10 when they cut Corey Webster loose in mid-December to play in China.
Since then they have won nine of 12 – and four of their last five – to roar up the standings.
Not that you will catch straight-as-a-die coach Shamir getting too excited. Not his style. Not in his makeup.
When Shamir was asked about the highstakes visit to Brisbane and whether his team could continue its roll (it has won 11 of 16 since November 30) he said: ‘‘Like everybody in this business, I’ve been in a lot of big games in this life,’’ he shrugged.
‘‘It gets always to a point where this game or that game is a deciding game. I don’t even know if this is the game we need to win.
‘‘I decided a long time ago to keep myself out of this thing. It doesn’t help me prepare for the games.’’