Webster to Adams: Play for NZ
Tall Black Corey Webster has called on Steven Adams to put aside his issues with Basketball New Zealand and represent his country.
Webster, who has rejoined the NZ Breakers for the upcoming Australian NBL season, has posted two messages on Twitter, agreeing with Adams that Basketball New Zealand hasn’t done enough to help young players coming through.
However, Webster says the Oklahoma City Thunder star should move on from that and play for the Tall Blacks, for the good of his country and the youngsters in New Zealand who look up to him.
‘‘Totally understand why the bro @Real Steven Adams feels the way he does about Basketball NZ,’’ Webster wrote in the first of his posts. ‘‘Seems like they do nothing to help us. But as a player in the TBs, WE NEED YOU BROTHER!!!’’
Webster followed up this tweet with a message a few hours later.
‘‘My mum’s made a great point!!!’’ He added.
‘‘We all have reasons to be pissed at Basketball NZ, but it’s not about playing for BBNZ.
‘‘It’s about playing for our country, the NZ kids who look up to us, our families and our Tallblacks brothers!!!’’
In Adams’ recently released book My Life, My Fight he revealed his issues with Basketball New Zealand stem from when he couldn’t afford to travel to play in their age group teams and this has a lot to do with his absence at international level.
Adams, 25, has yet to play for New Zealand and a month ago snubbed the chance to play for the Tall Blacks against Hong Kong in Rotorua, where he was born, and also the glamour match against China in Auckland.
‘‘It probably doesn’t help that I don’t feel a great sense of loyalty to Basketball New Zealand,’’ Adams said in his book.
"I like what the current Tall Blacks coach, Paul Henare, has been doing with the team and I would love to play for him at some point, but I need to be ready.’’
Adams said he doesn’t think he could give his all for the Tall Blacks and play a full NBA season.
‘‘Some might expect me to be the Basketball New Zealand poster child, but I did the opposite of rising through the ranks of the junior national teams. Being in a national team is far too expensive for most kids – me included.’’
Webster’s tweets could indicate that there is growing frustration among senior Tall Blacks at Adams’ continual refusal to play for New Zealand as the team looks to become a competitive force on the world stage.
The Tall Blacks are in the midst of attempting to qualify for the nexy year’s World Cup in China and will next play away to Syria on September 18.
With the next NBA season running from late October to the middle of April, there’s no chance of Adams playing in any of the other qualifying games, but he would be desperately needed if the Tall Blacks did qualify for the World Cup, which takes place from August 31 to -September 15 next year