For Southern Huskies
footballer Craig Moller, who played for Melbourne United in the ANBL over the past two seasons and recently signed with the Sydney Kings on a twoyear deal, is also on their books.
Naturalised New Zealander Marcel Jones, a NBL All Star Five player in 2016 and 2017 with the Canterbury Rams, will provide offensive punch for the Huskies when he links up from the third round.
American-born Jones has spent eight seasons in the NBL with the Jets, Saints, Rams, and Supercity Rangers.
The Huskies should be a stern proposition at home, but how they perform in New Zealand will have a major bearing on whether they make the top four finals in season one. With the Saints and Southland Sharks tipped as top two material, the Huskies will likely battle it out with the Hawks, Rams, and Nelson Giants for the other two finals berths.
Tomorrow’s Saints-Huskies showdown will be a milestone game for former Tall Black Leon Henry, who will celebrate 200 NBL games. Saints swingman Henry has been a dependable performer in the league, winning five Kiwi NBL titles. The 33-year-old was finals MVP in 2013 with the Sharks.
In other round two games, the Giants host the Sharks in Nelson tonight in what looms as the game of the round. Both sides won their opening outing in week one.
Canterbury are on the road for a doubleheader against the Rangers in Auckland on Saturday and Taranaki Mountain Airs in New Plymouth on Monday.
The Rams looked set to cause a round one upset in Invercargill against the Sharks, leading 59-52 at halftime and 80-73 approaching the final quarter. Spurred on by their vocal home fans, the Sharks outscored Canterbury 22-12 over the last 10 minutes to get their title defence off to a winning start.