Heat vet feels out of shape

LIFE off the court has been about turning a bad situation into a productive one for Peter Crawford.

But as for his playing future, the Townsville Heat stalwart has not entertained his 2021 plans just yet.

Since the NBL1 North season was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, the former Olympian has worked to help maintain the region’s basketball facilities while also pursuing coach development opportunities for other aspiring mentors.

At this stage, given how much COVID-19 has changed, the 40-year-old does not know what the future holds and only clarity off the court will lead to an on-court decision.

“I’m probably in the worst shape I’ve been in my life. There’s nothing you can do, no gyms open, nowhere for anyone to shoot,” Crawford said.

“I’ve got a hoop in the backyard, took about five shots and that’s about it.

“Basketball never really stops so it was the first time it’s been shut down without being able to do anything at all.”

Basketball Queensland announced on Friday the state championships across all age groups would be postponed, with the Townsville based under-12s event to go ahead in September.

Crawford, a development officer with Townsville Basketball, said while representative basketball was an important part of a young athlete’s development, the health crisis had levelled the playing field regardless of when the competitions proceeded.

It is a contrasting situation to the 2019 floods, where Townsville sides were hamstrung when compared to other teams.

“It really affected us when we shut down with the floods because everyone else was trying,” Crawford said.

“There were no fixtures, the rep teams were getting half the amount of training they would with court availability.

“But this situation everyone will be as rusty and out of shape as each other, so it’s not like there’s an advantage.”