Marks’ proudest day
Kiwi NBA general manager Sean Marks says he never accomplished anything better in basketball than pulling on the black singlet of his country – and this is a guy who has blazed a trail for over two decades in the world’s greatest hoops league.
Marks, the first New Zealander to play in the NBA and now GM of the Brooklyn Nets, was the third guest on Sky Sport’s The Pod interview series last night when he was interviewed by All Blacks great and hoops fan Jeff Wilson.
In a revealing chat, Marks covered the gamut of his 13-year NBA career as a player (with the Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs, Phoenix Suns, New Orleans Hornets and Portland Trail Blazers) and then his move into front office and assistant coaching roles with the Spurs, culminating with his appointment as GM of the Nets in 2016 where he has led a remarkable transformation.
The two-time NBA champion (once as a player and once as assistant-coach) also spoke about his time with the Tall Blacks between 2000-2006, the NBA’S prospects postCovid and the influence New Zealand’s national rugby team have had on his leadership at the Nets organisation.
He also talked about his hope that one day current NBA star Steven Adams will pull on that same black singlet.
But arguably the biggest bombshell he dropped came when he reminisced on his time with the Tall Blacks when, as part of a golden generation of talent, he attended two Olympics and helped them finish fourth at the 2002 world championships in Indianapolis.
‘‘I’ve always said this: representing New Zealand is by far the best thing I’ve ever accomplished,’’ Marks toldwilson. ‘‘As a kid growing up you think it’s a pipe-dream. [You think] I’d love to play at the college level and then you think maybe the NBA.
‘‘But playing in the Olympics, at this point, it was such a far-fetched dream. It was an Olympic sport, but New Zealand was never going to qualify, and so forth.
‘‘Going out for the Olympic ceremonies, whether in Sydney or Athens, and to do it with the group we did – we had grown up together, we’d played in the same age-groups in New Zealand – that was special to go through that with that group.
‘‘That’s the jersey that’s framed downstairs – the New Zealand jersey. Those were special times. And to experience the Olympic village, that was remarkable.’’
Marks recalled the halcyon days of that period, with himself, Pero Cameron, Phill Jones, Mark Dickel,
‘‘Representing New Zealand is by far the best thing I’ve ever accomplished.’’
Sean Marks
Dillon Boucher and Paul Henare, along with a young Kirk Penney, forming the core of a special period for the sport and had no doubt about the key ingredient.
‘‘We knew each other so well off the court,’’ Marks told Wilson. ‘‘I’m sure it’s the same when you look back at great All Blacks teams, the ones that maximised their talent, maybe even over-achieved . . . those were the ones that had a special bond off the court or field.
‘‘You could talk to each in a certain manner on the field, there were expectations there . . . ‘hell, I don’t want to let the guy down beside me’, let alone yourself. You can’t fake that, and that’s got to come with time, with experiences that happen when those bonds are really formed.’’
Marks has plenty of respect for all those national team-mates, many of whom were world-class players in their own rights. He believes that if the NBA had possessed the international scouting it does now, that maybe one or two could have followed him into the big league.
But he also had a word of encouragement for the new breed of basketballers coming through the system in New Zealand.
‘‘I’ve always said if I can do it and if Steven Adams can do it, why can’t another Kiwi kid come over here and realise their dreams? But you have to want to do it. This has to be your beall and end-all. There was nothing that was going to get in my way of getting to college and once that goal was checked off there was nothing going to stop me making the NBA. You have to have that type of determination, grit and passion.’’
He said he hoped to see Adams one day wear that singlet of his country when his own circumstances lined up: ‘‘I do understand it. I wish I had more opportunities to play for New Zealand, but for me it was always contract situations. I would assume at the right time when Steven can . . . the good thing about Steven is he’s a Kiwi kid through and through. We can be very proud of what he is currently accomplishing.’’