Saints get their man as Te Rangi seals move
The lure of working with Tall Blacks coach Paul Henare in a World Cup year is a big factor in Reuben Te Rangi’s decision to sign with the Wellington Saints.
The Tall Blacks captain will shift from the Southland Sharks to the Saints for next year’s National Basketball League, while Henare will take over the coaching reins from New Zealand Breakers coach Kevin Braswell.
‘‘From the outside looking in, the organisation is always one I’ve looked up to with their professionalism and how they go about things,’’ Te Rangi said yesterday.
‘‘Also, Pauli being there is a big one too, going into the World Cup it’s going to be a big year and playing under Pauli will help my game leading into that World Cup.
‘‘It’s good to know the systems inside out, so playing under him will be good for me.’’
Saints director of basketball operations Jordan Mills said they were excited to have finally secured a signature they had long coveted.
‘‘I’ve talked to him every off-season for the past three or four years to hear his thoughts and what his plans were. This season has been the first season where he’s really said Wellington is where he wants to be next year.
‘‘Hopefully this will be the beginning of many seasons with him in a Saints uniform.’’
Te Rangi has played the last two seasons in Southland and four seasons in total, capping his career there with an NBL title in August, scoring 26 points in the final as the Sharks beat the Saints 86-78.
He said it wasn’t an easy decision to leave an organisation which had done so much for him.
‘‘Southland have looked after me. Having [general manager] Jill [Bolger] down there like a second mum and playing under [coach] Judd [Flavell] has helped me develop these past couple of years. It’s been fun and it was good to get that championship this year.’’
Te Rangi and the Tall Blacks need to only beat Syria at TSB Bank Arena in Wellington tomorrow afternoon to qualify for the World Cup.
Mills said they would be looking to build their roster for 2019 around Te Rangi.
‘‘We’re trying to build with him and a couple of our locals who have been with us the past two years who we are in negotiations with at the moment, but he’s definitely a guy we’ve signed to build our Kiwi core around.’’
‘‘It is what it is and that’s the business we’re in, but for myself I don’t think it was necessary bringing them here.’’
Sonny Bill Williams on ring girls appearing at a pre-fight promotion
‘‘Later representatives of Crews’ charity and Khoder Nassar tore strips off promoter Max Markson.’’
Williams told Nine that Nasser was right to give Markson orders to send the women away.
‘‘So he should have,’’ he said. Williams said it was not something he would have organised.
‘‘It is what it is and that’s the business we’re in, but for myself I don’t think it was necessary bringing them here.’’
Laundy is well known in Australia as a contestant on the third season of Australia’s The Bachelorette and he has no background in boxing.
Williams, 33, is unbeaten in seven bouts, winning three of them by knockout.
His return for the bout, his first since 2015, has raised eyebrows as he is on rehab for a shoulder injury suffered during the All Blacks’ recent European tour.
Williams confirmed that he has a gentlemen’s agreement with Laundy not to cause excessive injury during their exhibition fight.
‘‘I think like we said before that the underlying cause outweighs that, we’ve got a gentlemen’s agreement,’’ he said.