TR
Years ago
Newley Interview - U21 World Champs
08/08/2005
FIBA U21 - Newley in limelight for Australia
CORDOBA (FIBA U21 World Championship) - American college basketball juggernauts Gonzaga and Arizona called Australian point guard Brad Newley.
So did Utah, where Newley's compatriot Andrew Bogut, the number one pick in this summer's NBA Draft, played the past two seasons.
If it ain't broke, though, don't fix it.
That was the mantra for Newley as he considered his prospects of developing as a basketball player and earning a living in the game prior to the last NBL campaign.
"I did have a few good offers," the 20-year-old Newley said on Sunday, "but I was pretty happy with the offer Townsville (Crocs) made me, and I think it's paid off."
Indeed it has paid off for Newley, a 1.98m point guard who received a lot of playing time in his first season with Townsville. In his rookie year, in fact, Newley was chosen as an NBL All-Star.
He went on to average 16 points, three rebounds and two assists during the 32-game regular season, with the scoring bumping up to 17 and the rebounding average going up to five in three play-off games.
It's no surprise that Newley is one of the players Australia are pinning their hopes on in Argentina where they are taking part in the FIBA U21 World Championship 2005.
Newley scored 22 points in a 94-81 triumph over Greece on the opening day of the tournament and then weighed in with 18 in the 88-71 success against Canada on Saturday.
The points hauls make him the Crocs' leading scorer in the competition so far.
Newley believes he has changed a great deal since suiting up for his country a couple of years ago.
"It's different," he said. "This tournament is more physical, the international game, and there are really good players. I'm bigger and stronger than a couple of years ago, feel more powerful. That's also because I've played in the NBL."
There has been a lot of talk about the U21 tournament being a stage for players to enhance their NBA prospects.
"No, I don't see it that way," Newley said. "You want to play well for your country. If you worry about the other stuff, it will affect your performances."
For that reason, Newley and his cohorts are concentrating on the next game, which is against Israel on Tuesday.
"That will be a big game," he said. "If we win that, we're pretty sure of going through (to the quarter-finals).
"We're always pretty confident, and we're a deep team.
"You want to try and finish on top of the group and get the better crossover."
The past is littered with examples of teams running roughshod over opponents in preliminary rounds, only to lose in the knockout stages.
It happened to Spain last year at the Olympics when after five straight wins, they had to face an underperforming USA in the quarter-finals and lost 102-94.
Newley says there is no need to worry about seedings for the quarter-finals.
"If you are really good, you can beat them," Newley said.
It does appear to be a wide-open tournament, as Argentina discovered against Greece on Saturday. The Greeks rebounded from their defeat to the Aussies by beating the hosts.
"I watched it on TV and it was a scrappy game," Newley said. "I thought they (Greece) would have struggled.
"USA and Lithuana, Argentina, Israel, Greece and Puerto Rico all seem to have good teams."
There is a lot of optimism in Australia that Newley's generation of basketball players will make the senior team strong in the years ahead.
Bogut, who turns 21 in November, was named the top player in college basketball last season.
He had planned on playing with Newley and Australia in Argentina but when he became the number one pick overall by the Milwaukee Bucks this summer, other commitments took precedence.
The outlook for the national side at senior level is good, though.
"I think that is definitely the case," Newley said.
The South Australia native cites Andrew Gaze as the player he looked up to most while growing up.
"I just like the way he played for his country and played hard, captained his team," he said.
Newley, who likes to "sit at home on the couch" when he is not playing NBL games back in Townsville, is just chilling out in Cordoba when he does not have games or practices.
The coaches have talked about the cold temperatures in the country, where it is winter.
"It's pretty cold here, averaging about 14 or 15 degrees Celsius, but they look after us," Newley said. "The food is not bad and there is a McDonalds around the corner if you need it."
