Kenyon's Persistence Rewarded with Key JackJumpers Role

Written for nbl.com.au by Chris Pike

Six years ago Matt Kenyon began what he thought would be a long and fruitful professional basketball career. Five years later and he was just desperate for another opportunity which has presented at the Tasmania JackJumpers and he has grabbed it with both hands.

Kenyon grew up in on the NSW Central Coast and was one of the country's brightest young talents. That's why Andrej Lemanis and the Brisbane Bullets were quick to snap him up when they were starting the franchise back up in 2016.

The 6'5 guard was part of the Bullets for their first two seasons back in the NBL and there was every indication he'd be in the league for a long time to come with all the intangibles he brought with him.

However, then the injuries began to strike. A knee injury ended his 2017/18 season and the last four years have been a grind. He tried himself out in the NBA G-League, but wasn’t able to bang down the door again for another NBL opportunity.

Then suddenly he was back on the radar in February last year when he led a young Australian Boomers team in Cairns against New Zealand, and that's where his now JackJumpers coach Scott Roth saw in him a player he wanted part of his new team.

Now 24 and the journey so far hasn’t gone as planned or hoped, but Kenyon is back in the NBL and showing just what he's capable of.

He is a starter on a team still in playoff contention with three games of #NBL22 remaining and his defensive performances all season long have put him in the mix to win the Damian Martin Trophy as the Best Defensive Player.

Kenyon never gave up on thinking he could still make a career out of professional basketball, but the last four years have been so tough he struggles to find the right words to sum it up.

That only makes him more grateful for the situation he's found for himself now in Tasmania.

"I don’t think I can put into words really how challenging those times were. I think I've had just a terrible run of injuries and what not, and I've really been challenged mentally and challenged physically throughout those times," Kenyon said.

"But I knew I wasn’t going to quit and I knew I could get back to this point, it was only a matter of time and the right opportunity to present itself. 

"I knew it was going to come, I just didn’t know when and it's definitely difficult when it's been three, four years and you get injury after injury, and certain opportunities go missing. 

"You just have to trust in the process and know that the time will come and when it does, you have to take advantage of it. I think I've been presented with a really good opportunity in Tasmania that suits my role and the style of basketball I play, so I'm really thankful for the JackJumpers."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">GUESS WHO&#39;S BACK ?<br><br>Our defensive Juggernaut Matt Kenyon is back on deck for season 22/23! <br><br>Join us in congratulating Matt ? <a href="https://t.co/dw9zfEK6wm">pic.twitter.com/dw9zfEK6wm</a></p>&mdash; Tasmania JackJumpers ? (@JackJumpers) <a href="https://twitter.com/JackJumpers/status/1511856192997699588?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

After being overlooked for a couple of years by every NBL team, it was a chance to lead the Boomers against the Tall Blacks last year with the majority of the players in the league unavailable that suddenly thrust Kenyon back into the spotlight.

He showed his leadership qualities and abilities to contribute in so many areas in that performance. While he had already built a relationship with JackJumpers assistants Mark Radford and Jacob Chance, he feels that's where Scott Roth began to warm to signing him.

"I think Scott mentioned that he watched that Boomers game and then I think I was always on the radar," Kenyon said.

"I know Mark Radford pretty well after he coached me in some junior Australian teams so he knew what I could do, and Jacob Chance knew what I could do quite well. 

"But I think for the most part, Scott saw me in the Boomers team and thought that I could bring some value to the team with my energy and defensive presence. I think that's what it mainly was."

Kenyon was a precocious talent as a youngster and when he first started in the NBL at the Bullets. He was big for a big guard and always had some impressive offensive tools, but defence and hustle has always been something he has taken great pride in.

Now this season he has been able to put on full display just how good of a defender he can be. Damian Martin has certainly noticed and has him as one of the league's best defenders and it's something Kenyon knows he can also bank on.

"I think defence is always something that's been a strength of mine. As a junior, all the teams that I was part of defence was a massive staple of how we played and that's just carried over for myself playing as a professional," he said. 

"I like playing defence and it's a very selfless to play when you play defence the right way and you have five guys on a string and you're helping your teammates on that end. 

"That's one thing you can always rely on and offence is a bit different, you're not always making shots and you might be feeling it one game and not as great the next. But with defence you can always impact the game with your energy and being locked in on that side of the ball. 

"It's something I've always had and I knew I could be a very good defensive player at the defensive level, and I'm pretty glad I've been able to show it. I still think there's a lot of area for me to grow in that area too, so that's exciting."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Kenyon finishing Strong in the paint?<br><br>We are live now <a href="https://twitter.com/10PeachAu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@10peachau</a> / <a href="https://twitter.com/FOXSportsAUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@foxsportsaus</a> / <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@espnausnz</a> / <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> <a href="https://t.co/hDoIN2d3QX">pic.twitter.com/hDoIN2d3QX</a></p>&mdash; Tasmania JackJumpers ? (@JackJumpers) <a href="https://twitter.com/JackJumpers/status/1502840968978247685?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 13, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

What has clearly been evident with not only Kenyon, but his whole JackJumpers team is their commitment to playing together and giving their all every single minute they are out on the court.

They might have lost games if they have been outplayed offensively, but they have never been beaten because of effort. 

Their intensity and energy has been the best in the league this season, they have made themselves mighty hard to play against and to beat, and for Kenyon that all comes down to the culture already created and established.

"It's amazing, culture is a big word and people throw that around in professional basketball, and sometimes it's pretty fake at times," Kenyon said.

"But here, there's an amazing culture that is so fun to be a part of and I think I've kind of been searching for that not only to find my place in the NBL and in professional basketball since I was 18 after a bunch of injuries and what not, but also trying to find that culture to be part of.

"When I was a junior I had an amazing at NSW Country and this kind of feels very similar. It's awesome to have that culture again to be part of.

"No one really cares about who is scoring or making plays or who's on at the end of the game, no matter what it is everyone is just happy for each other. That's an amazing thing be a part of and it's quite rare in professional basketball."

Going back to when he first arrived in Hobart to join the JackJumpers, Kenyon immediately noticed how well the club had already been established to be ready for their entry into the NBL.

He wasn’t fully sure what to expect when he first arrived, but he has continued to be blown away by how well the organisation has been run and the support they continue to receive in Tasmania.

"I wouldn’t say that surprise is the right word, but it's obviously a difficult thing starting a new franchise and there's a lot of things you need to put in place, and it happens quite quickly," Kenyon said.

"I think the JackJumpers organisation as a whole have done a really good job just of creating an amazing culture and putting the right people in the right places. 

"I didn’t really have too many expectations, but from what I heard prior to signing it seemed like they had everything under control and were doing all the right things to put us in the best possible position to succeed. It's worked out well."

Kenyon was also there for the start when the Bullets returned to the NBL and he can't help but notice just how more ready the JackJumpers have been with more time and resources behind their entry into the league.

"I think when I got to Brisbane there was still a few things being put in place and you weren’t really too sure who to contact at certain times. But it's been very professional here in Tassie from the moment I got here and even before that," he said.

"Everything was put in place and I think it helped they had the year already of people being here to put in the foundations of people's roles and what not. I think Scott was here a year in advance in Tassie by himself so a lot of preparation went in to get to that point of being ready."

While Kenyon wasn’t really sure what the JackJumpers might have been capable of coming into the season, they've never put any ceiling on what they could achieve and just wanted to build the foundations of establishing a hardworking, committed and winning culture.

That has helped them now be still a chance of reaching the playoffs with three games to go, but sticking to their plan, the JackJumpers are just focusing on what's in front of them and that's playing the New Zealand Breakers on Friday night.

"Obviously coming into the season we didn’t really know what to expect and I don’t think many people had too many expectations for us being a new franchise," Kenyon said. 

"We knew what we could do and I think it's a testament to all the effort that we've put in throughout the season and the foundations that we've laid in place early. We've stuck to the process throughout the whole season so it's really cool to still be in the race for the playoffs come the end of the season.

"Obviously certain things need to happen with the Wildcats and what not, but we're just focusing on our last three games and hopefully go three of three, and we'll see what happens with that. We're just focusing on our three games and taking it one at a time, and hopefully we can push for the playoffs and get in there. But if not, it's been an amazing season."