No Mody, No More: Why Abercrombie Stayed

A renewed love of the game is to thank for Tom Abercrombie’s one-year extension with the Breakers, with the New Zealand captain admitting if it weren’t for Mody Maor he “probably wouldn’t have come back”.

Abercrombie – who has won four titles with the Breakers over a 15-year career – signed a 12-month extension to his deal to join guard pair Will McDowell-White and Alex McNaught in re-committing to the club for NBL24.

“I felt like last year was a lot of fun and the body held up really well, and I feel like I’ve got a lot more to give,” Abercrombie told NewsTalk ZB. “Obviously I’ve been doing it for a long time and the end is nearing closer, but I still feel like there’s a lot left in the tank and there’s a lot I can contribute to this team.

“Going into the season after the previous ones we had before that, the enthusiasm had waned a little bit.

“I purposely allowed myself not to think about [a new contract] and immersed myself in the season and try to get that enjoyment back. I really enjoyed the season, being part of that group, being home again, and all that stuff.”

After three seasons as an assistant at the Breakers, Maor’s elevation to head coach coincided with a dramatic reversal in fortunes for the club.

Under the guidance of Maor and the on-court leadership of Will McDowell-White and the club’s import trio – Jarrell Brantley, Dererk Pardon and Barry Brown Jr – New Zealand climbed off the bottom of the pack to finish the regular season in second.

From their they overcame the Tasmania JackJumpers in a gritty three-game Playoffs series, before falling to the Kings in an incredible five-game Championship Series.

Tom Abercrombie celebrates New Zealand's Game 4 win over Sydney in the NBL23 Championship Series.

“He was massive,” Abercrombie said of Maor on his decision to re-sign. “If he’d shipped off and gone somewhere else, I probably wouldn’t have come back.

“I really enjoy playing for him, and I really think that turnaround we had playing last year and that enjoyment I found and a lot of others found in playing for him, we wanted to experience that again.

“It’s why Will McDowell-White has come back, it’s why I’ve come back, I feel like he’s building something special at the club and it’s fun to be a part of.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It&#39;s all love at the <a href="https://twitter.com/NZBreakers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NZBreakers</a> ?<br><br>Turn your sound on for Jarrell Brantley&#39;s special message to any potential new signings out there ? <a href="https://t.co/2uaUenqFKo">pic.twitter.com/2uaUenqFKo</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1635967272178286592?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 15, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

With the bulk of the club’s local talent already committed to next season, and the re-signing of McDowell-White and Abercrombie, it feels like the band is getting back together and ready to run it back for another shot at the title.

As it stands though, there are three key pieces missing. Brantley, Pardon, and Brown Jr.

Following the culmination of the NBL season, Brantley returned to the NBA with the Utah Jazz, while Pardon is currently turning out for Santruce in Puerto Rico.

Brown Jr is currently without a club.

Abercrombie says while he’d love to have all three of the imports back for next season, he’s backing Maor’s talent identification if any of the trio elect to move on.

“We would love to have any one of those guys back, they were phenomenal for us this year and fit into the culture of the club and the Kiwi culture really well, and they were really embraced here,” he said.

“The imports are always a really tricky one – European seasons and the NBA season are still going on and a lot of those decisions aren’t made until a lot later in the piece … I know the club’s talking to them – hopefully it can happen in one of those three spots.

“But we’re also prepared it might not.

“One thing Mody has always had is a very good eye for talent. He was able to pluck those guys out last year and if we can’t get them back, I’m sure he’ll have his eye on other very talented imports.”

Whether this is Abercrombie’s final season in the NBL remains to be seen, however he’s approaching the upcoming campaign with the same mindset as he did the last.

“I’ll give myself a free state of mind to go in and enjoy that season process and everything that comes along with that. It’s certainly a year-by-year process and we’ll assess where things are at going into next season.”