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Tom Abercrombie is ready to hook back into it with the Breakers, starting Sunday at Spark as the champs come to town.
Tom Abercrombie being Tom Abercrombie doesn’t want the story to be about him ahead of his long-awaited New Zealand Breakers NBL season debut against the Sydney Kings at Spark Arena on Sunday.
But the popular Breakers skipper and small forward is not going to get his way – this top-of-the-table blockbuster with potential championship ramifications is just a little bit about him, and there is no getting around it.
Abercrombie’s first appearance of the campaign, after a stray poke to the eye in the pre-season required retinal surgery, and a prolonged recovery time, completes an emotional journey back to the court after twin Covid-ravaged seasons almost exclusively on the road in Australia.
NZ Breakers
Kiwi clubs gets set to welcome back skipper for NBL.
It will be nearly three years – 1010 days to be precise – since Abercrombie’s last NBL game for the Breakers at Spark (a January 31, 2020, 113-89 victory over the Adelaide 36ers), and the 35-year-old, 15-year club stalwart doesn’t mind admitting that the emotions are swirling somewhat ahead of it.
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“It’s been difficult,” said Abercrombie of his delayed entry. “I was so looking forward to coming back and playing at home, and to have a pretty big obstacle put in my way with this injury was really unfortunate and very challenging. But I’m relieved I will finally get the chance to step back out on the court at home. It’s going to be a pretty emotional night for me.”
So it should be. No one embodies the Breakers’ travails to get to where they are now – 6-2, and hotter than fish grease – more than Abercrombie, who battled injury, illness and his absence from a young family back in New Zealand to help the team through two of the toughest, and most challenging, seasons in the club’s history.
Despite the delicate nature of the surgery, and some complications with his vision afterwards, Abercrombie said he was always confident he would he would get back on court.
Joe Allison/Getty Images
Tom Abercrombie has been reduced to a sideline role as his Breakers have made a storming 6-2 start to the season.
“It was more frustration – a lot of frustration. It just felt unfair that an injury like that happened to me at that time. But everything happens for a reason, and I’m excited to have the opportunity now and to see the way the guys have played and grown over that time has been absolutely awesome.”
It’s here that Abercrombie’s self-deprecating nature shines through. Asked about his role – he is a nailed-on starter in coach Mody Maor’s master plan, but is likely to ease his way back via limited minutes off the bench – the springy 1.98m forward says this story has much wider paramaters than him.
“It’s fantastic to be back, but the focus should completely be on the team and what they’ve been doing because they’ve been doing an incredible job. I’ve been around long enough, and been in these situations before, reintegrating myself … I don’t need to come in and shoot 50 shots and try to put my stamp on things.
“I’m more than happy to play whatever role the team needs and help them in any way possible. It’s about finding my way so I can plug myself in and help.”
Luckily his coach is on the same page, with Maor this week declaring: “He doesn’t need to come in and save the world – he just needs to come in and be himself.”
Emily Barker/Getty Images
Tom Abercrombie: ‘We’ve recruited a team full of good defenders that’s created a really good identity within the group.’
But even through his one good eye it’s been clear to Abercrombie that first-year head coach Maor is developing something special at the club as they’ve won six of their last seven games and negotiated a tough period heavy with travel to open the campaign.
“The focus from day one of the pre-season has been on defence and what we’re doing at that end,” he said of the league’s No 1 side in that category. “We’ve recruited a team full of good defenders that really get after it.
“We’ve seen that just grow and grow and as that chemistry has grown too, the way they’ve been able to have each other’s backs, scramble and play with toughness and physicality at that end has created a really good identity within the group.”
It’s Abercrombie basketball. Just one more reason why Sunday’s return is so, so special.
