BASKETBALL: Hawks' Aussie supporters

HAMISH BIDWELL
Their Kiwi connections are indisputable, but do you think that means Adrian Majstrovich and Shawn Dennis are about to barrack for the Tall Blacks? Fat chance.
No, when it comes to a battle for trans-tasman supremacy, the Ocker in the 0800 Easy LPG Hawks pair comes to the surface very quickly. Especially when the sport in question is basketball, as is the case with this week's Jeep International Series matches at Pettigrew-Green Arena.
Majstrovich, who was born in Turangi, is a former Primo NBL Kiwi MVP and has been a fixture with the Hawks and New Zealand Breakers in recent seasons. Sounds like a Tall Blacks supporter, if ever there was one.
"No way. It's the Boomers, mate," said Majstrovich after the Hawks' 84-69 win over the Auckland Stars on Saturday.
"I'm not against either team, but I've grown up in Australia, played for Australia as a junior and Australia is my home and I have a great love for it. But I do wish the Tall Blacks well and it is a series I always love to watch."
Which seems destined to be Majstrovich's lot. Ineligible for New Zealand because of his age-group appearances for Australia, the new Adelaide 36er's signing still finds himself sitting a few rungs below Boomers level.
"It's always been a dream of mine to play for Australia, but the players in my position within the Boomers are just such great players. So it's something that I do aspire to and will keep working towards, but whether it eventuates ... we'll wait and see."
Dennis, meanwhile, has been carving a nice little niche for himself as a New Zealand coach. Already the Tall Ferns' assistant coach, Dennis heads to Taiwan this week where he'll coach the national women's under-21 team at the Willian Jones Cup, before next month's Oceania Championships.
So, does this regular donning the silver fern mean his loyalty could be on the turn.
"You're kidding, aren't you mate?! I'm an Australian," was his response, before talking up his beloved green and golds.
"Australia are a vastly different team from the one that played at the Commonwealth Games, with the inclusion of Chris Anstey, Andrew Bogut and Aaron Bruce," said Dennis.
"Anstey is a former NBA player and Bogut was a top pick in the NBA draft, both are over seven-foot and that alone makes them very difficult to guard. I'd expect to see the Boomers take a big step forward from the Commonwealth Games.
"With the Tall Blacks, you always know they'll be competitive and won't go down without a fight."