Basketball: Long shot to see out season

Alex Pledger could turn out against the Wildcats tonight, but is not guaranteed to stay healthy enough to play the entire season for the Breakers. Photo / Sarah Ivey

Breakers star centre Alex Pledger to play on despite looming surgery

The Breakers have been boosted by the potential inclusion of Alex Pledger ahead of tonight's opener in Perth - but his availability to the team could be temporary.

After his last campaign was curtailed by injury, Pledger faces the unnerving prospect of history repeating. It's only week one in the Australian NBL but the Breakers know Pledger needs surgery, a procedure that will require lengthy rehab. It appears a matter of when and not if he goes under the knife.

The centre is battling a toe injury and will play through the pain if he passes a fitness test before the opening encounter with the Wildcats.

Coach Dean Vickerman will rely on Pledger as long as the seven-footer can perform near capacity. A clean bill of health may be out of the question but even a limited Pledger is still valuable in a league in which he stands out.

"If he can give us something then we want him - you can't teach seven foot," Vickerman said. "It's one of those ones that's going to be ongoing. Can he give us some good minutes and is he capable of playing at 80 per cent-plus?

"We'll manage it to start with but if it gets to a point where he can't be effective for us and he can't play the way that we need him to play, then we'll look at [surgery]. Because it's a surgery that takes four to six months to really heal and get back."

That timeframe provides complications no matter when it begins. If Pledger has surgery he would likely miss the entire season. If he manages the injury until the end of the Breakers' run, the start of the next campaign would be shrouded in uncertainty.

There is no simple solution for the complaint called "turf toe", caused when athletes repeatedly push off their big toe. Vickerman insisted the injury was not caused by Pledger attempting to rush back from an ankle complaint to make the Tall Blacks' World Cup team. Instead it was a new problem that failed to heal.

"He got clearance to go and play the [pre-season] Blitz and it just didn't happen for him," Vickerman said. "It just didn't heal the way it was supposed to and now there's pretty much a complete rupture."

The Breakers recruited players capable of covering for a restricted or absent Pledger, with Ekene Ibekwe likely to start against the Wildcats and Tai Wesley capable of playing the 5 spot.