KEY POINTS:
Being the son of a pro basketballer, Calvin Bruton Junior, aka CJ, knows all about moving, so taking up an offer with the Breakers holds less fear for him than most.
Still, it's a slightly daunting prospect. From two of basketball's most storied, though now defunct, franchises in
the Sydney Kings and Brisbane Bullets, Bruton arrives at a team desperately seeking the sort of credibility a run deep into the play-offs of the NBL would bring.
"Since they came into the league they have made great strides towards becoming a successful franchise," Bruton said. "I thought, `I could help out this ball club'."
No kidding he can. The 32-year-old has a reputation as one of the smartest point guards from this corner of the world to ever lace up a pair of high tops. Combine that with a 46.8 per cent success rate from beyond the three-point arc last season and you have a savvy ball-handler and a legitimate shooting strength from deep.
That ability will surely give Kirk Penney _ whose 24 points per game ranked him third in the NBL last season _ and Phill Jones even better looks at the basket.
That has another spin-off. With such a perimeter threat _ two of those three are likely to be on the court the majority of the time _ no defence will sag off and crowd the key, giving more opportunity for returning American Rick Rickert and veteran Tony Ronaldson to establish themselves down low.
Aside from the fact the Bullets, the team he won the title with in 2007, went under and the Sydney Kings are no more, it was still a shock, albeit a pleasant one, to see the Breakers pick up a marquee Australian like Bruton. Following on from Ronaldson's signing the previous season, it is proof that the Breakers can put together competitive salary packages to key players and are seen as a viable title proposition. Of course, Bruton had Dillon Boucher, back for his second stint with the club, chirping in his ear for the past two seasons.
"He didn't have to put a sell on it," Bruton said, "but he always speaks highly of New Zealand."
It is the tyranny of distance that Bruton believes has been the Breakers' biggest stumbling block since joining the league for the 2003-04 season. Having some hard-nosed Australians used to success can only help break down this.
"When you're new to a league, it is a struggle to get wins away from home," he said. "When you're in New Zealand and playing around Australia its even harder, you feel even further away from your support base.
"The grind of being on the road is [amplified] for the Breakers."
Being on the road is something Bruton, 32, is used to. He was born in Wichita, Kansas, but moved to Australia aged three as his father Cal, a first-ballot NBL Hall of Famer, took up a contract in the Lucky Country.
"I went to four different primary schools," Bruton said. "Obviously when you change schools so often you learn how to adapt very quickly or else you're not going to make it."
Still, growing up a black American in an early-'80s Australia that wasn't always welcoming must have had its challenges.
"Obviously I knew where I stood in the colour barrier, plenty of kids let that be known, but I looked at that like the indigenous kids who handled it as well. I went to a multicultural school so I've seen every aspect of that.
"But I feel really comfortable [in Australia]. My younger brother was born here, as were some other siblings, so I feel more Australian. Being born in America, having both parents born there and family over there, there's obviously a link."
Having a dad that was famous, in basketball circles at least, and being adept at the sport yourself from a young age, would have helped him being accepted.
"Being able to see him [Cal] first hand, how he handled himself on and off the court, at home, seeing him in different situations whether he lost in a grand final or won a championship to just being dad at home, I learnt a lot."
He learnt a lot of the old man at courtside, too. Enough to win him close to 100 caps for Australia.
Now it's the Breakers _ who split a two-game pre-season series with the Perth Wildcats last week _ that get to learn from him.
They can't be anything but better for it.
