KEY POINTS:
They might have lost six of their past seven games but Andrej Lemanis' Breakers are still well placed for a shot at the Australian NBL title when the playoffs begin in two weeks' time.
Now in his fourth season, Lemanis has engineered a steady improvement in the North Shore-based club. He guided them to their first playoff campaign last season and this season they have continued their upward trajectory, leading the NBL ladder at the midway point before dropping to third thanks to their current slump.
If the Breakers are to become the first New Zealand team to win an Australian domestic sporting title, they will need to rediscover their form over the next 24-hours, when they play Wollongong and Adelaide in a tough double-header across the Tasman.
Describe your job?
Fun.
What's the best thing about your job?
Seeing a player come in and improve and start having an impact. Basically seeing people get better. And seeing a team come together, I really enjoy that. Sitting back and saying 'yeah these guys are really playing for one another'.
And the worst thing?
The strain it puts on your personal relationships. You've got to have pretty understanding partners. Not only from a time perspective. They tend to take any criticism from the public and the media harder than you do.
What's it like being an Australian coaching a New Zealand team in an Australian competition?
I don't really think about that. For me it is pretty much the same.
What inspired you to embark on a career in coaching?
I played to a good level and won an NBL championship with the Melbourne Magic back in 1992. Then in '94 I had an opportunity to move teams but back in those days it wasn't fully professional. So I would have had to leave my job and change cities for $10,000 and then find some other form of employment. I was playing for Brian Goorjian at the time and he said 'I think you'd make a good coach'. I could see where the sport was heading, that it was going to be full time, and that if I was going to find a way to be involved for any period of time it was going to be as a coach. So I decided to go down that path as early as I could.
You've been at it a while now. What's your favourite moment as a coach?
Competing in the Grand Final with the Townsville Crocs was a good moment. Unfortunately we didn't win it. Being selected as an assistant on the Australian Under-21 team was a great moment for me. And obviously getting this job was a very good time as well.
How much control do you have over whether your team wins or loses?
That's a good question. Everyone involved has an influence and a part to play. To put a percentage on it is difficult. In basketball a coach has more control during the game than I've seen in other sports. We have the ability to stop the game with time outs, to call plays, make changes instantaneously and communicate with players while they are involved in the action. So you have a fair amount of input. We play a part, certainly.
Do you feel your sport and your team gets the amount of public attention they deserve?
It is a bit of an uphill battle. It feels like it is a bit of a second tier sport, trying to get publicity and exposure. We who are involved in the sport love it and we think that if people would just expose themselves to it and come to games then they would absolutely love it too. But certainly the footy codes do tend to dominate and we need to find our niche market among those codes.
Name the one career ambition that you want to realise before you retire.
I'd like to win a championship as a head coach. One that I haven't been able to achieve yet is to compete as a head coach at international level. Going to the Olympics would be something that I'd love to do.
With the Aussie Boomers or the Tall Blacks?
Both. Coaches coach whichever country wants to give them a job.
If you weren't a basketball coach, what would you be doing?
I've got an accounting degree and I tried doing that for a while, but this is a lot more fun.
Who in the world do you most admire and why?
When my son was born he was quite sick and he ended up in a neo-natal intensive care ward. Just watching those doctors and nurses take care of him really got my appreciation. It changed my view of the world. Sports people get accolades and recognition and often get a lot of money. You look at the [doctors and nurses] doing 12-hour shifts and saving people's lives, that is pretty important. They don't get that much recognition and I'm sure a lot of them don't get much money. People that dedicate themselves to helping others are the ones that get my respect.
Who is the most inspirational person you've dealt with?
People inspire you in different ways. When you see kids dealing with adversity ... a good example is Paul Henare's son when he went through his thing [losing a foot in a lawnmower accident]. He comes to practice and is running around and you feel like, wow, if he can deal with that and it doesn't bother him too much then my life is pretty easy.
How do you get away from basketball?
I spend time with my wife when I can. I try to get out and have a hit at golf. I do enjoy the sharemarket, I must admit. And I actually enjoy getting out in the garden a bit, as corny as that sounds.
Who was your childhood hero?
When I was growing up Julius 'Dr J' Irving was someone who was pretty big on the radar. And then it became Larry Bird.
ANDREJ LEMANIS
CV
Job: Head coach, NZ Breakers
Age: 38
Nationality: Australian
Clubs played for: St Kilda Saints, South Melbourne Saints, South East Melbourne Magic.
Coaching positions: Assistant coach: Townsville Crocodiles, Australia Under-21.
Head coach: NZ Breakers.
Breakers' record: W52 L69
