Within the first month of it getting underway, the New Zealand Breakers’ new season is going to get weird.
The side begin their campaign on Saturday at 8.30pm in Auckland against the Cairns Taipans and will play another game before leaving the NBL season behind them temporarily for the bright lights of the NBA.
The Breakers will briefly park their campaign to meet the Portland Trailblazers (October 11) and Utah Jazz (October 17), returning for a fixture late in round four on October 22.
It’s an unusual situation to find themselves in, but while the dates threaten to disrupt the team’s schedule, import point guard Parker Jackson-Cartwright told the Herald he expected it wouldn’t really make too much of a difference to how the team operates.
“We haven’t really talked about it,” Jackson-Cartwright said. “It’s just another trip, like any other road trip. This is a more extended one, but it’s going to be a great opportunity.