KEY POINTS:
It's pretty easy to spot Dillon Boucher's Manukau home from the street. The basketball hoop and half court out front is a bit of a giveaway.
New Zealand's most decorated domestic basketballer - he has a record eight NZNBL titles to his name - is also a pretty
recognisable character these days. Sparked by the exploits of the Tall Blacks at the beginning of the millennium and fanned by the creation of the Breakers, the profile of the game in this country has come on leaps and dunks.
Boucher and his muddy blond flowing locks have been very much the face of game's popularity rise. It's a rare day when he isn't approached by a member of the public for a bit of a chat.
Like basketball, chatting is something he's pretty good at. Fresh from becoming the first New Zealander to win an ANBL title with the Brisbane Bullets, he's back in New Zealand - via a celebratory, expenses-paid team knees-up in Las Vegas - for his 13th NZNBL campaign.
He's confident and relaxed. And why wouldn't he be? At 31, he's achieved plenty. And, having recently penned a two-year extension at the Bullets, he can be fairly sure there are more good days ahead.
Life as a full-time pro agrees with Boucher, after seven years' playing basketball pretty much for enjoyment and working as a travel agent to pay the bills.
It was the introduction of the Breakers four years ago that provided the pathway to full time professionalism for Boucher and many of his contemporaries. With New Zealanders no longer considered imports, the ANBL opened up an extensive new market for this country's players.
The Breakers brought pain as well as gain. The way he was cut from the club after two seasons still rankles.
"I spoke out, saying things weren't right with the coach, and there was a backlash," he recounts.
"I was seen as the troublemaker. If I see something that's not right I believe it should be confronted. I confronted it and it backfired on me."
Troublemaker? Not according to Tab Baldwin, the man who spotted Boucher's talent as a raw teenager.
"Dillon has never been a troublemaker," says Baldwin.
"He is a guy who plays emotionally and consequently he is on the edge at times but he is not out there trying to cause trouble. If anything, he is the glue to a team."
As far as the Breakers go, that being the low point in his career only indicates how passionate he is about being a New Zealander and playing in New Zealand.
"You would get those comments out of Pero Cameron and Phill Jones. They've all had success with other teams but they've had to leave New Zealand to do that. And they didn't really leave of their own volition. They left because they weren't wanted. That was extremely difficult for all of them."
Boucher, who describes himself as "a bit of a home lad" certainly never wanted to leave. "At the end of the day, you've got to go to a team where you are wanted."
Things certainly worked out okay for Boucher, who is small for a forward at just 1.96m but, according to Baldwin, more than compensates for it.
"Dillon makes his teammates better players. It's not what he goes out and does, it's not like he racks up the points or rebounds, it's just his intelligence and energy that can lift a team's performance."
Boucher certainly seemed to lift the Bullets, but their success was a touch bittersweet.
"Winning a championship, you can't take that away, but it is still living away from home and I'd love to be still living in New Zealand playing basketball and representing New Zealand. But in professional sport you end up where you are chosen to go. Right now, Brisbane chooses to have me, and I'll be playing there as long as they want me."
First though, he has the small matter of another NZNBL campaign with the Auckland Stars and, in all likelihood, a key role to play in the Tall Blacks' Olympic qualifying campaign.
He may be experiencing the most rewarding years of his career but, with two children (Jayden, 5, and Makenzee, 3), making the sacrifices required to compete at international level isn't getting any easier.
"It is going to be a tough time family-wise because it is almost two months of not seeing your family and focusing on beating Australia [who stand between New Zealand and Beijing 2008].
"There is no better feeling than pulling on your black singlet before a game but the reason we play so hard is because we've sacrificed so much at home. Most of the guys in the Tall Blacks now have kids and families. We are all sitting there talking to our kids on the phone half the time.
"Now, every time I leave the house, my daughter says 'are you going to the airport, dad'? That's what makes this latter part of your career tough. You miss the soccer games and the ballet lessons."
So, if the Tall Blacks do back up last year's historic test series win in Australia and qualify for Beijing, will Boucher be on the plane?
"Right now, basketball is still a major part of my life. My body is feeling good and my wife is happy for me to keep playing. So I'm not thinking of retirement. Ask me in two years' time and it could be different."
Dillon Boucher
* Born: December 27, 1975, New Plymouth
* Age: 31
* Height: 1.96m
* Position: Forward/guard
* Clubs: Brisbane Bullets, Perth Wildcats, NZ Breakers, Auckland Stars, Waikato Pistons
* Titles: NZNBL (8) - 1995-97 (Auckland), 1999/00 (Auckland), 2002 (Waikato), 2004-05 (Auckland): ANBL 06 (Brisbane)
* Honours: NZNBL - All-Star Five 2002, 03; Outstanding NZ Forward 2003; Final MVP 2005
* International: 90 caps for Tall Blacks (2001-06)
