Not long ago Wollongong import Joevan Catron wondered if his fledgling NBL career would be cut short by the Hawks before the end of the season.
The club had sacked American guard Donovan Monroe in the preseason, while his replacement, Showron Glover, also eventually parted ways with the club.
Glover's exit last month opened the door for former Melbourne, Cairns and Gold Coast import Ayinde Ubaka to join Wollongong, but Catron wasn't totally convinced he was safe.
Despite boasting the highest scoring average on the 2011-12 Hawks roster before Ubaka's arrival, Catron said there were times when he thought his own head might have been on the chopping block.
"It was kind of mixed feelings," the former University of Oregon star said.
"When [Monroe and Glover] went, I was like, 'I might be the next import going', because the team wasn't producing or getting the wins the fans wanted and what the coaches wanted.
"When they were getting ready to go with other imports, I was just thinking I had to make sure to stay on top of my stuff and hopefully they don't get rid of me. I'm still here, so ... I think I have [made a good contribution]. I've just tried to stay positive through everything and give them everything I've got."
Full coverage of the Hawks Catron averages 11.1 points and has made 40 per cent of his shots in almost 22 minutes per game. He is pulling down 4.6 rebounds per night and hitting 69 per cent of his free throws.
Losing 13 of 18 games hasn't left him with too many victory stories to tell the folks back home in Chicago, but the 23-year-old forward remains upbeat.
"It's been fun, even though we've had the down spells of losing," he said. "Just being out there and playing and coming in and battling with guys every day, it's great for me.
"It's been good to be on my first professional team. I went away for college, so that kind of groomed me for this kind of experience [being a long way from home]. I left Chicago to go to Oregon and that's pretty far.
"You've only got a phone call or a Skype session. It's pretty much the same thing here.
"We're a little bit further down here [in Australia] and it's a different type of culture, and I had to adjust to that. But I think I've adjusted pretty good and it's been fun.
"The location is not bad at all. Everything's close. My girlfriend, she loves it here, so that's a positive."
The Hawks are sharing last spot with Adelaide and will be seeking their sixth win of the season in tomorrow night's road clash with the Gold Coast Blaze.
"We're just trying to finish up strong and we'll see what happens," Catron said. "If we can win our games, we might have a chance to make the play-offs.
"If we don't, as long as we finish up the right way, we can all get something positive from this experience.
"We're playing very different to the last time we played Gold Coast. We've got a new addition [Ubaka] to the team, and we've got a better feel for playing with each other."
In last night's NBL game, the New Zealand Breakers beat the Perth Wildcats 83-77 in Auckland.
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