Wollongong Hawks newcomer Joevan Catron has received the most simple of tips from coach Gordie McLeod for tomorrow night’s season-opener against the New Zealand Breakers at WIN Entertainment Centre.A star with the University of Oregon Ducks a year ago, Catron will make his official NBL debut against the defending champions.The 198cm forward has never played professional basketball and is keen to get acquainted with Wollongong fans.Catron is still learning the finer points of the Hawks’ offensive and defensive systems and McLeod wants the 23-year-old to stick to the basics tomorrow.
Full coverage of the Hawks ‘‘He says to go out there and play hard, play my game, fit well with the team and everything will fall into place,’’ Catron said.‘‘I’m definitely going to play my hardest. That’s how I came up playing and I’m just going to carry that on.‘‘I’m just looking forward to getting back out there, period. It’s been a long time since I last played a game in college, so to get back and play in front of a crowd and start the season will be great.‘‘Preseason went well, but I’m definitely ready to get into the regular season and get this thing going.‘‘Nerves are always a good thing, and once you get a feel for it, it’s just like clockwork. We’ve been doing it for a long time in the preseason and now it’s just like getting ready to go out and play another game.‘‘Sometimes if you get too excited it can be a bad thing. You go into it as another game, doing something you’ve done all your life.’’Catron arrived at the Hawks shortly after the club signed former Charleston College guard Donavan Monroe.But while Catron is happily adjusting to life in Australia, Monroe was sacked almost three weeks ago after failing to live up to McLeod’s expectations.Catron felt for his countryman and former team-mate but understands basketball became a business the moment he left college.‘‘I talked to him a couple of weeks ago,’’ he said of Monroe.‘‘He’s a strong guy and he’s just waiting on his next job now. We’ll always be friends and keep in touch. That’s my boy.’’Catron stays in contact with his family in the United States and hasn’t been affected by homesickness.‘‘They follow me a lot through Twitter and Facebook and Skype ... I’ve been keeping them updated and let them know the first real game is coming Sunday,’’ he said.‘‘I miss my family back home but it’s a business decision I made, and everything’s good here. This is the career I chose so there’s sacrifices you have to make sometimes.’’Catron is looking forward to playing in front of a big home crowd.‘‘We had about 10,000 a game at Oregon, so I’m pretty used to seeing a good crowd,’’ he said.‘‘Hopefully we can give them a show.’’Catron has some idea what to expect tomorrow after lining up for the Hawks in two trials against the Breakers a month ago.‘‘They’re a good team with veteran leadership. They have the pieces to win another championship,’’ he said.‘‘They play very hard and very physical and we have to make sure we bring our A-game and be ready to play.’’
