It’s official. Hawks imports Michael Holyfield and Rotnei Clarke have landed and are ready to help lead Illawarra’s 2016-17 NBL assault.

The American duo arrived in Australia over the weekend and were unveiled at the Snakepit on Monday.

For Clarke, the return is close to two years in the making.

The sharpshooting guard has been on the cusp of returning to the club in recent seasons following his standout debut campaign in 2013-14 where he won the NBL MVP crown.

After two strong seasons in Europe, Clarke felt the time was right to return to Illawarra.

And he has a warning for the competition. 

"I think I've come back a better player,” Clarke said.

"I am similar in a lot of ways. I was telling a couple of the other guys that I can't really pinpoint anything but I think I have just matured as a player.

"Coming in I was just a rookie coming out of college and now I have just turned 27 so I still feel like I am in my prime but definitely matured in a lot of ways. Hopefully I can continue to help the team as much as I can and winning solves everything."

While Clarke’s elite skill-set will come as no surprise to the Hawks faithful, Holyfield arrives in Wollongong as more of an unknown quantity.

The 6 foot 11’ big-man spent last season in America’s D-League and is expected to add firepower to the Hawks’ stacked front court.

"My main strength is just dominating the paint and being a tough player down there offensively and defensively,” Holyfield said.

"Running the floor well, rebounding, blocking shots. What ever the team needs me to do."

Holyfield added he was ‘looking forward to improving his skill work’ under Illawarra coach Rob Beveridge.

His arrival alongside Clarke edges the Hawks closer to having their full roster on deck in Wollongong.

The club’s third import, Marvelle Harris, arrives on Wednesday night while guard Kevin White is still finishing his season with Bendigo in the SEABL. On paper, when complete the Hawks roster looks set for another big NBL campaign. 

Asked if he thought it was the sort of squad which could take Illawarra all the way to the NBL title, Clarke said; “Definitely.”

"We have lost some key guys from last year like Kirk Penney and Kevin Lisch, which provided a lot of scoring, but with the guys they have brought in [we’ll be competitive].

“With the new Australian guys like [Mitch] Norton and [Nick] Kay, being the rookie of the year which is pretty impressive and the core group of guys that they had in the beginning, then bringing the Americans into it and a guy like AJ Ogilvy and Michael [Holyfield] down low.

"We have a lot of size inside and our back court is really good so hopefully we will be able to make a run at it."