Illawarra general manager of basketball Mat Campbell believes "there's no better way" for the Hawks to tip-off their fresh NBL campaign as they prepare to host arch-rivals the Kings on Saturday night.
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The Hawks will host the reigning champions at the WIN Entertainment Centre in a blockbuster to launch the 2022/23 season.
Campbell has had the date marked on his calendar since the schedule was released in July, and he said the Hawks would be up for the challenge.
"I remember way back in my career days that you only had to win one game, and that was to beat the Kings at home," Campbell said.
"That's been instilled into the group through generations of players, so to have our arch-rival as the first home game of the year is a great way to start the season for the new coach Jacob [Jackomas] and the new guys coming into the franchise, and also for our fans.
"It's outstanding to see the new group coming together. They played well at the NBL Blitz and we won two out of three games, and gave Adelaide a real shake without Justin Robinson playing. So I'm pretty confident that the guys are coming together well and we'll start off the season with a bang."
The Hawks are looking to build on back-to-back finals appearances as they head into the new season. It was the Kings who stopped Illawarra's run in last year's semi-final series.
Campbell said it was crucial for Illawarra to start 2022/23 on the right foot.
"We talk about a 28-game season, and the difference between us and the NBA, and some of the European leagues is you don't have time to play your way into form. You've got to come out of the gates straight away and the first few rounds are always important," he said.
"We saw with the Hawks two years ago, we got off to a great start, and then fell off a little bit, but were still able to make finals. The wins at the start of the year are worth a lot more at the back end when you're trying to make playoffs."
However, standing in Illawarra's way is a side on a mission to claim back-to-back championships.
Former Hawk Justin Simon will return to the WEC as an enemy on Saturday night, while Sydney's other key recruits include Kouat Noi and Derrick Walton Jr.
"Rolling into a new season, they've kept a good nucleus from last year, but they've also got a lot of changes," Campbell said.
"They had a disrupted pre-season with not a lot of games and some injuries, so it's going to be interesting to see how that all comes together. But one thing we do know is that they spend and they've got some talent.
"But we're really happy with the young group that we've been able to put together, so we're pretty excited to see how it all starts off."
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Joshua Bartlett
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
A sporting fanatic who is keen to promote all codes in the Illawarra and abroad. Mercury's chief football reporter.
