Dane Eyes Great Return

Big man Dane Pineau is aiming to reach the lofty heights that made him one of the standout players during South East Melbourne’s 2019/20 campaign. 

Pineau was runner-up in the NBL’s Most Improved Player in his first season with the Phoenix, but injuries, including a prolapsed disc in his back limited him to just one game in NBL21, and a delayed preparation in NBL22 meant he only hit his straps late.

After logging an average of 26 minutes a night two seasons ago, he played just nine a game last year.

“It’s nice for me because I’ll have a full pre-season this year,” Pineau told the club’s website, as he returned to practice on Monday.

“Hopefully I can use that to be strong and healthy for the whole year.

“It’s nice to get out and have a good hit-out again and start working on hopefully having a big season.”

In his breakout year, Pineau averaged eight points, nine rebounds and a block per game. A return to anywhere near that form is sure to help the Phoenix immensely.  

“I’ve just been working on my body trying to make sure I’m fit and healthy – that’s the main thing for me, staying on the floor.”

The Phoenix were tipped as one of the championship favourites last year, but ultimately missed the finals altogether. 

With some fresh faces, including American guard Trey Kell and Puerto Rican Gary Browne, alongside the experience of Mitch Creek, Ryan Broekhoff and Kyle Adnam, Simon Mitchell’s team are ready to bounce back.

“We all know that we didn’t achieve what we wanted to last year, so we have another opportunity with a lot of the same guys back to go a step further and make a push into the finals,” Pineau added.

(Owen Foxwell, Dane Pineau and Reuben Te Rangi warming up on the first day of pre-season.)

Uncertainly still surrounds starting centre Zhou Qi, with the Chinese star considered unlikely to return for a second season. 

The Phoenix still need to fill several spots on their roster ahead of NBL23. 

“We’ve got both (locals and imports) on the list,” CEO Tommy Greer said of the team’s player search via ESPN last week. 

“We are going down that path and we hope to have something done in the not-too-distant future. But you can miss on a situation and be back to the drawing board, so we hope to have something done soon.”

via NBL.com.au