July 11, 2025 • 7 mins
The top-qualifying Wellington Saints host the Tauranga What at TSB Arena on Sunday afternoon, in a bid to advance to a home final the following weekend.
After a seven-game winning streak to end the round robin, head coach Aaron Young joined Adam Cooper to preview the playoffs.
Young was also named coach of the year for the league this week.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's the Illsport Breakfast on Wellington's News Talk ZB Semi
final action in the National Basketball League. It comes to
Wellington tomorrow afternoon. It's a three pm tip off. Wellington
Saints are hosting the Totaling of five totng of FI,
qualifying sixth for the playoffs and upsetting Tartanuki the other
night to get entry into this big one in Wellington.
(00:21):
And of course the Saints have had the last week
and a half off entering as top qualifiers. So a
huge afternoon at tesp Arena tomorrow and a big game
for the Wellington Saints to look to cement a spot
and what would be a home final next weekend. Let's
head into the Saints camp now and joining us as
head coach Aaron Young nearly named coach of the Year
in the National Basketball League. Morning to Aaron, congratulations and firstly,
(00:44):
the last week and a half to sit back and
watch these teams vide out for the remaining seedings. How
nice is it to be entering the semi finals as
the top qualifier.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Yeah, I mean the back end of the season was intense,
you know for us, we were really you know, just
at every kind of stage of the season. We're just
kind of trying to take it one game at a time,
and you know, you know, Rams, you know did us
a favor and a couple of results, and you know,
came down to that last game. So you know, we
(01:14):
felt the energy and the intensity in that game, which
was you know, a playoff type atmosphere, So you know,
there was an emotional high with that, and you know,
I think it was probably good that we had a
bit of a break after that to just kind of regroup, refocus,
and now obviously understand what the task is at hand,
which is obviously, you know, gearing up for a championship run.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Things are a bit different at halftime of that game,
down by by thirteen, it might have even been slightly
more than that as the margin and the third court.
Have you zeroed in on, you know, the first half
of that game, or have you more locked at it
as a whole in the effort that the boys had
to fight back?
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Yeah, I mean we address it in different moments. Obviously,
we review every game, and you know, some things that
came out of that were you know, just you know,
probably a lack of energy or focused in terms of
our execution, and you know, that's what quality teams do.
They take you out of rhythm, so you know, to
win a game like that where you know, we feel
(02:10):
like we didn't execute our night terms for at least
twenty minutes, but then you find the juice and the
perseverance in the second half to come up with that result.
You know, it gives us great confidence, you know, to
you know, fall back on those moments, knowing that we
can dig deep and you know come up with a
huge you know when in our.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Building obviously noticed the other night against the Rams you
were sort of on that sort of rolling subs through
the game, making sure your key players were in the
right moments, but also getting some time on the bench.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
Is that kind of the way forward? Giving your roster
at the moment? Do you feel?
Speaker 2 (02:41):
I think so, you know, and I've got complete trust
in our bench and you know, different people stepping up
in different moments. You know, that's what we've built through
all season is you know, just giving them the confidence
to to you know, whether it's a two minute stent
or having to play on a full play through a
full quarter because we're in foul trouble or someone's you
know not obviously you know, the matchup has just favors
(03:04):
us in that moment. So yeah, whoever steps up in
those moments, you know, we feel like we feel like
we've got a great advantage with with our.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Debt Jordan Nasai.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
People that have watched him over the league and people
that I guess have have met him, and no one
know he's a pretty chilled out guy. But tell us
about the energy he's brought and that the last few
weeks of the competition, he's clear he's clearly sort of
had a bit more more firepower about him. Is that
something that you've sort of talked to him about or
or tried to get him to inject a little bit
more of himself into games.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Yeah, I mean I don't have to do much, you
know to get him going, especially you know him playing
for Wellington. You know he's got a lot of family here.
This is you know, this is home for him, so
you know he takes he takes that on his shoulders
and you see that passion come out in different moments.
But I just love the way he's competing on both ends.
You know, it's it's not one side of the ball
that he's dominating or you know, exerting a certain amount
(03:54):
of energy. He's really balanced with his impact. You know,
his disruption defensively has been something we've really relied on
in big moments, and then offensively he just has timely
baskets and I just love his aggression. Like for us
to get to where we want to go, he needs
to step up in those moments and have that mindset
to pick his moments. But also, you know, just put
(04:15):
heat on the rim.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Your opponents the fire.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Maybe surprising for some people given that game on on
Wednesday nights, What do you make of facing off against them?
I guess on paper, maybe not as difficult as some
of the other games that could have presented itself. But yeah,
what have you made of that fixture being locked in?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah? But what I would say about the Fires, you know,
you know they had some roster changes and you know
Mahave King and Anzac came in and I think there
was you know, they snipped us I think one of
the first games together. And then you know they've had
some ups and downs, but what they showed, you know,
against their airs is you know they've found their identity
(04:53):
I think in terms of how they balance each other.
So you know, we just got to give them the
respect that they deserve. Mahave's you know, a n B al,
you know, fringe NBA level talent. You know, he's been
on that, you know, on that cuss for you know,
in his young career. So he's you know, he takes
a lot of attention, and you've got to you got
to hit your jobs, and it can't just be one cover.
(05:14):
You've got to you got to show multiple looks. But
then you can't disrespect the other players on their their floor,
you know, Bears Stoze and ambil player Cruise, you know,
even Jayden Bizant, you know, he picks his moments and
when he gets going, he's very streaky. And then they've
got good size with you know, Hope Boy anzik rosetto,
(05:34):
so they're a well balanced team, you know on paper.
You know, I don't really pay too much attention to that.
I just look at the matchup and you know, we're
excited for it, and we you know, we feel like
that we can really find our moments to really execute
what we want to execute. And I'm sure there will too,
So it'll be a great test for us in terms
of see where to see where we're at when in
those key big moments and a z A offer.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
We know he's a big game player.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
He certainly was last week against Candabra, you know, as
the side quite reliant on him to to sort of
you know, put on a good showing like his points
scored the other night.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Yeah, I mean, well, I would say his consistency benefits
of us, and most is just his defensive energy and
when you can see it when he's you know, fired
up and engaged. You know, how a disruptive he is
on the ball, how active he is. Everything that we
get from him and from an offensive port production is
you know, just kind of icing on the cake. You know,
(06:29):
he has those big gay moments. He steps up and
makes those big shots, and that's why every team has
to give him, you know, the respect that he deserves.
But you know, we're looking for him to really, you know,
set the tone for us defensively, and I think if
everyone buys into that side of the ball, will be
in a good place.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Wonderful. All right, Well, Aaron, wishing you all the best.
Congratulations to get on the top seating as yet. You're
into the semi finals and I know there'll be a
lot of people around Wellington that will be cheering you
guys on both within the arena and around the city
on Sunday afternoons. So go well mate and thanks for
your time always.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yep, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
For more from News Talks at b listen live on
air or online, and keep
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Our shows with you wherever you go with our podcasts
on iHeartRadio.
It's the Illsport Breakfast on Wellington's News Talk ZB Semi
final action in the National Basketball League. It comes to
Wellington tomorrow afternoon. It's a three pm tip off. Wellington
Saints are hosting the Totaling of five totng of FI,
qualifying sixth for the playoffs and upsetting Tartanuki the other
night to get entry into this big one in Wellington.
(00:21):
And of course the Saints have had the last week
and a half off entering as top qualifiers. So a
huge afternoon at tesp Arena tomorrow and a big game
for the Wellington Saints to look to cement a spot
and what would be a home final next weekend. Let's
head into the Saints camp now and joining us as
head coach Aaron Young nearly named coach of the Year
in the National Basketball League. Morning to Aaron, congratulations and firstly,
(00:44):
the last week and a half to sit back and
watch these teams vide out for the remaining seedings. How
nice is it to be entering the semi finals as
the top qualifier.
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Yeah, I mean the back end of the season was intense,
you know for us, we were really you know, just
at every kind of stage of the season. We're just
kind of trying to take it one game at a time,
and you know, you know, Rams, you know did us
a favor and a couple of results, and you know,
came down to that last game. So you know, we
(01:14):
felt the energy and the intensity in that game, which
was you know, a playoff type atmosphere, So you know,
there was an emotional high with that, and you know,
I think it was probably good that we had a
bit of a break after that to just kind of regroup, refocus,
and now obviously understand what the task is at hand,
which is obviously, you know, gearing up for a championship run.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Things are a bit different at halftime of that game,
down by by thirteen, it might have even been slightly
more than that as the margin and the third court.
Have you zeroed in on, you know, the first half
of that game, or have you more locked at it
as a whole in the effort that the boys had
to fight back?
Speaker 2 (01:49):
Yeah, I mean we address it in different moments. Obviously,
we review every game, and you know, some things that
came out of that were you know, just you know,
probably a lack of energy or focused in terms of
our execution, and you know, that's what quality teams do.
They take you out of rhythm, so you know, to
win a game like that where you know, we feel
(02:10):
like we didn't execute our night terms for at least
twenty minutes, but then you find the juice and the
perseverance in the second half to come up with that result.
You know, it gives us great confidence, you know, to
you know, fall back on those moments, knowing that we
can dig deep and you know come up with a
huge you know when in our.
Speaker 1 (02:29):
Building obviously noticed the other night against the Rams you
were sort of on that sort of rolling subs through
the game, making sure your key players were in the
right moments, but also getting some time on the bench.
Speaker 3 (02:37):
Is that kind of the way forward? Giving your roster
at the moment? Do you feel?
Speaker 2 (02:41):
I think so, you know, and I've got complete trust
in our bench and you know, different people stepping up
in different moments. You know, that's what we've built through
all season is you know, just giving them the confidence
to to you know, whether it's a two minute stent
or having to play on a full play through a
full quarter because we're in foul trouble or someone's you
know not obviously you know, the matchup has just favors
(03:04):
us in that moment. So yeah, whoever steps up in
those moments, you know, we feel like we feel like
we've got a great advantage with with our.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Debt Jordan Nasai.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
People that have watched him over the league and people
that I guess have have met him, and no one
know he's a pretty chilled out guy. But tell us
about the energy he's brought and that the last few
weeks of the competition, he's clear he's clearly sort of
had a bit more more firepower about him. Is that
something that you've sort of talked to him about or
or tried to get him to inject a little bit
more of himself into games.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Yeah, I mean I don't have to do much, you
know to get him going, especially you know him playing
for Wellington. You know he's got a lot of family here.
This is you know, this is home for him, so
you know he takes he takes that on his shoulders
and you see that passion come out in different moments.
But I just love the way he's competing on both ends.
You know, it's it's not one side of the ball
that he's dominating or you know, exerting a certain amount
(03:54):
of energy. He's really balanced with his impact. You know,
his disruption defensively has been something we've really relied on
in big moments, and then offensively he just has timely
baskets and I just love his aggression. Like for us
to get to where we want to go, he needs
to step up in those moments and have that mindset
to pick his moments. But also, you know, just put
(04:15):
heat on the rim.
Speaker 3 (04:16):
Your opponents the fire.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
Maybe surprising for some people given that game on on
Wednesday nights, What do you make of facing off against them?
I guess on paper, maybe not as difficult as some
of the other games that could have presented itself. But yeah,
what have you made of that fixture being locked in?
Speaker 2 (04:32):
Yeah? But what I would say about the Fires, you know,
you know they had some roster changes and you know
Mahave King and Anzac came in and I think there
was you know, they snipped us I think one of
the first games together. And then you know they've had
some ups and downs, but what they showed, you know,
against their airs is you know they've found their identity
(04:53):
I think in terms of how they balance each other.
So you know, we just got to give them the
respect that they deserve. Mahave's you know, a n B al,
you know, fringe NBA level talent. You know, he's been
on that, you know, on that cuss for you know,
in his young career. So he's you know, he takes
a lot of attention, and you've got to you got
to hit your jobs, and it can't just be one cover.
(05:14):
You've got to you got to show multiple looks. But
then you can't disrespect the other players on their their floor,
you know, Bears Stoze and ambil player Cruise, you know,
even Jayden Bizant, you know, he picks his moments and
when he gets going, he's very streaky. And then they've
got good size with you know, Hope Boy anzik rosetto,
(05:34):
so they're a well balanced team, you know on paper.
You know, I don't really pay too much attention to that.
I just look at the matchup and you know, we're
excited for it, and we you know, we feel like
that we can really find our moments to really execute
what we want to execute. And I'm sure there will too,
So it'll be a great test for us in terms
of see where to see where we're at when in
those key big moments and a z A offer.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
We know he's a big game player.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
He certainly was last week against Candabra, you know, as
the side quite reliant on him to to sort of
you know, put on a good showing like his points
scored the other night.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Yeah, I mean, well, I would say his consistency benefits
of us, and most is just his defensive energy and
when you can see it when he's you know, fired
up and engaged. You know, how a disruptive he is
on the ball, how active he is. Everything that we
get from him and from an offensive port production is
you know, just kind of icing on the cake. You know,
(06:29):
he has those big gay moments. He steps up and
makes those big shots, and that's why every team has
to give him, you know, the respect that he deserves.
But you know, we're looking for him to really, you know,
set the tone for us defensively, and I think if
everyone buys into that side of the ball, will be
in a good place.
Speaker 3 (06:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Wonderful. All right, Well, Aaron, wishing you all the best.
Congratulations to get on the top seating as yet. You're
into the semi finals and I know there'll be a
lot of people around Wellington that will be cheering you
guys on both within the arena and around the city
on Sunday afternoons. So go well mate and thanks for
your time always.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yep, thanks for having me.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
For more from News Talks at b listen live on
air or online, and keep
Speaker 2 (07:07):
Our shows with you wherever you go with our podcasts
on iHeartRadio.
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