WHEN Bandits head coach Brad Chalmers looks at Joel Spear, he sees potential.
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The 24-year-old starting point guard's stats this season don't necessarily make for compelling viewing – 5.4 points per game, three rebounds, two-and-a-half assists.
Spear isn't necessarily required to rack up massive numbers – after all, he is sharing the backcourt with one of the most dominant SEABL players in recent history in Deba George.
He's still young – this season is, essentially, his first at a senior level after a four-year college career in Oregon and spending the previous NBL season as a development player with the Adelaide 36ers.
The talent is obviously there.
At 191 centimetres he's big enough to shoot over smaller defenders, strong enough to attack the basket.
The flashes of ability have been there – an eight point, four rebound, six assist outing against Bendigo earlier in the season stands out – but mostly, Spear has committed to learning from his more experienced teammates.
“Coming from the state league in Adelaide and the 36ers, I wanted to play in the best league in the country outside the NBL,” Spear said.
“Brad gave me a great opportunity to come here and play, we’ve got a great team here.
“There’s an adjustment from playing with guys your own age in college to playing against men, guys who have had success in the NBL.
“Playing with guys like Deba and JT (Terrell) I’ve learned a lot.
“You learn a lot just being around them, at practice and off the court.
“They bring a lot of knowledge to the table, even when we’ve just been hanging out.”
After chemistry issues plagued an underachieving team in the 2016 season, it’s clear that no such issues exist this year.
That’s in no small part to the close bonds the team’s new recruits have forged with the existing Bandits core.
For Spear, that meant moving in with Darcy Harding and Josh Morgan.
“They’re two of the greatest blokes in Albury,” he said.
“They've made my experience off-court more than enjoyable, we do a lot of things together.”
Ahead of a cruical two-games against Hobart on Friday and North-West Tasmania on Saturday, Spear said the Bandits had to keep doing what they've been doing over the last month to keep themselves on the winner's list.
“I think we've found a level of consistency over the past month,” he said.
“We're moving the ball well, creating for each other on offence.
“We've worked day in, day out on our defence, we're trying to hold teams to around 80 points each game.
“It all starts with Hobart – we'll just take it one game at a time.”