Hawk Eye Froling Finds Range

Illawarra co-captain Sam Froling has returned from his off-season stint in Japan with a new appreciation for the game, and the centre says he learnt plenty over his 22-game stint with Hokkaido.

The Hawk averaged 7.6 points on almost 57 per cent shooting from the field in the B. League, and his time there included a number of huge performances.

He dropped 27 points in a three-point win over Gunma CT in early Apri, and notched a 13-point, 16-rebound double-double against the Chiba Jets just a week later.

“It was a lot of fun,” Froling told the Illawarra Hawks website of his experience in Japan. “It was cool for me to play with Brock Motum – I’ve known him since I was nine … and then a guy like Shawn Long who I played against in the NBL.

“To go over and experience a different country’s style of play was really cool. I learned a lot.

“It’s a lot slower than the NBL, a lot more sets run and less risk taken, which took a bit of time to adjust to.

“I think it helped me learn a whole new style of play, and I got a lot of time over there to work on my game individually.

“My shot, I think, came a long way.”

Froling will be hoping to take the momentum gained through his successful stint in Japan into the Boomers’ upcoming FIBA World Cup camp, as he looks to earn a spot on the final roster for the tournament.

He’s one of five players to have played in NBL23 to earn a call-up to the extended squad of 18 players – which will be trimmed to just 12 by the time the tournament rolls around.

“It’s huge for me,” Froling said of his selection. “It’s something I’ve dreamed about since being a young kid watching the Olympics.

“It’s still kind of cool to be named in the squad. You look at the names in that team and the NBA guys you’ve idolised growing up watching.

“To know I’m going into camp with them is sick.”