Hawks star vows to rise again

Wednesday, September 13, 2023

"I'm one of the best point-guards in the world still, and I just want to show that throughout the year."

Justin Robinson signed with the Illawarra Hawks as one of the most exciting imports for NBL23.

After just 31 minutes of action in Round 1, his season was over. A meniscus tear sidelined the star guard, and while many imports would have understandly opted to head home, Robinson was keen to repay the faith from the Hawks.

The Hawks have put plenty of key pieces in place to improve their roster for NBL24 and a fit and firing Robinson will be just like a new recruit. He's only 25, was a star when he did play in the pre-season last year, and has a point to prove.

"I kind of like the idea of that my name isn't up in a lot of the conversations right now, it puts a little bit more of a chip on my shoulder than what I already have," Robinson said.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Hawks are headed to the GC ?<br> <br>There’s one week to go until the Illawarra Hawks tip off for the NBL Blitz. <br> <br>Catch all the games live and free on Kayo Freebies ? <a href="https://t.co/O7rKEu373d">https://t.co/O7rKEu373d</a><br> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeRiseTogether?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeRiseTogether</a> <a href="https://t.co/usjyoEFSvZ">pic.twitter.com/usjyoEFSvZ</a></p>— Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@illawarrahawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks/status/1701101922969883047?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Robinson has 43 games' NBA experience to his name across five teams, and he's certainly not short of confidence.

"I'm one of the best point-guards in the world still, and I just want to show that throughout the year, have a great year and have us win games," he said.

"It's crazy how stuff dies down when you get injured and people act like things change. I'm still the same person that I was before, maybe even better [after] focusing on some things in my rehab."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Come at one of us, Come at all of us. Because as Hawks, We Rise Together<a href="https://t.co/5xmdcKIvSv">https://t.co/5xmdcKIvSv</a> <a href="https://t.co/24k30LNkO0">pic.twitter.com/24k30LNkO0</a></p>— Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@illawarrahawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks/status/1699920714307146214?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Hawks have revealed a fresh-look roster ahead of the Hungry Jack’s NBL Blitz, starting this weekend.

Robinson will join returning crowd favourite Tyler Harvey, and familiar faces from across the league, Mason Peatling and veteran Todd Blanchfield.

Sharpshooting South Korean wing Hyunjung Lee and former G-League star Gary Clark add another dimension to the roster, while big man Sam Froling is still only 23, despite his extensive NBL experience and time in the Boomers setup.

Then there's college graduate Lachlan Olbrich and Next Star AJ Johnson, who both loom as exciting prospects for Jacob Jackomas' team.

The Hawks will play Melbourne United on Monday, September 18 at the Blitz. Tip-off is 5pm AEST.

Fans can watch all the Blitz action, live and free via Kayo Freebies.