Ben Ayre Encourages Next Crop of Talent

South East Melbourne Phoenix point guard Ben Ayre offered some encouraging words to a group of basketballers looking to take their careers to the next level at a camp hosted by the club at the State Basketball Centre.

The three-day invite-only camp organised by Phoenix assistant coach Sam Mackinnon ran from Monday to Wednesday. It was aimed at helping the coaching group identify talent to potentially fill the remaining local and development player roster spots for the NBL24 season.

Over 20 players from across the country participated in the camp, all currently playing in various NBL1 conferences and all looking to break into the NBL.

(Ayre spoke to the team before the session to give his insight and advise from his own personal journey.)

Ayre saw himself in a similar position just a couple of seasons ago. After spending a year on the 36ers roster as a development player, he saw himself out of the league the following season and fighting for a second opportunity in the NBL.

He made his way to Cairns to put himself in front of the Taipans coaching staff and joined the team as a training player for NBL22. Ayre finally got his opportunity to play at the top level again, signing on to the Taipans' roster as a replacement player in April 2022. 

In just his sixth appearance for the Taipans, he scored a team-high 20 points along with 10 assists, four rebounds, and three steals with four 3-pointers in a 92–80 loss to Melbourne United. He became just the third player in 2021–22 to record 20 points and 10 assists alongside Bryce Cotton and Jaylen Adams.

(Over 20 players from across the country were invited to an open session to bide for a spot on Phoenix's roster.)

His persistence ultimately paid off, and he earned himself a contract on the main roster for Cairns Taipans in NBL23. In what was to be a break-out year for Ayre, he made a name for himself on the defensive end of the floor and averaged 5.8 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 1.4 assists across 32 games.

"Hopefully, you can take me as an example as you can be successful in the position you are in right now. Take these opportunities as best as you can; if these things don't work, keep moving forward and keep putting yourself in the position where you can succeed," Ayre said to the group.

"Defence and having a good attitude, everyone in this position can hoop and play offensively, but to be in this league, you have to be the impact guy on the defensive end. Those small things of effort and being a good teammate go a long way."

(Kody Stattmann played 19 games for Brisbane Bullets in NBL23. He is currently playing for the Cairns Marlins in NBL1 North, averaging 15 points at 50.74% from the field, 1.25 assists, and 7.08 rebounds.)

Head coach Mike Kelly also reiterated how important it was for the group to hear from Ayre as they embark on a similar journey. 

"Competing and communicating is the key, and Ben (Ayre) is the poster boy for that. That's one reason he's here and why we wanted him at the Phoenix so bad," Kelly commented.

"He talked about taking every opportunity, and this is a great opportunity for these guys. There's not a lot of spots (on the roster), but pursuing that opportunity with everything you have, paid off for him."

(The sessions entailed various drills that were focused on both defensively and offensively.)

The group were put through their paces throughout the camp, undertaking various drills on both ends of the court under the watchful eyes of the coaches.

"It's a good chance to get guys in to compete against each other. Drill them on some things we want to do defensively and offensively and see how they respond. We see these guys play in NBL1 right now, but it's good to see them in front of us while they have something to play for," Kelly said.

"We've been pleasantly surprised with the ability of some of the guys, and they're all improving. The best thing is they all wanted to come to the camp, so it's all about the opportunity, and I think all the guys are making the most of it," Mackinnon added.

(Corey Shrevill was on Perth Wildcats roster from 2020-23. He is currently teaming up with Matt Kenyon at USC Rip City in NBL1 North. He is averaging 9.54 points, 2.08 assists, and 5.54 rebounds.)

The camp gave the coaches plenty to think about going forward, with the possibility of filling the remaining local roster spot and two development places for the season ahead.

"We will see where our needs are. Given we already got Austin (Rapp) and Anzac (Rissetto) as development players, we are going to need some guards. Hopefully, we can find someone from the camps," Mackinnon commented.

With the roster coming together nicely, the search for the last two import spots is underway before Kelly heads to the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in July.

"We're looking now. If I can have both import spots done before Summer League, I would love that, but we're not in a rush." Kelly said.

"We're fortunate now to have a good solid roster right now and looking to find imports that will complement our roster."

(Dillon Smith (dunking) is currently playing for NBL1 South side Waverley Falcons, averaging 21.73 points, 1.67 assists, and 9.33 rebounds. He previously was on Melbourne United's roster for 2019-21.)

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Phoenix Media (22/06/23)