Second-year coach Petteri Koponen has soaked up the lessons and is ready to take the Breakers the distance in ‘25-26. MARC HINTON reports
Petteri Koponen had a fair idea what he was in for when he lobbed into New Zealand a little over a year ago for his first season as a head coach at the professional basketball level. Nearly two decades plying his trade as a polished combo guard in the top leagues of Europe and the international arena for Finland had him about as ready as ready can be.
But even he wasn’t quite prepared for what unfolded in year one coaching the New Zealand Breakers in Australia’s National Basketball League, which became a crash course in the rollercoaster ride that is professional sports. That is to say it was all pretty easy, until it wasn’t, and when momentum changed, it proved impossible to get back.
As a player in that situation, you have a degree of control in how things unfold. But as a coach, as Koponen discovered, it does not take long for a sense of helplessness to kick in.
Just to review, here’s how the 2024-25 NBL campaign played out for Koponen’s Breakers: amid unpromising circumstances, like the new coach appointed just a month from the pre-season, inheriting another man’s squad, and travelling, early-season, halfway round the world for NBA exhibition games, somehow the Kiwis opened 7-3, to top of the league.
Then, inexplicably, Koponen’s boss, then club owner Matt Walsh, pulled the string on an import change (bringing 2.29-metre giant Tacko Fall in for Freddie Gillespie) that was as devastating as it was frustrating. With Fall in the lineup, the Breakers plunged into freefall, losing 16 of their last 19 games to finish second from bottom.
Of course, that was then, and this is now.
Koponen has had a full off-season home with family (he and his wife have three boys) to reflect on it all. The Breakers, too, have had an ownership change, with Auckland-based American Marc Mitchell taking over a “back-to-the-future” refresh that has seen the Blackwells, Paul and Liz, return as investors and club legend Dillon Boucher take the day-to-day reins.
If Koponen had one big takeaway from last year, it’s this: “In basketball the pieces need to fit together. To be a successful team everybody needs to feel it and buy in. It doesn’t matter what us coaches say or do, if they don’t buy in, it’s hard. It was an interesting learning experience around how much guys can, and can’t, pick up on the fly.”
Second time round coach Kop feels more in control of his destiny. He’s put together a capable roster, with a nice mix of returning pieces (star import Parker Jackson-Cartwright, Mexican teen sensation Karim Lopez and Kiwi centre Sam Mennenga), familiar faces back from spells away (Reuben Te Rangi, Rob Loe and Izayah Le’afa) and fresh new talents (guard Izaiah Brockington, big Rob Baker II and Tall Blacks point guard Taylor Britt).
“If you want a chance, you have to do great things collectively.” adds Koponen of the formula required for a club lacking the spending power of its rivals. “It was amazing to see how hard (‘24-25 champs) Illawarra played with all 10 guys. Whatever we do, we have to do it at full speed, with 100% energy. It starts with effort, and a willingness to compete.
“We have to be as good as possible as a collective. As an underdog team, you have to be really tight and do the little things really well. You need enough talent, then the other pieces have to fit, and you find that competitive advantage from there.”
With a renewed accent on its Kiwi identity, Koponen understands he is overseeing a culture rebuild.
“You can already feel it and see it with how the new management are doing things. They’re taking care of the players, and coaches, and improving the facility. They want to do more in the community and with the academy. It’s a great start. We’re trying to build that culture every day on the court, and they try to build it off the court.“
“We want our fans behind us, and how we repay this is by giving everything we’ve got, and playing together. We have to fight, fight, fight against those big-budget teams.”
The start has been promising. The Breakers went 2-0 to win the pre-season Blitz tournament. But, as Koponen well knows, in this business it’s not about how well you spring out of the blocks. It is all about staying the course.
Breakers NBL schedule for October:
Oct 4: @ Sydney Kings, Qudos Bank Arena, 8.30pm
Oct 8: v Illawarra Hawks, Spark Arena, 7.30pm
Oct 12: v SEM Phoenix, Spark Arena, 4.30pm
Oct 17: v Tasmania JackJumpers, Spark Arena, 7.30pm
Oct 19: @ Melbourne United, John Cain Arena, 4.30pm
Oct 23: v Brisbane Bullets, Eventfinda Stadium, 7.30pm
Oct 31: @ Illawarra Hawks, WIN Entertainment Centre, 9.30pm