Nick Kyrgios has been given a unique opportunity to pursue his interest in basketball after the Sydney Kings extended the troubled tennis star an open invitation to connect with the NBL franchise.
Kyrgios, who is preparing for Australia's first-round Davis Cup tie against the Czech Republic at Kooyong from Friday, has managed to climb to a world ranking of No.13 during a love-hate relationship with the sport. The 21-year-old has spoken publicly about basketball being his true sporting passion on numerous occasions and admitted that at times he had spent more time shooting hoops than honing his tennis skills.
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The Kings have noted Kyrgios' basketball interest, prompting the club to extend a written invitation to his management. The Kings, who are involved in a season-defining clash with Melbourne on Saturday, have offered to make coach Andrew Gaze and his staff available should Kyrgios wish to spend time with the team, swap ideas or help take his interest in basketball to the next level.
"Andrew and myself have noted at different stages the comments Nick has made about his passion for the sport," Kings managing director Jeff Van Groningen told Fairfax Media. "It's not unusual for elite athletes in one sport to have a driving passion for an entirely different sport. Nick is a classic example of that.
"He's in a high-pressure environment and the tennis world is a day-to-day grind for him in many ways. If he wants to freshen up, he can look at a Kings training session and see what it's all about. We understand he's probably got some talent, he's certainly got plenty of athleticism to burn. It would let him have a chance to watch, maybe muck around at the end of a training session, get some shots up with the boys or whatever he wanted to do. We wanted to extend an invitation to him in the spirit of being in the elite sporting fraternity."
After bowing out of the Australian Open in spectacular style against Andreas Seppi, Kyrgios said he was hampered by a knee injury sustained playing basketball. Asked what he would do differently, Australia's top-ranked tennis player replied: "I don't know, maybe just not play as much basketball. Actually take my pre-season seriously."
Mary Jane Orman, one of several managers overseeing the career of Kyrgios, said there were "no plans" to pursue the Kings' offer. However, Van Groningen said the invitation was an open one and hoped Kyrgios may take it up should his schedule permit in the future.
"It's an open invitation from us," Van Groningen said. "We appreciate that with his tennis commitments, he is globetrotting nine-tenths of the year. We know the likelihood of him putting a lot of time aside is hard, through no fault of his own and understand it may not be possible.
"It's just to let him know the invitation is there, we're heavily embedded in our sport, he seems interested in our sport and if he ever wants to come down and have a look [he's welcome]. It's always good for athletes to be exposed to what one another go through.
"Although it might be a tonic for Nick to get along and see what it's all about, we'd be interested in chatting to him about what he's about. As a guy who runs the whole basketball operation and the whole business, I'd be interested in how they travel, how much time they allow between tournaments, how they handle those logistics. I'm sure we could learn from elite athletes from other sports and he is a young and dynamic athlete."
Asked how he would look in a Kings jersey, Van Groningen said: "There have been some big crossovers in sport before. We don't know anything about his level but looking at his athleticism and size, he looks like a hooper. I'm sure he'd look good in our uniform, but you don't know whether he can play at that level.
"That's not what this is about, but it's nice to dream. He's young and it might be something he enjoys, something that may recharge his batteries and help him in his tennis pursuits as well. They might not be able to do it now, it might be something they wish to consider in the future."
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