The nationwide lockdown afforded most Kiwis the time to catch up with their most important people, and for Tom Vodanovich that was with family.
Playing basketball professionally means spending long periods away from loved ones, so the Tall Black made sure to make the best of the situation handed to him.
Vodanovich says it was good to be able to catch his breath before getting stuck back into basketball.
“I’ve been all over the place with basketball and so it was quite nice to be able to chill and be around my family for a while.
“My parents have a place near the beach, so I spent a bit of time down there most days. I also did a lot of walking, bike riding and shot a few hoops at the local school.
“It’s not often that I get much time off to relax and refresh, but I’m ready to get back to playing and working on my game.”
The forward has been riding a wave following his maiden NZNBL title in 2018. He would go on to make his Tall Blacks debut against Jordan later in the year, as well signing a development contract with the Breakers’ roster for 2018/19 ANBL season.
While last year’s Sal’s NBL didn’t end with back-to-back championships, he did come out the other end a better player and finished the year as a full-time member of the Breakers.
Vodanovich says he wants to keep moving forward and put himself in a strong position ahead of the next ANBL competition.
“I’ve set a few goals with my basketball for this year and the [NZ]NBL will give me a good opportunity to get the ball rolling.
“I took a lot of confidence in being full-time with the Breakers and feel like my best games are ahead of me.
“I’m off contract for next season and I’m going to need to perform well to get picked up. I’m feeling good though after some time off and am hungry for what’s to come.”
Vodanovich is one of the many big-name players unavailable for pre-selection in tomorrow’s Player Draft and it’s anyone’s guess as to where he will land. Regardless of who he plays for though, he will give them 101%.
