Double Dribble Q&A: Get to know Pero

With not much basketball on the courts this week, Double Dribble is going to do some interviews.

With not much basketball on the courts this week, I’m going to do some interviews.

This week, we are talking to Pero Cameron, current head coach of the New Zealand’s men’s national team.

Pero has been living on the Coast since he finished his playing career with the Gold Coast Blaze.

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Pero was a former captain of the Tall Blacks and recently was inducted into the FIBA Hall of Fame for his contributions to the world game.

The Olympics mean a lot to you, how many have you been too? Do you think pushing it back a year is a good idea?

I’ve been to two Olympics as a player and I was really excited about our group making a push to make the Olympics this year. I think it’s the right decision to push it back, to give everyone time to prepare properly. This COVID-19 is bigger than sport, we need to be smart and do the right thing. People are really worried right now. We need to come together as a community.

New Zealand Tall Blacks men's basketball team coach Pero Cameron. PICTURE: BRENDAN RADKE

What are elite athlete’s in the world going to do over the next few months?

A lot of our international players from Europe have returned home due to COVID-19. I’m staying in touch with them, keeping their fitness level’s up in isolation however possible. Making sure they are keeping busy in general. Communicating online as much as possible to the group.

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As head of Hillcrest Christian College’s basketball program, what are you directing your junior athlete’s to do during this time?

There’s a couple of online programs that are out there already. Keeping kids busy at home, having an active mind and body is crucial for development. Burning their energy will help them and their parents.

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I hear you are releasing some instructional video’s through Gold Coast Basketball next week? What’s this for?

We’ve got a lot of footage we are sharpening up and making user friendly. Looking forward to using some Gold Coast athlete’s to demonstrate specific drills. It’s really hard with so many courts shut down at the moment. Not every child also has access to a hoop at home. Self-training or iso-training can be done regardless if you have a ball or not, a hoop or not.

Thank you for your time Pero, any other message?

Stay safe Gold Coast, we’ll get through this together.