JackJumpers could be bursting with Tassie flavour with two Tasmanians offered contracts

The JackJumpers currently have no Tasmanians on their roster but that could soon change with the team announcing they’ll offer contracts to two local talents this week. Find out who could rep their home state.

Tasmania's Kye Savage is one of three Tasmanians who could soon be a JackJumper. Picture: Lachlan Hannah

THE JackJumpers lack of home grown talent could soon be flipped on its head with the club set to offer contracts to Tasmanian duo Tre Armstrong and Kye Savage this week.

With no player from the Apple Isle currently on their roster, the JackJumpers have been linked to a number of Tasmanians throughout the free agency period, most notably North-West products Tre and Taran Armstrong.

On Monday, JJs coach Scott Roth revealed the club was preparing to put forward an official offer to one half of the brotherly duo, 23-year-old guard Tre, as well as 17-year-old rising star Savage.

“We looked at about seven or eight guys but we’ve narrowed it down to two or three guys that we currently either have offers in front of or who will have offers in the next 24 hours,” Roth said.

Kye Savage in action for the North West Thunder. Photo: Robert Spencer.

“I can confirm we’ll offer a Developmental contract to Tre [Armstrong] at some point this week and also Kye Savage and see where they sit and see what their thoughts are.

“I know they wanted to play a little bit longer [in the current NBL1 season] and see if they can get a [fully contracted] roster spot which is perfectly fine and we’ll wait for them and let them make their decisions.”

Armstrong recently returned home to Tasmania following four years playing college ball in the United States, while Savage has been shining on home soil where the year 12 Don College student recently led the country in scoring (30.5ppg) at the under-20 National Championships to earn himself an invite to the Australian Under-19 Camp in Canberra.

The Tassie pair are currently teammates for the North-West Thunder in the NBL1, averaging 17.2 points and 11 points respectively.

Tre Armstrong, seen here in action for the North West Thunder, could soon be a JackJumper. Photo: Robert Spencer.

Roth said the JackJumpers were also still interested in the younger of the two Armstrong brothers, 21-year-old Taran, who after two seasons playing with his brother Tre in the US is understood to be looking to chase his NBA dream through a move home to Australia.

“I think Taran is going to end up playing in the NBL at some point or another, I don’t think he’s going to go back to College,” the 2022 NBL Coach of the Year said.

“I think he wants to be a fully contracted [NBL] player and he obviously has big desires to play in the NBA and we’ve had conversations with him and where we sit in all those areas and I know he’s talked to some other teams too.

“We’ve gone down that path with him and had conversations and he’ll make a decision soon about his future.”

Taran Armstrong is keen on playing in the NBL next season aftter two years in the US college system. Photo courtesy of CBU Athletics.

Roth said after filling out his Development Player spots in the coming weeks he would shift his focus to Next Star and import options, revealing a deal to secure a Next Star signing had recently fallen through at the eleventh hour.

“I won’t tell you who it was but we got all the way down to the very end with him in the last 10 days and their agent at the last minute decided to step out of the program,” Roth said.

“He would have been a fit for us and filled a need for us but there are a few more that are available but they probably won’t be available to make decisions until the end of May.

“We are obviously in no rush in that area and also in no rush with the imports as we’ll have until May and June to start going down that path.”

With the NBL’s Next Stars program designed to be a stepping stone for NBA draft prospects, Roth said any Next Star candidate had to have the right personality traits to play for the JJs.

“It has to be someone that fits with Tasmania and fits with our culture and it not be about the them,” he said.

“It’s about this team here and the development of the entire team and sometimes with Next Stars it can be all about them for the six or seven months and then they’re off to the NBA or wherever and they haven’t done much to impact the state or impact us and so we’ll do our due diligence and see what happens.”

Roth said the club would also offer Kiwi Walter Brown another Development Player contract for next season, and was confident another new signing was on the horizon following the recent addition of Anthony Drmic.

Roth will return home to the United States at the end of the week.