LESTER Strong will attempt to lead the Knox Raiders to their fifth consecutive SEABL East conference grand final this year after re-signing for the 2012 season.
When the season tips off on March 17, it will mark Strong’s fifth in a Raiders uniform and his eighth overall in Australia, having first played for Dandenong in the Big V in 2005.
Since moving to Knox in 2008, the Raiders men’s program has enjoyed one of their most successful periods in club history: they have won conference championships in 2008 and 2009, an overall SEABL championship (2009) and finished runners-up to Bendigo in 2010 and 2011.
Last season was Strong’s best as a Raider having been named to the All SEABL team along with teammate CJ Massingale.
He finished second in the conference’s top player award in scoring 19.9 points per game, third in rebounds with 10.4 per game, first in blocked shots with 1.8 per game, first in field-goal percentage at 55.2per cent, fourth in steals with 1.4 per game, and fifth in free throw percentage at 76.6.
The US Colorado native was a beast inside the paint and showed the consistency he needed to be considered as one of the league’s premier big men.
Strong is excited about the season ahead with the Raiders expected to play the majority of the season at the State Basketball Centre under construction in Wantirna South.
“It feels great. I’m looking forward to the new season, especially with the opening of the new stadium where we’ll be playing once it opens,’’ he said.
During the off-season, Strong has been trying to keep off the court “at least for a couple of weeks’’.
‘‘I still found myself being in the gym though and trying to pick up my cardio and making sure that part of my game is still up to par. That’s what I’m going to look for this year by being really fit.’’
When asked about what Raiders fans should expect from him in 2012, Strong spoke about his goal of becoming a better overall defensive player and his endeavours of claiming his first SEABL MVP award.
“More defence than anything this year and be named up there as a great defender, not so much just on the offensive end,’’ he said.
‘‘My goal this year is to take it one step further individually and become MVP, not just All-Star five. The defence is there but the thing is the foul trouble. I think sometimes I can block everything and that’s when the fouls start being called.
‘‘It’s getting better and I think it’s a bit of maturity and I hate to say it but a little bit of age as well. I think I’m staying on the ground a lot more and being smarter at timing the blocks that I do get so it is maturity.”
Strong also weighed in on what he believes will be the key to the Raiders success this season. ‘‘We’ve got to be a defensive team, we’ve got to get guys to worry about us.”
While at Knox, Strong has been widely regarded as a big-game player with his finals performances always something to behold.
In 2008, Strong put on arguably one of the best performances by any Raiders player in history with a dominating 19 points and 26-rebound game against Bendigo in his team’s conference championship winning game.
Strong continued to build his reputation as a finals specialist in 2009 as he helped the Raiders to a thrilling come-from-behind victory in Brisbane against the Spartans to claim the championship.
Just a week later, he accomplished something that most big men in the league have struggled to do for years — getting the best of Frankston MVP import Dave Gruber in the Raiders upset victory over the Blues to claim the SEABL championship.
The outstanding post-season showings have continued the past two seasons, including a 41-point output in the semi-final against Brisbane in 2010, just a short time after Strong returned to the floor after a car crash mid-season.
The pairing of Strong and former US college teammate Massingale has been likened to Wayne Howell and Derrick Leak who were cornerstones of the Raiders’ success throughout the 1990s.
The Under Armour-sponsored Raiders will face off against Strong’s former club Dandenong Rangers in week one of the season at home in March as part of a big opening night double-header where the Raiders SEABL women will look to seek redemption against the Rangers, who defeated the Raiders in last year’s championship game.
Email a friend