It will be Aussie mate against Aussie mate when the NBA's Utah Jazz host the NBL's Sydney Kings in an historic clash in Salt Lake City.
If the players live up to their good-natured jibes, there might be some strategically placed power dunks and trash-talking when the teams meet inside the Vivint Smart Home Arena on Monday (Tuesday midday AEDT).
The Jazz's Joe Ingles, who just signed a four-year $US50 million contract, went to the same high school in Adelaide with Kings' forward/shooting guard Brad Newley.
Ingles joked how he, with the encouragement of his champion Australian netballer wife Renae, hosted Newley at their home on Saturday night.
"It was my wife's idea to have him over not mine and he didn't bring anything," Ingles joked in front of reporters on Sunday.
Newley, who is staying at a Salt Lake City hotel with the rest of the Kings, thought he had a decent excuse.
"I offered to make a salad, but the hotel didn't have a kitchen," Newley argued.
The Jazz's other Australian, 22-year-old guard Dante Exum, is a longtime friend of Kings forward Dane Pineau.
"I hope that Dane is under the basket and I can just go downhill and slam on him," Exum told reporters.
"I've already told him about it.
"He's going to jump out of the way."
It will be the first time an NBL team has played an NBA team in the US.
The experiment will continue next Sunday when the Oklahoma City Thunder, riding high after signing guard Russell Westbrook to a $US205 million contract extension, play Melbourne United in Oklahoma and the Phoenix Suns host the Brisbane Bullets on October 13.
The Andrew Gaze-coached Kings are the big underdogs.
They face a Jazz squad laden with multi-millionaires and headed by 216cm tall Frenchman Rudy Gobert, the top shot-blocker in the NBA last season.
The Kings are jet lagged, attempting to deal with Salt Lake City's 1288 metres above sea level elevation and an NBA three point line 25cm further from the basket than the NBL.
But, the Jazz will be rusty as this is their first pre-season game and coach Quin Snyder will likely rest Gobert and his other stars for long periods.
For Ingles and Newley it will be another crossing of paths in their friendship and basketball careers.
"We went to the same school, he went to the AIS (Australian Institute of Sport), I went to the AIS," Ingles said.
"He went to the NBL and I went to the NBL.
"We both went to Europe and played against each other there and obviously with the Australian team as well."
Share
