NBL experience leaves Bendigo Braves youngster Jake Lloyd eager for 2018 SEABL season

RETURNING Bendigo Braves forward Jake Lloyd is certain he has returned from a stint with NBL club Illawarra Hawks a better and more relaxed player.

Just how much he has improved, only time will tell.

But Lloyd, who has been back from Wollongong for about two weeks, can’t wait to get cracking and show the Braves just how far he has come.

Lloyd spent seven months with the Hawks.

He initially trialled with the Hawks as a development list player, but was ultimately unsuccessful.

On the invite of Hawks coach Rob Beveridge, he was asked to stay on and continue training, only leaving the team at the completion of their 2017-18 season.

In the words of his Braves coach Ben Harvey: “Jake got to do everything the Hawks did, except play.”

Lloyd, who has just turned 20, said he could not speak more highly of his summer spent with the Hawks.

“You have arguably the best coach in Australia in Rob Beveridge and then I’m training with some of the best guys in Australia, it’s such a great learning experience,” he said.

“I guess the next thing is to chase it again and try and get back up there, but there’s a lot of hard work to be done before any of that.”

Encouragingly for the Braves, who are looking to bounce back from a rare season without finals, Lloyd is resolved to maintaining the strong work ethic required of him in the NBL back in the SEABL program.

“Now I’m back all I want is a championship. And it doesn’t matter how my stats look, it’s all about team,” he said.

“Of course I’d like to better myself, understand the game a bit more – but especially with Taylor Bell and Chris Hogan coming back – I have a chance to still learn a lot more.”

While in Wollongong, Lloyd – who is in his third year in the SEABL program – lived with Braves 2016 championship guard Kevin White and his girlfriend.

He also spent much time with new Braves point guard Indiana Faithfull, who played eight late-season games for the injury-hit Hawks and has since been recruited to Bendigo.

Lloyd believed he and Faithfull’s past could only hasten and strengthen the team chemistry within the Braves, who will have just two players on the roster yet to have played a SEABL game for the club (Faithfull and new import Ray Turner).

Without wanting to put too much pressure on one of his young-guns, Harvey was firm in his belief Lloyd had the abilities and capabilities to be a major contributor in 2018 with the Braves.

“To know that Jake Lloyd in the off-season can go to an NBL program and work out every day, lift weights, shoot the ball and do everything the team is doing, is comforting,” he said.

“Lloydy is one of our young guns that we are really looking forward to some big things from.

“More importantly, we want him to just come back and enjoy the game.”

And now that he has had a taste of the big league, Harvey said the challenge for Lloyd now was to work on his consistency and nailing down a spot in the rotation.

“There’s no doubt there’s a role for Lloydy, but he needs to go get it,” he said.

“Like any basketballer there are some areas he needs to improve on, but there is no doubt he is going to get an opportunity.

“For someone who has just turned 20 he has massive future ahead. We feel with our leaders he is in the right hands here at the Bendigo Braves.”