{"id":28200,"date":"2022-03-09T20:34:47","date_gmt":"2022-03-09T10:34:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/basketball\/?p=28200"},"modified":"2022-03-09T20:34:49","modified_gmt":"2022-03-09T10:34:49","slug":"peatling-paves-his-path-to-the-nbl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/central.rookieme.com\/basketball\/peatling-paves-his-path-to-the-nbl\/","title":{"rendered":"Peatling paves his path to the NBL"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WITH the National Basketball League (NBL) passing over the halfway mark of the season, Rookie Me Central <\/em>took the opportunity to get to know the up and coming future in the making that is Mason Peatling<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Peatling has risen through the ranks of the Victorian basketball pathway, firstly starting a team at Casey with mates, to playing at Dandenong, being coached by the legendary Ricky Baldwin<\/em><\/strong>, being apart of multiple Victorian Junior Championship and Victorian Championship teams, to playing college in the United States. Now, he’s a fully contracted Melbourne United player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heading over to the US to play with Eastern Washington University, Peatling shared his experiences of being part of the championship team, as well as his mentors, and having the guidance from former NBL player, Jacob Wiley<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor me, going to college was pretty nerve racking and I wasn\u2019t sure what to expect,” Peatling said. “There were a couple of Australians on the team and to have that connection, you don\u2019t really know what it\u2019s going to be like so it was a massive unknown for me. I was really lucky to have good teammates that made me feel comfortable, make me feel settled and taking my wife was a massive support system to have as well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I think it\u2019s important to find the right college and school for you. So many players get caught up on how schools can be flashy or promise a lot of things that they can\u2019t keep. The coaches were really understanding of what I needed to succeed on and off the floor, which really set me up for success and I was really lucky to be a part of that program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was lucky that they made it work for me. They allowed me to bring my wife, Laura, over to America with me was a huge part of making it work. It was the two of us that went over to America and spent four years of basketball there, which was a lot of ups and downs and a lot of hard work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As COVID had an impact on the tournaments, Peatling had the opportunity to head home to Australia and from there, there has been plenty on the horizon. The United baller reflected on that journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt allowed me to come home back to Australia bit earlier to train for both the South East Melbourne Phoenix and Melbourne United,” he said. “It allowed me to go to their gym and practise with those teams. If I didn\u2019t have time, because of COVID, maybe I don\u2019t get signed by Melbourne United, which was one of the best things that has happened in my basketball career. As much as it was a setback to lose an opportunity to play in the NCAA tournament because of COVID, to get signed by Melbourne United – the rest is sort of history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor me, when I was really young, I wasn\u2019t the best player in the gym and the most talented player on the team, whether that\u2019s juniors, state teams, college or the NBL. Because of that, I\u2019ve moulded my game around being one of the best teammates that I can be at every level, I\u2019ve been able to achieve that which has been huge to my successes as a basketball player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t really do a good job at reflecting back and thinking back on all my past accomplishments and I\u2019d like to think that there is plenty of time for me to do that at the end of my career and I hope there is plenty of basketball ahead of me. Hopefully I can use all that time afterwards to look back and enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently playing with Melbourne United, Peatling is enjoying every moment in the NBL. From playing in the centre position in college to now playing in the power forward role, Peatling shares who has helped him along the way, including being coached by Dean Vickerman<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHaving a guy like David Barlow<\/strong> on the team is huge. He\u2019s been a great resource for me, asking questions every day and he\u2019s awesome at helping me all the time,” he said. “I\u2019ve also got another teammate in Jack White<\/strong>, where we both play the same position. Often at times, we\u2019re teaching each other because we\u2019re both learning on the job and that\u2019s been a great experience for me. It\u2019s also been a really good opportunity to improve what I learned in college. It\u2019s an intensive environment in college in America and you learn a lot of things such as how to watch film, how to stay in games and what to improve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI really like his very fair approach to the game, especially coaching his players. Dean is someone who doesn\u2019t get caught up in the emotions in the game, we all do, players included, players, fans, anyone. For him to come to training every day or when we have a meeting, he approaches it in a non-emotional way. He is very firm in delivering feedback and criticism. He keeps all players accountable because he\u2019s not exaggerating anything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDean does a great job of making you feel comfortable and \u00a0as players, that shows in how we play individually but also as a team. He does a great job keeping it fresh, changing it up and doing little things. No one is every bored, keeps us engaged and it\u2019s a huge part to getting better by everyone showing up everyday and doing their job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Playing alongside the likes of White since Under 18s and playing against him in the AIS, Peatling got a glimpse of how tough he is as both a teammate and opponent. Glad to be on the same side, Peatling shares how special it is to line up next to White.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cJack has gotten better… in every aspect of his game,” Peatling said. “It\u2019s been awesome to see and to be on the same team as him and share the highs and low of professional basketball, it\u2019s made the experience so much better for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe has been one of my best teammates now and we enjoy playing and growing together. I can\u2019t wait to see what he can do in the league or wherever he plays his professional basketball over the next 10 to 15 years and he thinks exactly for me. It\u2019s been a privilege to play with him and I look forward to being his teammate for a long, long time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With Melbourne United looking good on top of the ladder, Peatling believes since getting key players and the whole group together, the team has played well and is excited for what is to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs a team, we feed off each other and play really well together and those new pieces we\u2019ve added to the mix this year… On defence, it\u2019s even better than the team last year. I\u2019m really looking forward to seeing how the season goes forward,” he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout Peatling\u2019s basketball journey, he has enjoyed being in a team environment where he doesn\u2019t have to put pressure on himself to win on his own. With basketball having a huge impact for as long as he can remember, Peatling is grateful for the opportunities that has earned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI was able to go oversees for a couple of years, go to university and to go oversees with a different experience, I wouldn\u2019t take it back,” he said. “To play in front of massive crowds at John Cain Arena in the state where I grew up, it\u2019s an amazing thing I get to do playing in front of friends and family. I started to play basketball because I love the game. I really enjoy it and it makes me feel good. I\u2019m going to keep doing it as long as I can and keep enjoying it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen things go wrong, there\u2019s so many things to look at and there\u2019s many ways to work together to fix the problem. That\u2019s the best part about team sport, I like to work together with my teammates and share the success we have. That\u2019s one of my favourite things about playing basketball.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lastly, Peatling shared his words of wisdom for those that want to improve their game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKeep working hard at the craft,” he said. “There\u2019s so many good things that can come from working hard, not only on the court but off the court. For young kids working on their game, working hard goes a long way towards achieving the success you want.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mentions<\/span><\/span><\/div>