HORSHAM basketball star Mitch Creek will train with AFL club Essendon after the end of the NBL season.
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Creek will spend a week training with the Bombers next month after wrapping up his commitments with the Adelaide 36ers.
The week will be part of a post-season recovery program for Creek at the Bombers’ new state-of-the-art training facility near Melbourne Airport.
Creek said he had been approached by AFL teams previously and had trained with Essendon and Geelong, while also meeting with Collingwood and Hawthorn.
Despite the attention from AFL clubs, Creek said he had no plans to abandon basketball for a professional football career.
“To go in and do sessions with a highly professional organisation like Essendon is going to be fantastic,” he said.
“But for me, my focus is the basketball world championships and playing in the Olympics.
“That’s something I could never do in football no matter how much money I make.
“I could make 10 times the money I make right now playing football, but it’s still not enticing because I get a lot more out of representing my country than running around in a footy guernsey.”
Creek said he still had plenty of ambition and motivation to succeed in basketball.
“I’ve got to look at my life and basketball career and say, ‘what is my potential?’” he said.
“If I put in the work then the world is my oyster and I could go not just to the Olympics hopefully but break into an NBA Summer League spot and then maybe into a team.”
After training with the Bombers, Creek will play in the South East Australian Basketball League with the Nunawading Spectres.
Nunawading is captained by fellow Horsham product and reigning league MVP Shane McDonald, and the side participated in a pre-season tournament in Horsham at the weekend.
The Spectres won the inaugural Graham Adams Shield after matches against the Ballarat Miners, Mount Gambier Pioneers and Bendigo Braves.
Creek said it would be good to team up with McDonald at Nunawading.
“Shane and I had a good talk and I talked to the coach a bit and he was honest with me about what they want,” he said.
“Having Shane there makes life easier and I’ll be living with Adam Doyle who is one of the development players for the 36ers this year.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to have a bit of fun and run a business together with our personal training and live the life playing basketball.”