HORSHAM NBA export Mitch Creek has said his move to the Brooklyn Nets would not have been possible without the work of his junior coach Owen Hughan.
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Hughan, a Horsham basketball legend and current association president, worked with Creek as he came through the junior ranks.
“That man has gone through so much in his life and faced backlash and had things said about him,” Creek said.
“He is one of the best coaches who has genuinely cared about me, and I will always be thankful for that. I put into practice things he told me the best I could. He is a huge factor for why I love the game.”
Hughan, who can now say he played a part in getting someone into the NBA, said Creek had fantastic athletic ability as a junior.
“I coach a lot of kids and you know it straight away,” he said.
“Mitch had amazing athletic ability, but I don’t think he realised what his ability was. He has worked very hard, probably from about 17 years old.
“Even though we had very good sides back then, Mitch sort of just went along. It wasn’t until one day he said to me, ‘I’m going to give it a crack, go for the Australian Institute of Sport and go for the state team’.”
Hughan said from that moment as a 17-year-old, Creek worked phenomenally hard to become a professional basketball player.
“I’m very happy for him. When you get to that stage I think you need a bit of luck,” he said.
“It’s really important at this stage that he has that luck and when you have got the talent you will make the most of it. It is a very fierce and competitive program, and you see that with the money involved.”
Creek said Hughan built his foundation as a basketballer.
“He built me a fantastic foundation and I turned that into the building blocks that made me who I am now. It will be a huge mixed bag of emotions when I see him but I’m excited,” he said.
“If he said something to me I would be quiet and listen. A lot of people have never listened to Owen. I literally owe all of my success to Owen because the moves he taught me are the things I’m great at and make me the player I am.”
Hughan said his love for coaching why was he continued to do what he does with children coming through the basketball association.
“We have had a lot of players do well at Horsham and a few have played for Australia,” he said.
“That’s because there are a lot of people who spend a lot of hours at the stadium with these children.
“We run a program that’s affordable to the community, and that’s really important.
“The work that was put in with Mitch is no different to what we do with the children there now.”
During his visit Creek also delivered talks at his former primary and high schools – Horsham Primary School and St Brigid’s College.
He spoke about also wanting to be the hardest worker in the room and how that helped him reach his goals.
Tickets for Friday’s clinic and talk from Mitch Creek at the Horsham Basketball Stadium will be available at the door.
