TUB 5: Huddersfield Heat

In this edition of the TUB 5 I talk to Huddersfield Heat Head Coach & CEO Eduardo Perez y Medina. We discuss grassroots hoops, the role of the EBL, offseason preparation and maintaining on-the-court success.

How much of an interest is there in basketball at grassroots level around Huddersfield and how do the Heat get involved in community hoops?

There is substantial grassroots interest in the area, and there is some good activity going on as we speak. We are looking to roll out a new community programme shortly, and one of its key aims is to engage local schools to start building a pathway for all basketball players to follow.

You’ve had many successful Heat alumni in the past, players like Chris Bigley who’ve gone on to play in the BBL. How do you view the role of EBL teams and is it difficult to have your most talent players poached by clubs in higher divisions?
I guess it depends on what your ambition is for your organisation. Some clubs, in particular in EBL 3 and 4, are quite happy to compete year in, year out and will never look to progress further than that. We want to be the best club possible, and we have objectives and ambitions to reflect that. With regard to the players: look, it happens, talented players if given further opportunities will look to progress in the same way we would as a club. As for the EBL, the UK needs a solid, well-defined structure, and each level should support the next, with the pinnacle being access to the top tier. I think we are probably some way away from that yet in this country.

Following on from that, how do the Heat go about scouting and recruiting players? If there’s a young baller out there wanting to showcase their skills in the EBL, what’s the best route for them to take?

We are establishing quite a wide scouting and recruitment network, in particular in Spain, so I would say our hard work results in us finding the very best players each year for our resources. In terms of a young player, well I would say it depends on the club in the first instance. Some, such as Bristol or Manchester, have very good junior development programmes and those are great pathways for young players to join. Other clubs will host trials, or even give individual trial periods to players who contact the club directly, so it really does vary. In our case, although we recruit, we will always get back to anyone who contacts us about potentially playing.

You had a brilliant season last year, finishing with a record of 19-3 in Group North of the EBL Div 3. How can you maintain that level of play heading into the 2013-14 season? How has the club spent the offseason?

The club has been working hard on and off the court over the summer, to further our plans. We have a major project in the pipeline which will go fully public around September, hopefully, which will be big news for basketball in the UK; a lot of hard work is going into that at the moment. We've also been putting the finishing touches to the new roster for the next season and, based on the quality and level of players we have been able to sign up, if we work as hard as we did last year, and show the same attitude, we will be fine this coming season.

You’re set to face the reigning BBL champions Leicester Riders in a pre-season friendly. Aside from a great game of basketball for the fans, what are you hoping to gain from the experience?

I think it sets a marker for our progress. We want to be the best we can be, and what better test than to play what is in my opinion the top club in the UK at this moment. We're going to be up against great players and a great coach, but we welcome that kind of challenge. All my guys are really looking forward to this, and it's really got them excited about the coming season now.