Sydney Kings TV has just conducted an interview with recently re-signed forward Graeme Dann. Dann had possibly his best NBL season in 2010/11 for the newly reformed Kings, providing defensive toughness, whilst undersized at the power forward position, and ably assisted the various Sydney point guards in getting the ball up the court.

Along with the re-signing of Rookie of the Year Ben Madgen, Dann's retention was a key objective for the Kings in the 2011 offseason. They currently are yet to fill either of their import slots (likely to be a swingman and power forward) to go alongside Dann, Madgen, star centre Julian Khazzouh and Australian point guards Luke Cooper, Aaron Bruce and Luke Martin.

Watch as Dann deftly handles the very "tough" questions thrown at him here by Sydney Kings TV:

Today the Sydney Kings have announced the signing of Australian point guard Aaron Bruce. Formerly of Baylor University, the arrival of Bruce in Sydney has been rumoured in basketball circles for some weeks now.

The 6'3" Bruce joins a point guard rotation that already includes Luke Martin and Luke Cooper, both who played the position in Sydney last season.

"He will give the Sydney Kings substantial depth on the court," Head Coach Ian "Moose" Robilliard said.

"He has been playing basketball in Australia and the USA for the enjoyment and as a professional since he was five years old and, for my money, is one of the most underrated players in the NBL. We are going to give him some room to grow and show the fans his full potential," he added.

The National Basketball League today announced that their Commission has approved a series of changes to the Rules and Regulations, effective for the 2011/12 NBL season.

Importantly, teams will no longer be required to have an Under-24 year-old local player on their contracted squad of 10 to 12 players each season. This allows teams greater flexibility to put together the best team possible, based on their merits, rather than catering to a quota system.

With the combination of the NBL's salary cap and points cap already in place, teams have enough balls to juggle in terms of putting together a roster. Add to that the existing talent drain to Europe and the NCAA and it is apparent that the NBL has realised that they need to provide more flexibility, rather than less, to give local talent a fair chance to succeed.

Similarly, the league has relaxed rules on "Nominated Replacement Players" that move in and out of the active roster. Previously a rostered player replaced by these players was required to sit out a minimum of two games before returning to the lineup. Now, there is no restriction. The number of replacement players required has however been increased from two to three, with those players being required to be development players (under 24).

Other rule changes announced were:

• The wording around the rules for the NBL Tribunal, which previously banned any comment whatsoever around cases before the Tribunal, has been adjusted to allow comment but not criticism;
• Rules around the release of NBL contracted players to participate in off-season domestic competitions have been relaxed so that athletes won’t require a formal clearance to play with a SEABL, ABA or State League team.

NBL Press Release

NBL Salary Cap / Points Cap information

News from the Perth Wildcats, Townsville Crocodiles and Melbourne Tigers, as the NBL off-season continues to unfold with free agent signings and re-signings across the league.

Russell Hinder talks about the Townsville Crocodiles' prospects for another return to the Finals.

The Perth Wildcats re-sign Brad Robbins and hope that Shawn Redhage can return sooner than expected.

New Melbourne Tigers coach Trevor Gleeson talks about the signing of former Cairns Taipans imports Ayinde Ubaka and Ron Dorsey, as well as the re-signing of Lucas "Waxy" Walker.

Yes, you read that headline correctly. After years of waiting, you can actually source your Australian Boomers and Opals replica gear and merchandise online now.

As an Australian basketball fan, this is a long-awaited day.

For many years Aussie basketball supporters have talked about how difficult it is for them to get their hands on jerseys and the like to support their team. Meanwhile, rugby fans proudly have displayed their Wallabies gear anywhere that patriotism was called for. As have Aussie cricket fans.

The benefits of wearing the green and gold as a fan are numerous. It allows you to provide an extra boost to the on-court team. You can form a greater bond with your fellow fans -- and very importantly, visibility of the BA brand allows the sport to grow in the minds of casual fans and non-fans alike.

Recently I went to more than reasonable lengths to source a Boomers singlet through Basketball Australia. I know I'm not the first to do this, based on anecdotal evidence from numerous other basketball fans. Long story short, I wasn't able to get my hands on that singlet after many months of waiting (and phone calls and emails). Is it me, or have BA been missing out on a major marketing opportunity for a long time now?

How many Boomers and Opals singlets do you see out there in the wild? "Not enough" is the simple answer.

Hopefully that is about to change. I'm thrilled to say that PEAK SPORTS, a rising name in international sports apparel and the official apparel provider for Basketball Australia, now sells BA gear via their website.

PEAK sells Boomers and Opals singlets (both the regular BA and FIBA versions), as well as supporter t-shirts for both the guys and girls and now hoodies. And now is the time to get stocked up on your gear, as Lauren Jackson has committed to the Opals program at the partial expense of her WNBA career and the Boomers have a series against China starting in June, as both teams prepare for the 2012 London Olympics.

It's time to finally get the Aussie basketball flag flying, as we've spent far too long in the shadow of other Australian sports.

PEAK SPORTS website.