Top Raider’s ready

REIGNING SEABL East most valuable player C. J. Massingale will return to Knox for his seventh season as a Raider this year.
Massingale, considered as one of the greatest players in Raiders history, has led the conference in scoring for the past three seasons.
He has also been awarded two MVP awards (in 2008 and 2010), a grand final MVP (in 2009) and helped carry the team to three consecutive conference grand finals, winning two of them in 2008 and 2009.
Massingale was disappointed in missing out on a “three-peat” of SEABL East conference championships and was critical of his team’s regular season record last year of 15 wins and 12 losses.
“There’s going to be a lot of motivation going into this year after last year’s disappointing season: 15-12 during the regular season isn’t good basketball,” he said.
“Despite our success in a few finals, we weren’t where we should have been so there will be a strong focus on the regular season this year.
“We want to have our great crowd behind us and be winning at home.”
Massingale was again the league’s most prolific scorer last season, averaging 25.3 points a game to go with 6.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists. He also shot 46.2 per cent from the field and 40.3 per cent from beyond the three-point line.
The 28-year-old’s best performance came on the biggest stage when the Raiders faced off against arch-rival Kilsyth Cobras in the preliminary final.
Massingale dropped 41 points on the Cobras and two-time reigning defensive player of the year Quincy Henderson, including nine points in less than a minute to lead the Raiders back from the brink and cap off a remarkable come-from-behind victory.
Graham Longstaff, who will enter his fourth season as head coach of the Raiders, spoke about what it means to have his star import back for another campaign.
“CJ is one of the best players in the league and has proved it over a number of years now,” Longstaff said.
“Despite the games being shortened by eight minutes a game last season, he still managed to improve his stats from the previous year, which is a real credit to him.
“Week in, week out, CJ gets a tough defensive job on him and still plays within our system, and is a major contributor to our team whilst continuing to increase his production.”
Massingale, an Alabama US native and four-time all-SEABL player, grew up in Seattle, Washington, before earning a scholarship to play at a division one college in his home town.
He played three seasons in Washington before transferring to Metro State University in Denver, Colorado, to play under former NBL head coach Mike Dunlap and alongside now fellow Raider Lester Strong.
Massingale arrived in Australia in 2005 and, with his wife Leilani, now calls Melbourne home.
The couple are expecting their first child in March, providing some added motivation for Massingale as he enters the new SEABL season.
“Playing in front of my new-born is going to be something I’m really looking forward to as I keep working on the next phase of my life and basketball career,” he said.
“Australia has most definitely become a second home to me now. We have filed for residency.”
Massingale and the Raiders will tip off their season on 2 April at Knox Stadium against Kilsyth as part of an opening night double-header for the Cystic Fibrosis Cup.