Adnam ready to lead young Taipans

The Cairns roster is complete ahead of NBL25 with the signing of 219-game veteran Kyle Adnam.

Adnam is coming off an injury replacement role at the Illawarra Hawks and is a key piece to Adam Forde’s puzzle in the far north.

“We have a young backcourt,” Forde said.

“I flagged it early on about wanting to bring in someone with some leadership behind them.

“The cool thing with Kyle is that he’s played pretty much every position you can in the NBL. From a development player all the way to a team captain. He’s represented Australia at the FIBA Qualifiers, he’s played locally in NBL and he’s played internationally.

“I think he has a huge resource of experience that he can reflect onto the young guys. A few life lessons that is invaluable. That’s what he will bring off the court.”

The Taipans understand what type of player they’re getting on the floor with Adnam, who averaged 12 points per game during the 2021 season at South East Melbourne. Yet with the rest of the youth in this Cairns line-up, Adnam will be relied on for more than just a scoring punch.

“I’m here to work with the younger guys and give them some insights,” Adnam said.

“If I can be just a small part of their journey, then it’s amazing.

“But also, in a season there’s a lot of ebbs and flows, different emotions, it’s like a rollercoaster. To have someone who has been there and done it before, hopefully I can help the group with that. Never too high, never too low.”

Cairns is coming off a 12-16 season and will boast one of the youngest teams in the league in NBL25. With Taran Armstrong (22) and Jackson Makoi (24) as the Taipans current backcourt, adding the 30-year-old guard in Adnam to that mix is what Forde had been searching for.

“Being able to put the ball under my arm on the court and steady the ship a bit. To organise and make the guys feel that sense of calm and let them go out and be themselves,” Adnam said.