Q&A | NBL1 North MVPs

NBL1 North MVPs Mikhaela Cann (Logan Thunder) and Jerron Jamerson (Mackay) share their thoughts on the championship weekend. 

MIKHAELA CANN

Q: Congratulations on the championship, what a weekend it was! Have you been part of anything like that before?

A: It was incredible. I've been asked this question a few times and honestly, I think it's up there with one of the proudest moments of my life and my basketball career to date. I won the WNBL championship with Townsville but this one really hits really close to home and this club means the world to me, so yeah, it’s pretty special.

Q: Well, let's chat about the lead-up going into the best of three grand finals series, you're playing against the undefeated team who were the team to beat all year, so what was the mindset going in? 

A: I think after losing to them in the round games, we kind of just put a focus towards concentrating on ourselves. We figured that if we can be the best that we can be, the rest will take care of itself, our character will shine through and you know, we kind of just believed in that kind of process the whole season. 

Q: You posted a beautiful little pic on Instagram and the caption was just lovely and so special. You were talking about what this club and the people mean to you. Can you take us through that a little further about how special Logan is? 

A: Yeah, absolutely. You know, it's one of those things, it's pretty hard to put into words, but Logan's an extremely special place not just to me, but our culture and community. The people who are involved at our club are just the best people you'll ever be around and they make it so special. They make playing basketball bigger than just the game. We recruit people who share that vision and share that love for the game in our club and it shines through and gets us over the line. 

Q: How has the NBL1 North been overall this season?

A: Oh, it's been amazing. You are now playing in a league that's happening in all states across the country, so just the platform that the league’s on now is incredible. I think the NBL1 does an amazing job of broadcasting the games and making NBL1 the focal point of Australian basketball. 

Q: Now, you're a busy bee, you're a working mum alongside playing basketball. You've got two little girls, but you must have more championships than children now! How special is it having success and having those two little girls on the sidelines?

A: Oh, amazing. The whole basketball family across the country is, you know, the place where I want my kids to grow up and aspire to be who they want to be, whether it's in basketball or not, they learn a lot from just looking up to people. 

Q: You keep mentioning the word family, not just your own but the whole Logan community. So what was it like to be able to celebrate with everybody on the team, your family and friends? 

A: Yeah, it was amazing. We spent the night back at Logan after we won on Saturday. Mitch (Young) opened up the stadium for ourselves, our family and a lot of key people who have been there the whole ride with us. The most special of the weekend was celebrating with the people who have been there and have made a huge impact on our program, on our team and the local community. 

Q: Would you play WNBL again?

A: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, obviously, you want to play for as long as you possibly can. So if the opportunity arose, we would take it into consideration for our family and try and make it work.

JERRON JAMERSON

Q: How was the lead-up to the grand final? 

A: Rip City was our toughest matchup just because of not only size but just ability in general. I think that was our toughest matchup, and us being able to come back and win that game, the way that we did was amazing. Regardless of whether it was Logan or Cairns that was playing in that game, we felt like we were going to be pretty prepared. 

Q: What about the games themselves? There were only three points in it for both games so how were you feeling while on the court?

A: It was a good feeling just from the standpoint of the competitive side of me coming out. It was good. It was a super, super tough team with a lot of experienced players and I think they showed their experience when it came to those two games in the finals. 

Q: How was the comeback in both games?

A: In the fourth quarter of the second game, I think we were down 15 points. I was like, I do not want to play tomorrow so I worked hard in those last eight minutes to get to overtime and get the win. 

Q: How did you feel when that final buzzer went off? 

A: Yeah, it was fantastic. Not just for me, but for everybody on the team, it was fantastic. We put a whole lot of work in from day one. We just put in so many hours, like not only on-court but doing different things like team bonding, which goes into winning a championship. We had fantastic chemistry by the end of the season. When you’re down by that many points, it's easy to get down and to just start complaining. But I think we stayed resilient from that standpoint, which made it even better. For me, it wasn't just the season that led to the championship, it was years of hard work, like ever since I've been playing basketball. When the final buzzer went off, it was a bit emotional for me. I’ve been away from my family since 2019. But them being able to watch the game online and stuff made it a good emotion. 

Q: Was the Grand Final MVP something you were working towards or had on your mind in any way?

A: For me, it wasn't one of those things that I had in my mind too much. I just wanted to make sure that I impacted the game in so many different ways. And I know if I did that to the best of my abilities, there might have been a good result. I just try to impact the game in a whole bunch of different ways, whether it be shooting, passing, dribbling, scoring, rebounding, whatever the case may be. And I think that's where that final series was so important because not only in that series, but the whole season like JK (Mackay coach Joel Khalu) never let me get complacent. 

Q: Did the standards at practice help you win the championship?

A: Yeah for sure. It’s not only how long we train, but it’s also the intensity. We definitely go hard at each other. It's easier in the games because you can all rally together when you come into a game against another opponent. Everybody has been going to battle at practice but we’re all on the same team so you obviously want to get to somebody else in the game. Practice has been super, super challenging but practices or individual workouts or being in the weight room is a combination as to why we were able to end up on top at the end of the day,

Q: How did you find the NBL1 North season overall? 

A: I think here in Queensland specifically, it was really good because we had a lot of those NBL guys coming back. It was fantastic to not only be led by somebody on my team but to get that overall exposure. I think we were able to show that we are players at a high level and are good players at a high level.  Many of those players who haven't really been able to be in that spotlight get a chance to show what they do.  

Q: What's your ambitions with the NBL?

A: Obviously, I want to play at the highest level. But at the same time, I just never want to get complacent. I just always think what do I need to do next? I’ve got to make sure I keep getting better and be able to achieve that goal of being at the next level. It’s not about whether I think I can play because I think I can, but it's more so the opportunity. I’ve just got to make sure I’ll be ready for it.