James Paringatai eyes black singlet

JOHN HAWKINS/Southland Times

POWERFUL DYNAMO: Southland Sharks power forward James Paringatai is looking to build on the strong form he showed with the Taranaki Dynamos last year and push for a spot in the Tall Blacks.

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Southland Sharks recruit James Paringatai hopes that a move south will help catapult him into Tall Blacks reckoning.

The 2m-tall 125kg power forward has long been touted as someone with the ability to one day wear the black singlet, but those aspirations have been hampered by limited playing minutes and a few fitness problems along the way.

Last year, though, the softly spoken big man had a breakout season during the Taranaki Dynamos' woeful zero-win, 16-loss campaign – averaging a tick over 13 points a game and starting in every match he was available for.

Those kinds of performances have shown Paringatai what he is capable of when he puts his mind to it and knuckles down, and the former Junior Tall Black and New Zealand under-18 representative said he wanted to show that last year was no fluke.

Paringatai was one of the first names to sign with the new Southland Sharks franchise and has moved permanently to Invercargill.

He is aiming for regular court time with the Sharks and said he would love to have a strong season and push for higher honours.

"I'm hoping to have a good year and make the Tall Blacks training squad ... (Coach) Richard (Dickel) says I'm going to get opportunities so, hopefully, I can pounce on it."

Dickel believed Paringatai was a player who could thrive in the Sharks system, and said he was expecting big things from him this season.

"He's got a similar skill set to Pero Cameron. If he drops 2kg and gets a little bit quicker, he could be real good. He's a kid with incredible talent, but hasn't been in the greatest shape throughout his career. He's got the talent to be a Tall Black. He's working pretty hard."

Paringatai has been living in the gym during the past four months and said he hopes to get down to the 120kg mark before the start of the season.

His outside shot has improved in the past few seasons and said he was looking to add that to his repertoire more this year with the Sharks.

The 24-year-old Paringatai, who has also previously played for the Manawatu Jets and Wellington Saints, plans to start up a building or carpentry apprenticeship away from basketball while he is Invercargill. He is also a keen social golfer and was already lining up a hit against good pal and Southland rugby fullback Glen Horton.

- © Fairfax NZ News