Australian centre Jock Landale has made an immediate and spectacular impact for the Atlanta Hawks, delivering a stunning double-double performance in his debut to help secure a dramatic 121-119 NBA victory over the Utah Jazz.
A whirlwind debut for the Boomers star
The 30-year-old Boomers star, who was traded from Utah to Atlanta on Thursday after being traded from Memphis to the Jazz just a day earlier, fired with a game-high 26 points and 11 rebounds in Friday's tense home victory. Landale shot an impressive 10-of-14 from the field, including 5-of-8 from long range, equalling his season-high tallies in both points and rebounds.
Clutch moments in the final seconds
Landale hit his fifth three-pointer with just 28 seconds remaining to put the Hawks ahead, before Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored the final go-ahead basket with 1.3 seconds left on the clock. As well as his double-double, Landale added five assists and four blocks in what has been a whirlwind few days for the Australian big man.
"I was actually sitting on a plane waiting to go to Utah and I get the call saying 'get off the damn plane'," Landale revealed post-game. "The option was to fly in this morning or drive last night. I thought I'd come here, get a good night's sleep, get up, see the boys work out this morning and just kind of get acclimatised. I'm just glad to be here, playing some basketball, yeah."
Quick family visit before hitting the road
Landale described how he quickly headed home "to see the family for 15, 20 minutes and take my son for a walk" before making the move to Atlanta. "Loaded up the truck and hit the road for five and a half hours, it's been a big couple of days but it's been fun," he said.
Career-best form at the perfect time
Landale's move to Atlanta comes amid career-best form for the 211cm centre, with his performance being hailed as a positive development both for his NBA career and for the Boomers ahead of upcoming international competitions including the FIBA World Cup and Olympics.
After being almost exclusively a role player in his four previous NBA seasons, Landale started 11 of his last 13 games for Memphis and recorded four double-doubles during that period. The one-time NBL grand final MVP averaged 11.3 points and 6.5 rebounds across 45 games for the Grizzlies this season before his recent trades.
Other Australian performances in the NBA
Fellow Australian Dyson Daniels scored 11 points for Atlanta against Utah, though the Hawks have cut compatriot centre Duop Reath. Reath, who was traded to the Hawks from Portland this week, is out for the rest of the season after undergoing foot surgery for a stress fracture.
Atlanta's victory gave them a sweep of the two-game series against Utah, and they have now won four straight games against the Jazz. Elsewhere in the NBA, Australian guard Josh Green scored 14 points for Charlotte as they extended their winning streak to eight games with a 109-99 win over faltering Houston. This marks the Hornets' longest winning run since the 1998-99 season.
Green came off the bench and was a perfect four-of-four from the field, adding four steals and two assists in another strong performance from an Australian in the league. Meanwhile, Australian star Josh Giddey remained sidelined with a hamstring injury as Chicago lost away to Toronto 123-107.
