Nick Kay's plans have been turned on their head by coronavirus, but the Perth Wildcats' star forward is, as best he can, trying to enjoy his enforced down time.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
It is a bit of a foreign concept for the Tamworth export , who is coming off an outstanding season for the Wildcats. He won his second Eric Watterson Medal as the Players' Player in as many seasons after averaging 15.8 points (the second highest), a team high 8.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 0.6 blocks and 1.2 steals per game, and was also named the sides' Best Defensive Player to take home his first Andrew Vlahov Medal
"It's definitely a different situation now and one that I've never had to deal with because every off-season I've been somewhere playing," Kay said about the break.
"It's a bit different being at home but just trying to make the most of it and spending as much time with the people around me as I can."
Before the pandemic blocked his shot at playing at his first Olympics, Kay was intending to continue his playing marathon.
"I had a few different offers that I was trying to weigh up and see what was going to be best in preparation to try and make that Olympic team," he said.
The games are now set to be held from July 23 to August 8.
What would be a dream come true, the 27-year old spoke about how his training regime and the way he did things was based around "being in the best shape I could be and being ready for the Olympics this year".
"Obviously that's been pushed back now so I've got to make some adjustments," he said.
To represent your country is the ultimate goal so it just means I've got to push harder for another year and do everything I can to be in the best spot I can for that opportunity
- Nick Kay
"But to represent your country is the ultimate goal so it just means I've got to push harder for another year and do everything I can to be in the best spot I can for that opportunity."
For now that is staying fresh and trying to stay in the best physical condition he can.
And a quieter time might not be a bad thing, although, not really accustomed to being idle Kay, who played his 150th NBL game last season, admits he is losing his mind a bit.
Unable to really even go to a court to shoot some baskets he is just trying to stay busy.
He has been going for walks along the beach, which is about a five minute drive from Duncraig where he lives.
READ ALSO:
He has also been throwing himself into his studies, which he said has been good for keeping him mentally focused.
"Unfortunately when you start off a semester and you're in finals you get on the back foot a little bit so the last few weeks have been major catch-up mode but I'm glad that I've got something to do during the day," he said.
Studying for a grad certificate in OH&S, Kay sees the irony given the current situation.
"It's kind of worked out pretty well because you're seeing a lot of first hand examples that you're learning about being played out in every day life," he said.
He is hopeful that after Easter they might be able to start ramping things up a bit, the time away only making him hungry to get back out on the court.
"You take it for granted sometimes what an opportunity it is and how fortunate we are to get to play basketball - what we love - day in day out and it really gets that fire burning to kick on and get started and get back out there working on it," he said.
