Those that come into contact with the 6‘6 former St Thomas Hawk, Abi Akintola often leave with similar, resounding impressions of him.

 

‘He’s a class act’

‘He’s very well spoken and respectful’

‘He has impeccable manners’

‘He’s an absolute gentleman’

‘He’s an impressive young man’

 

Though his size and athleticism may be imposing on the court, Abi presents like a PR team’s dream – he is a great example and role model of class and dedication to reaching one’s goals. 

Recently back in Melbourne for a short visit during the college offseason, we got to catch up with him to hear about how he is travelling and be filled in on what the last 12 months have looked like, many miles from home.

Abi is a member of the University of Denver Pioneers, heading over to the U.S in March 2015, far earlier than required, before his Freshman year. Abi’s plan was to settle into his new surroundings, find his feet and get comfortable prior to school starting.

Motivated by the beginning of this new chapter in his Basketball journey, which has spanned State teams, Junior National teams and Basketball Australia’s Centre of Excellence program, Abi was in training shortly after his arrival in Colorado and had a stroke of bad luck come his way – he injured his knee, immediately facing a setback just as his Pioneers career was about to begin.

‘It was pretty rough, hurting my knee. It meant I had to spend the summer over there rehabbing and trying to get it right. I try to use everything as a learning opportunity – and I got to learn a lot about strength and conditioning and rehab techniques when I was coming back from the injury’, Abi recalls.

‘I spent 4 months strengthening and stablilizing my knee with rehab before we were able to figure out that it was probably best that I have surgery on it. So I did that, then it meant another 3 months on the sidelines for me.’

‘From the sidelines you get a totally different perspective on what’s going on – I observed a lot and got to have a feel for work ethic and practice intensity, realizing when it was there and when it fell away. I had to try to learn our offense too – we ran the Princeton offense and we’d often do drills and games tailored to that system’.

By the time Abi was medically cleared to return to full-contact sport, the Pioneers season was already over halfway, so it was decided upon that he would sit the remainder of the season’s games and just train.

‘It always takes time to get used to different Basketball environments and coaching. In Australia, we become used to the coach being the main voice and that’s what you tune into. In Denver, everyone is up and loud and urgent – there’s a consistent intensity of noise that our players and the Assistant Coaches are all taking part in. There’s an expectation that we all do our bit to drive the communication and that we’re all energetic, loud and talking the whole time.’

This approach helped the Pioneers be competitive, despite having one of the youngest overall teams in the country, with 12 Freshman or Sophomores. They began their season solidly, winning 5 of their first 6 games, but their lack of experience cost them in the middle of the season where they were still learning the measures of how to get over the line against seasoned opposition in close matches. That improvement was on show later in the season as Denver was able to grind out some big wins against teams like Weber State and Omaha, as they finished with a 16-15 record overall.

‘In the early days, I didn’t travel with the team when they were on the road – instead opting to stay on campus and rehab. Later in the season, when I was medically cleared, I went on every road trip. My goal was to contribute, even though I wasn’t on the court. I wanted to be adding to the team still, whether it be matching the coach’s energy, encouraging my teammates, showing the face my teammates needed to see – being positive and optimistic.’

‘I did my bit to help organize the team off the court too, similar to a team manager, I’d help out with things or text my teammates and make sure they were at places on time.’

The Pioneers took part in Summit League postseason play, but lost a heartbreaking Conference Semi Final against South Dakota State where they were down 1, with 1 second left, and had a player shooting free throws in a ‘1 and 1’ situation. ‘1 and 1’s are when a team is over the foul limit and foul. The offensive player gets to shoot 1 free throw which, if they make it, they earn a second free throw for a maximum of 2 attempts. If they miss, it’s game on. He missed, South Dakota recovered the ball and the Pioneers ran out of time.

The forecast for Abi and the Pioneers, moving forward, is promising. The team will continue to be one of the youngest in the country and have had an offseason change of coach which bring a new style and renewed excitement for what’s to come.

‘With the change of coach, I plan to just work hard all time and show what I can do. Show my values and what I stand for as a person in a sort of business-like approach, then trust that that will take care of itself.’

‘I look forward to being healthy, with a full summer to prepare. I like our new style of play and I feel ready. I’ve been around the program a year now and have experienced what a season looks and feels like. I just need to get back over there, re-adjust to altitude and I’ll be good to go’.

We asked Abi about the impact of living at altitude and what Denver was like, ‘It’s beautiful over there, with the Rocky Mountains and such. It’s a bit of a tourist destination, the locals are really accommodating and friendly – it’s a lot like Melbourne in that sense. The altitude puts a strain on your fitness when you first get over there, because you’re land locked and 1 mile into the air – there’s less oxygen and you can feel it. In one of my first workouts over there, I did 2 trips up and down the floor and I was dead. Like … spent. Gasping for air, it was really tough ! After you get used to it though, it has a positive impact on your body – like, when I came home and started working out with Al I felt like I didn’t get tired as early and I felt so much better aerobically.’

Since being back home Abi has been working on his game 3 times a week in indies, lifting weights and running – following a strength and conditioning program catered to him from Denver, and is actively looking to improve his 1^st step quickness.

‘I have friends in high level athletics and I’m working with them while I’m home to try improve my agility and my power – it’s something that I think will help me get to the next level.’

Though his home visit includes lots of physical activity, Diamond Valley is always a place that Abi holds dear to him. ‘I often think about DV when I’m in Denver. I remember all the Friday night games and the friendships you make. I recall the lessons I learnt from my coaches – like always trying to get better at everything fundamentally to be a flexible and versatile player. In college, teammates can change yearly – what happens if a new recruit plays the same position as me ? I still have to find a way to be useful to the team, even if my role changes.’

It’s this kind of mature, level-headed thought that makes Abi an outstanding young man and role model to our Diamond Valley Basketball community, but never mistake his intelligent speech and manners for a lack of sense of humor and personality – because he’ll often use the former to his advantage …

‘So there’s this fable over in the States that, in Australia, we have Drop Bears. I’m so good at telling the story now, it’s like I believe every word of it – I tell people they’re a breed of koala, but with big fangs and claws, and out of nowhere they just drop on top of people and maul them …’ * laughs out loud *

‘When I meet people for the first time, I tell them the story and I have a 90% strike rate for people who believe it. Sometimes I even show them any scars I have on my body and tell them that this one was from when I was attacked one time and stuff. Then they try to google it and there’s fake websites that exist that back it up …’ * laughs again, this time louder *

‘The best bit is that now my teammates are in on the joke, so they’re participating – when I’m telling someone new the Drop Bear story, they’re in the back yelling over the top of me to make sure I show them my scars !’