Chris Blakemore (1993 Rookie Of The Year) on the Adelaide 36ers 'Mike Dunlap era'

Whyalla born and bred Chris Blakemore began training with the Adelaide 36ers in 1990 before spending two seasons at the Australian Institute of Sport and signing a rookie contract with the team in 1993. He played three seasons with the 36ers (1993-1995), a period where the team saw a young core of Blakemore, Brett Maher, Scott Ninnis and Brett Wheeler develop into a playing group that ushered in a new era of success in Adelaide. Blakemore would win Rookie of the Year in his first season and the league's Most Improved Player in his second season. This early 1990s also saw highly regarded college coach Mike Dunlap hire to coach the team, an era renown for a lot of wins on the court and issues off the court. Topics include... Early beginnings in Whyalla, SA (2:00) The college football scholarship that could have been (5:00) Choosing between the AIS, NBL and NCAA as a pathway to becoming a professional (7:00) His rookie of the year season in 1993 (11:00) Adelaide 36ers 1994 run to the NBL Grand Final (15:00) The Mike Dunlap era in Adelaide (17:00) A re-built 36ers squad for the 1995 season falls short (25:00) The elbow to Martin Cattalini left 15 stitches, got him suspended from the playoffs and saw the 36ers eliminated from the playoffs (30:00) Leaving Adelaide to play with the Cannons in 1996 (32:00) Blakemore's attempted comeback in 1998 with the Brisbane Bullets which ultimately didn't pan out (38:00) How he feels about his decision to retire looking back at it (40:30) The mental hurdles he faced and biggest challenges (42:00) Rob Rose and Mike Dunlap, why didn't these two see eye to eye? (51:00) The highlights of his career (53:00) Visit dunk.com.au for your next set of basketball uniforms. Listen to our previous interviews with the biggest stars in Australian Basketball, head to Aussiehoopla.com. Check out previous podcasts featuring; Australian Basketball Legends - Luc Longley, Andrew Gaze, Shane Heal, Mark Bradtke, Leroy Loggins, David Andersen, Andrew Vlahov, Phil Smyth, CJ Bruton, Chris Anstey, Brett Maher, John Rillie, Tony Ronaldson, Damian Martin, AJ Ogilvy, Daniel Kickert Current NBL Stars - Bryce Cotton, Chris Goulding, Vic Law, Jack White, Dejan Vasiljevic, Thomas Abercrombie, Jason Cadee, Mitch McCarron, Anthony Drmic, Brad Newley, Dusty Hannahs Our Finest Coaching Minds - Brian Goorjian, Barry Barnes, Joey Wright, Adrian Hurley, Aaron Fearne, Rob Beveridge, Ian Stacker, Shawn Dennis, Dean Vickerman, Trevor Gleeson, Lindsey Gaze, Ken Cole, Will Weaver, Bruce Palmer NBA Stars Past & Present - Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova, Stephen Jackson, Randy Livingston, Torrey Craig, Acie Earl, Josh Childress, Reggie Smith, Todd Lichti, Ryan Broekhoff, Doug Overton, Donald Sloan The NBL's Greatest Imports - Darryl McDonald, Ricky Grace, Derek Rucker, Leon Trimmingham, Scott Fisher, Lanard Copeland, Mike Mitchell, Darnell Mee, Isaac Burton, Adonis Jordan, Shawn Redhage, Willie Farley, Al Green, Corey "Homicide" Williams, Andre Moore, Steve Woodberry, Gary Ervin, Ebi Ere, Doug Overton, Kevin Lisch And the men who run things - Larry Kestelman, Mal Speed, Paul Maley, Vince Crivelli, Jeremy Loeliger, Chuck Harmison, Jeff Van Groningen, Bob Turner All that and much more. Follow @AussieHoopla on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or email us at [email protected]