Basketball
Point Guard returns for Raiders
17 July 2007
The Kularoos Plymouth Raiders have announced that Gavin Love has re-signed for the 2007/08 British Basketball League (BBL) season.
Love has spent his entire career with the Raiders and has been starting point guard throughout their three years in the BBL. He first joined as a junior player and quickly worked his way up to the Raiders' senior team. Last season he averaged 10.61 points and 2.28 assists per game, whilst also proving influential in the team's run to BBL Trophy glory: Love averaged 14 points per game in that competition.
At the end of last season the Plymouth native earned a call-up to the Great Britain team coached by Chris Finch, only to pull out after sustaining an ankle injury in the last game of the BBL campaign.
Raiders' Coach Gary Stronach was clearly delighted to have Love back for another season, "Signing Gavin was a really important piece of the puzzle for us this year. He's been getting better each season in the BBL, and does a great job of running the team. The call up to the GB team was fully deserved, it's just a huge shame for him that he got injured and couldn't go. Hopefully Gavin will be at peak fitness by the start of the season, I know he's raring to go already."
Love badly damaged his Achilles Tendon in the final game of the season and had to undergo an operation and lengthy rehabilitation period, but this is now nearing an end and signs are positive that he'll start the season with no adverse effects. The 6'0", 29-year-old, said, "The injury has been healing really quickly and the doctors are surprised at just how quick. I can't wait to get back onto the court again and start playing. I've been told that I'm allowed to start jogging soon, and should be at full strength and fitness by the start of the season."
Love is also a senior coach in the club's Schools and Community programme, and has been active in coaching the up and coming Raiders development players.
Raiders' Chief Executive, Dave Briggs, said "Gavin has been fantastic with our community programme over the past few years. He coaches at a lot of schools throughout the week, and then is always one of the first to volunteer to help the Raiders development team players. He's taken a really keen interest in helping unearth future BBL players and then working with them, and he has actually said he wants to do more of this in the coming season."
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