Naar joins NBL's 100-game club

Illawarra Hawks guard Emmett Naar chalked up another milestone on Friday night, during his side's five-point win against the Perth Wildcats at RAC Arena.

The Norths Bears product joined teammates Tim Coenraad (347 games), AJ Ogilvy (218) and Harry Froling (126) in the NBL 100-club.

"Playing 100 games means a lot to me," said Naar, who became the 28th Hawks all-time to play 100 games for the club.

"As a kid, I always wanted to play professionally and to be able to achieve that goal for 100 games and with a great club like the Hawks is more than I could’ve hoped for. "

The 27-year-old, who joined the foundation club ahead of the 2018-2019 season, has thoroughly enjoyed his time with the Hawks.

"My time with the Hawks has been great in teaching me how to be a professional and what it takes day in and day out," the Canberra-born guard said.

"In my time here, I’ve played for three coaches and with a lot of talented players so I’ve been able to learn a lot from many different sources.

"Having veterans like AJ Ogilvy and Dave Andersen was a great help to start my careers, as they passed on a ton of knowledge.

"Then off the court, I’ve made lots of lifelong friends in my four years here as well."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Emmett Naar marks <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBL</a> game ? with an early ?<br><br>?: <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> via <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Foxtel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Foxtel</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreIllawarra?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreIllawarra</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlyAsOne?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlyAsOne</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> <a href="https://t.co/HlcmyRv2Mn">pic.twitter.com/HlcmyRv2Mn</a></p>&mdash; Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@illawarrahawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks/status/1517471950712766465?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

During that four-year span, the Saint Mary's alum has enjoyed plenty of highlights.

"There’s been a lot of great moments with the club, starting with my first game ever, which went to quadruple overtime - unfortunately, we lost but was memorable nonetheless," the Australian representative said.

"A great moment was hearing the fans do the 'Illawarra' chant when we got the name back last year, the atmosphere and enthusiasm at that game was awesome.

"Then the win against the Lings in my second year on New Year’s Eve was a standout.

"It wasn’t a successful year but to take down the top team and our rival, and have one of my better games individually - it was a great moment."

Looking ahead, Naar is confident his Hawks, who cemented their NBL22 Finals spot on Friday, can claim the club's second-ever banner in NBL22.

"This is definitely the most talented team we’ve had since I’ve been here," he said. 

"We have so many different players who can score the ball that when we all work together it becomes extremely difficult to stop.

"With that firepower and our improving defence, I think there’s the potential to win the whole thing."