‘Unfinished business’: How Pinder could return to the Taipans

Pinder is arguably the greatest success story of the Taipans in Adam Forde’s two-year tenure as coach.

And his future in Cairns will become one of the dominant storylines this off-season, as the Taipans battle cashed-up suitors keen to secure the likes of Pinder, impressive first-year import DJ Hogg, and Bul Kuol, who has become one of the league’s best defenders.

At Cairns, Pinder will undoubtedly be a key and central piece of the roster, alongside star guard Tahjere McCall, who is already locked in for NBL24.

But there’s no guarantee he won’t become lost in the shuffle at other clubs.

And that could be crucial when it comes to the crunch.

“I don’t want to be in a situation where I’m not playing my best basketball, stuck in a pigeon hole and just another piece of the jigsaw,” Pinder said.

“I want to be in a place where I can be the man, and be the best basketballer I can possibly be and reach my goals in life.

“It will play a factor. We’ll see how things go.”

When Forde recruited Pinder, the Derby product was a bit-player on Adelaide’s bench who barely got enough court time to make an impact.

In his first season in Cairns, he claimed NBL’s Most Improved Player honours as he became a central figure of the Taipans’ starting five.

Pinder raised the bar again in 2022-23, earning an international call-up for the Boomers and going on to put together a MVP-calibre campaign before successive serious injuries spoiled his season.

It was still good enough that he became the first NBL player to earn back-to-back Most Improved Player awards, and was also named in the All-NBL Second Team.

“I didn’t expect this when I first got to Cairns,” Pinder said.

“Time will tell, Forde’s given me the opportunity.

“They’ve all pushed me to be the best I can be.

“I really wish I could’ve helped us get to the grand final, win it with the boys, coach, win it for all of Cairns. We all deserve it.”

Pinder was desperate to feature in the post-season.

But he was forced to watch his battered, bruised and banged-up teammates fall in the deciding NBL Play-offs game in Sydney, a 79-64 loss to the Kings putting an end to the Snakes’ season.

Pinder has spent much of the past two months on the sideline after two successive serious injuries.

First it was a lateral ligament strain in his left ankle which kept him out for six games over four weeks, and was in just his second game back when he copped a stray elbow in the face.

That fractured an orbital bone, which ultimately cost Pinder the rest of the season.

Forde said Pinder had lobbied to wear a concussion helmet and face mask - “looking like Sub Zero from Mortal Kombat” - in order to participate but it wasn’t worth the risk, especially if they found a way past Sydney and into the Championship Series.

“Honestly, not being out there hurt more than I thought it would because I was very close to coming back,” Pinder said.

“I felt like if we had won this game I would have been able to come back to play the Grand Final so I was really looking forward to that, and I was ready for that.

“I wanted to play the last game honestly but they didn’t let me obviously so it’s all good.

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“I’m very upset about it and I’m just going to deal with it in my own time.

“I’ll be all right.”

matthew.mcinerney1@news.com.au

Originally published as ‘Unfinished business’: How Pinder could return to the Taipans