Slammin' Sam has become a crowd favourite at the WEC, and Hawkheads will have another Froling to cheer on next season.
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The Hawks on Friday announced the signing of Harry Froling for their 2021/22 campaign. The 23-year-old has played more than 100 games for Townsville, the 36ers and Bullets since his debut in 2015, but has never played in the NBL alongside younger brother and Illawarra big man Sam.
Harry admits that opportunity was a major drawcard, alongside the chance to learn from coach Brian Goorjian.
"I have goals in my life and if I want to play prove myself at this level, there's no better person to build under than Goorj. I think it's a good environment for me and I'm excited to play under the GOAT coach," Harry said.
"I think it's a special thing. It will be fun to play together with Sam, I take pride in his success and I'm sure he takes pride in mine. When you're on different teams, you're always happy for each other. Now we're on the same team, we can push towards the same goals and hopefully get the best out of each other."
The announcement came two days after the Hawks signed former Taipans and Bullets guard Travis Trice, while Boomers big man Duop Reath joined the roster on Monday. Sam Froling, AJ Ogilvy, Tyler Harvey, Emmett Naar, Akoldah Gak, Dan Grida, Isaac White and Lachie Dent have also re-committed to remain in Wollongong next season.
Harry said his biggest strength was providing "flexibility" on the court.
"I can play four and the five, and I'm a bigger body so I can hold up the Nat Jawais of the league, but I can also stretch out and shoot the three ball to bring those guys out of the paint," he said.
"Hopefully if I can keep improving my game in defence, offensively I can put points on the board pretty quick. I don't need the ball a lot so I think that will definitely help us alongside guys like Travis, Tyler Harvey and (Justinian) Jessup, who have the ball in their hands a lot."
Harry becomes the third Froling to be mentored by Goorjian, who previously coached their father Shane at Eastside Spectres. Goorjian said the addition of Harry was vital to the Hawks' chances of success.
"We all know it's a long NBL season and after losing Cam (Bairstow) late last year we were probably a big guy short. Now we have a wealth of great options to choose from in that front court rotation," he said. "The idea of coaching both Sam and Harry so many years after coaching Shane also brings a smile to my face and I can't wait to get to work with them."
Hawks president and co-owner Dorry Kordahi believes fans should be excited about the club's roster.
"Harry's a determined, aggressive and powerful young player and will give Brian another strong option to go to throughout the season," he said. "It'll also be great for our supporters to see the two Froling boys share the court in the same uniform for the first time. We all know how well Sam Froling played last season and we hope the addition of Harry can help elevate both of their games to another level yet again."
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