Jonah Antonio: 'Have shoes, a shot and will travel'

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Western Australian guard Jonah Antonio knows he will be playing professional basketball next season, he just just don't where but hopes it's the right fit.

"No real updates as of now just being patient until the right opportunity comes up and letting my agent Sammy Wloszczowski do his thing," Antonio told basketball.com.au.

"I’ll be playing professionally just a matter of where.

"What I’m hoping for is a situation where I’m a player and my strengths are used within a system."

Antonio had the honour of playing for Australia at the 3x3 World Cup and now is hopeful of finding a home that allows him to showcase his full abilities wherever that might be.

Antonio is coming off the first three seasons of his NBL career at the Cairns Taipans where he did get chances at times to show what he was capable of including 17 points and five threes in the first half in the playoffs against the Sydney Kings back in NBL23.

His defense has also been rapidly improving and last season he did an especially strong job on Parker Jackson-Cartwright when he was in red hot form showing what he's capable of at that end of the floor.

At 28, Antonio is at the peak of his powers and possesses a game like few others given he can go on a heater and hit a heap of outside shots in rapid time while athletic and explosive enough to get to the rack, and can have an impact defensively.

Right now, he's unsure where his next stop is as he plays in the NBL1 West with the East Perth Eagles and has just returned from Mongolia playing with the Australian Gangurrus at the 3x3 World Cup.

Where next opportunity might be

Antonio won't return to Cairns for a fourth season in NBL26 and spots are quickly filling up around the NBL as the 10 teams finalise rosters.

A return to Queensland to play with the Brisbane Bullets could be a good fit for Antonio. He could provide them with plenty of what they need, but Antonio is open to opportunity.

While he enjoyed his time in Cairns, he didn’t always feel he was in situations to show all his abilities so when he's weighing up his next stop, that's going to be a big determining factor, he said.

Challenge of the unknown

Antonio does admit it's not easy being in limbo right now, coming off that three-year contract at the Taipans after starting his professional career in the Czech Republic post finish his US college at Wake Forest

What Antonio knows is there's not much more he can do now except continue to focus on trying to help the Eagles to NBL1 West finals and trust his agent.

"Yeah it’s tough but it’s that nature of the business. Some days are better than others mentally but you just have to stay locked in and continue to work," Antonio said.

"I couldn’t tell you to be honest where that might be, that’s something again my agent will guide me through.

"I’ve been to Europe my first year out of college but I’m open to anything as long as it’s the right situation."

Reflecting on time in Cairns

Looking back on the past three NBL seasons at the Snakes, the best way to sum it up was that it was a rollercoaster ride for Antonio.

That's both because of the team performances where they got within one game of a Championship Series in NBL23 but struggled the other two seasons while his minutes greatly fluctuated along the way.

That made it a challenge, but overall Antonio loved everything about being part of the Cairns community.

"Yeah it’s definitely been up and down in terms of my performance, but off the court it’s been great," Antonio admitted.

"I've had amazing teammates, coaches and front office members that have made my time there special.

"I’ve also had support from community and especially the Olholms. I know I’m a better player than what I’ve been able to produce offensively and haven’t been happy with my production."

Still enjoyable past three seasons

When Antonio joined the Taipans ahead of NBL23 he might have largely seen as a shooter and scorer, but he continually worked on improving his game.

He is now significantly better with ball in hand and creating off the dribble or even running an offense, his defence has grown tremendously and that's been a constant focus to make sure he has plenty more to offer than just being able to shoot.

"Every off-season I work very hard to improve my body and game. Fordey is a great defensive coach and he has helped me improve a lot in that area," Antonio said.

"Our assistants over the years Gruggen, Lopez and Williams have helped me get better and have spent countless hours in the gym rebounding for me and taking me through drills so credit to them.

"We have been a good defensive team my time in Cairns. I think last season I took a jump on the defensive end and got assigned tough matches like PJC, Cotton, Harvey. It’s something I want to continue to build on moving forward."

Coming to East Perth

Not only had Antonio spent the past three seasons playing at the Taipans but also had stayed in Cairns to play NBL1 North with the Marlins.

He was still in Cairns going back to the start of May when the call came from the East Perth Eagles, just down the road from where Antonio played his junior basketball with the Warwick Senators.

Having spent precious little time back in Perth since he first left for Sunshine Christian Academy in 2015, Antonio jumped at the chance to be part of a first NBL1 West season.

It just happened to be the same club that his Taipans coach Adam Forde won a championship with back in 2014 as well.

"Yeah so the connection was Fordey, he is the one who brought this opportunity to me," Antonio said.

"But other than it was my conversation with Coach (Carl) Filpo he has a vision for me and I could see his passion to win, after having a quick glance at the roster I felt like there was enough pieces and talent for me to slot in and win and be successful.

"Also I get to come home and be around my family which I haven’t had the chance to do much in the last 10 years. Super focused on finishing as high as possible on the ladder.

"Obviously missing four games for World Cup wasn’t ideal but we have a good stretch left and I feel confident in our group."

3x3 World Cup experience

While Antonio is still awaiting his next professional stop, it doesn’t mean he can't continue to experience new things and he embraced being part of the Gangurrus team at the recent 3x3 World Cup in Mongolia.

He played alongside former Taipans teammates Josh Davey, Dillon Stith and Alex Higgins-Titsha with Forde also the coach.

While he doesn’t see 3x3 being something he especially focuses on moving forward, he did enjoy the experience even if a little disappointed to not return home with a medal.

"Yeah it’s always a privilege and honour to wear the green and gold at any level so it’s something I’ll never forget. And hope to do it again someday," he said.

"It’s good in a sense that you’re exposed to the 3x3 side of basketball a lot of those guys do it year round and make good money from it. But I’m solely focused on 5x5. The bonus was spending time with good people like my teammates, woman’s team, coaches and staff.

"It was a great experience I think 3x3 is growing and not knowing anything about it heading into this offseason it’s been eye opening. The competition level is high and it’s much different to 5x5.

"When you come up against guys who are playing 3x3 year round you can’t afford to have an off game in a tournament setting. Mongolia wasn’t on my bucket list but it was cool to visit somewhere I’d probably never visit.

"The experience as a whole was okay I think we underachieved not bringing a medal back so that leaves bit of a sour taste."