Thursday, December 17, 1998
It really is
a small world
after all
Nani Cockett and Nani Flores
By Al Chase
run into some friendly faces on their
professional basketball journeys
through the Middle East
and Europe
Star-BulletinNO matter where in the world Hawaii residents are, they always seem to make local connections.
Former University of Hawaii basketball standouts Nani Cockett and Nani Flores, who are playing professionally overseas, have had their share of the Aloha spirit away from home.
On a road trip to Ramat Hasharon near Tel Aviv, Cockett got together with Kona Carmack, a longtime friend from their days as Kamehameha Schools students.
Cockett reports that Carmack has been living in Israel for a year working for Coca Cola and doing some modeling. But the big news for Carmack was landing a role in a movie that stars French actor Gerard Depardieu.
"Half the movie will be filmed in France and half in New York next March, but that gives us plenty of time to get together again," Cockett said. "We hadn't seen each other in nine years (Carmack left Kamehameha after the eighth grade) and it was like we were back in school again talking up a storm. It was good to see another person from Hawaii again."
Flores' small-world connection came in a European Cup game against the Spanish team from Gran Canaria.
"We lost, but it was a great experience for me," Flores said. "I had to guard an American girl who plays in the Women's National Basketball Association. Boy, was she tough, but I held my own.
"Her name is Jesse Hicks and she was surprised to find out I had played for Hawaii. Vince (Goo) coached her in the (1993 World University Games."
Two losses to Gran Canaria and two more to the French team, Aix En Provence, eliminated Flores' team from the European Cup. Still, Flores felt she put up "pretty good numbers" in the six Cup games -- 18 points and 8.5 rebounds per game.
In league play, she is averaging 16.7 points and 9.5 rebounds per game for Mosa Gambes Femina (Namur, Belgium).
Cockett has weathered a couple of administrative bumps as her Nirosoft Carmiel Basketball Club has undergone a coaching change. At one point she said, "The atmosphere is not too good right now. We're trying to stay positive and keep a good head on our shoulders 'cause this is our job. We're all professionals and we must continue to act like it. That's life, right?"
But things changed about three weeks ago with the addition of two players and a new coach.
"I must say, practice was actually a real practice. We got a Russian girl who is about 6-3 and an American, Jaime Shadian, who played for Bill and Mary Nepfel at the U. of San Francisco. Both new girls are real nice and will help this team a lot."
Both Flores and Cockett continue to travel. Flores has had her passport stamped in four other countries since arriving in Belgium.
Cockett's travels have been within Israel but include passing through a check point controlled by the Palestinians en route to Bethlehem and the Basilica of the Nativity. The day-long, sight-seeing excursion with teammates took her to Jerusalem and its many religious sites and ended with a two-hour visit to the Dead Sea.
"You actually float because the water is so dense. No way can you drown," Cockett said. "We even took a mud bath. We ended the day with each of us getting an authentic Thai massage, which was sooooo great considering we've been playing and running ourselves into the ground the past three months."
Flores found quite a contrast on two recent trips.
Gran Canaria, islands off the northwest tip of Africa near Morocco, was dry.
"There were buildings everywhere. When there weren't buildings, there was dirt. I didn't see any green anywhere except on the postcards I bought," she said.
An hour's drive to Holland a couple of weeks later to visit the town of Maastrich provided a completely different experience for Flores.
"It was one of the most beautiful places I've seen so far. There were very few cars as most people used bikes," she said. "I noticed something else that was very interesting. Everybody was tall. It was like being in the land of giants. It felt pretty good not sticking out like I usually do."
LATE NEWS: Two weeks ago tonight Cockett went to a hangout in Tel Aviv where the American players like to go. Who should be there but Phil Handy and Phil Lott, who had recently arrived in Israel to play for different teams.
"Phil Lott actually introduced himself to me when he heard I was from Hawaii," said Cockett, who had never met Lott. "I ended up introducing the two Phils to each other as they had never met before although they knew of each other."
THE LIGHTER SIDE: Cockett and her roommate Cornelia Gayden spotted a Dunkin' Doughnuts up ahead while on the team bus.
"Cornelia started to go crazy, yelling at the bus driver to stop so we Americans could get a couple of boxes to take home with us, but the driver didn't listen and on we went," Cockett said.
FACILITIES: Flores plays in a brand new town gym, but with no locker rooms. Her team draws 100 to 200 fans a game. "The fans are great, (I) get to eat and drink lots after the game and I have a pretty big cheering section," Flores said.
However, last week in a game against the big rival, also from Namur, Flores said, "The gym was packed, 1,000 plus. It reminded me of the old days in Klum Gym."
Cockett plays in a gym that holds 800 and is frequently full. "The fans here in Carmiel really support the women's team and I hear we have the most supportive fans in the league," she said.
THE FULL STORY: Or how Nani Flores ended up playing professional basketball in Belgium.
Rob Stephens, who once played basketball in Belgium and later coached at Kamehameha Schools, called Clay Cockett to see if his daughter, Nani, was interested in playing for Mosa Gambes Femina in Namur, Belgium, where Stephens' friend coaches. However, it would have been as a post player and Nani Cockett declined.
Stephens then asked about former Wahine Brandi Ashby, but she had committed to play in Luxembourg. That's when Clay Cockett called UH Wahine associate coach George Wolfe to inquire about Nani Flores.
"I saw Rob after my first game against Portugal. He's really cool and filled me in on the way things go here in Belgium," Flores said.
