Mark Bradtke

HTML <h2><strong>No</strong><strong> 69 MARK</strong><strong> BRADTKE</strong></h2>

HTML <h2><strong>6 feet 10 inch (209cm) Forward/Centre</strong></h2>

HTML <h2><strong>1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games</strong></h2>

HTML <p>Mark Bradtke was born September 27th, 1968 in Adelaide, South Australia. He was a late starter in basketball and was like all kids his age into cricket and AFL (Australian Rules) and did not know much about basketball. He tells the story. “When I was about 14-15 I was around 6 feet 7 inches (203cm) tall and I enjoyed playing basketball in the schoolyard. I remember watching the 1984 Olympic Basketball and getting more interested in the game.” </p>

HTML <p>Brendan Flynn was the Australian Women’s Team Coach at the 1984 Olympic Games and he spotted Mark at the Noarlunga Basketball Stadium and got him into basketball.</p>

HTML <p>In 1985 Mark was playing junior and some senior basketball at Noarlunga. Such was his potential that he was selected to play on the South Australian Under 18 team to play at the National Championships. Despite the fact that he was extremely “raw” in basketball terms he was offered a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra. The coaches at the AIS Adrian Hurley and Patrick Huntrecognised mark’s athleticism, speed and of course his height. “All he needed was the coaching.....he had all the physical attributes,” remembers Adrian Hurley.</p>

HTML <p>“I was extremely raw,”comments Mark. “I owe so much to the AIS. It taught me about the game of basketball...and life....making me independent and responsible for my actions. Pat Hunt was a great teacher who allowed me time to learn.” At the AIS Mark also established a career relationship with physiotherapist Craig Purdamwho was also important in managing Mark’s “growing pains” and injuries.</p>

HTML <p>That year (1986) Mark was selected to tour the USA with the AIS team. </p>

HTML <p>In his second year at the AIS (1987) his team-mates included Luc Longley, Andrew Vlahov and Shane Heal with whom he would share a fifteen year career with as members of Australian teams. Mark was selected to play for the Australian Junior Team in the World Championships in Bormio, Italy. The team finished an excellent 5th place.Mark recalls, “It was in Italy where Longley, Vlahov and myselfstarted our career battles with a couple of other juniors from Yugoslavia, Toni Kukoc, Dino Raja and Vlade Divac.”</p>

HTML <p>In 1987 Mark debuted for the Australian Men’s Team (“Boomers”) against the touring USSR team and Big East team as well as on the Boomers team that won the Oceania 1988 Olympic Qualification Tournament.</p>

HTML <p>In late 1987 Mark was selected to be part of the Boomers Team tour to Europe. “He was still very young and raw but I wanted to see what the youngster could do at the senior level as the Olympics were less than a year away,” recalls the coach of the Boomers Dr Adrian Hurley. Again it was an experience for the young Mark to play against top players from Europe and also to watch the best that Europe had. “I watched DrazenPetrovic playing in Paris (the Boomers played Yugoslavia in that tournament).He was constantly fouled and manhandled by his opponents but he withstood all efforts by the opposition to get the victory for his team. One of the best individual games I have seen,” remembers Mark.</p>

HTML <p>In 1988 halfway through his second year at the AIS Mark signed to play in the National Basketball League (NBL) with his hometown Adelaide. Mark quickly learned the physical sides of the sport. “It was great move for me as I got to go against the toughest players every day at practice. Mark Davis was physical and mean, and I feel he didn’t give me a break.... Ever! .....I also had Al Green who took me under his wing, Bill Jones, Peter Ali, Mike McKay, Scott Ninnis and Darryl Pearce. It was a veteran team and it was so tough at practice and no fouls were called. Come game time I couldn’t believe how easy the game was compared to training.It was a vital time of my career,” says Mark.</p>

HTML <p>Mark’s continued improvement saw him selected to play in 1988 for the Boomers against the touring Nebraska University and the USSR. The series against the USSR replicated the tour the year before in that the series ignited basketball in Australia as the teams played to packed stadiums across Australia.</p>

HTML <p>Mark was selected to the 1988 Australian Men’s Basketball Olympic Team. His selection along with those of two other nineteen year olds Luc Longley and Andrew Vlahov received a lot of criticism in the Australian media as Longley and Vlahov were at College in the USA and Bradtke had only played a handful on NBL games. Boomers Coach Adrian Hurley argued, “The team needed bigger and stronger players for what lay ahead, and even though the trio was very young I knew they were warriors and they would not back-down and would give it everything they could....and they did!” Mark adds, “Adrian took a huge gamble in selecting Luc Longley, Andrew Vlahov and me for these Olympics. Imaging selecting three nineteen year- olds who have never played in the NBL or in my case so little in the NBL now?”</p>

HTML <p>Bradtke, Longley and Vlahov went on to play a vital role in the Boomers great performances in Seoul. The team was led by the veterans Smyth, Carroll, Borner, Sengstock and the 22 year old Andrew Gaze, and the three teenagersplayed significant back-up roles to the veterans.The Boomers finished the tournament with their best ever result of 4th after playing in the semi-finals for the first time in their history.</p>

HTML <p>“A key moments in my Olympic career was playing against Puerto Rico at the 1988 Seoul Olympics as it stands out as for the first time I felt comfortable to be out their amongst the best,” recalls Mark who played a strong role in winning that game for the Boomers.</p>

HTML <p>Back in Australia after the Olympics Mark continued his NBL career. He played for Adelaide from 1988 to 1992 and demonstrated his growing talent and strong physical presence on the Australian basketball courts.</p>

HTML <p>He played for the Boomers in 1989 against the Kareem Abdul Jabaar All Stars and on the team that won the Oceania 1990 World Championship Qualification Tournament.</p>

HTML <p>At the end of the year Mark played on the Boomers tour to the USA and Argentina but injury forced him to return to Australia shortly after the tour began.</p>

HTML <p>Mark was chosen to play for the Boomers in the 1990 World Championships in Argentina. After competing in the Goodwill Games in Seattle, USA the team competed in the World Championships. Bradtke was now part of a dynamic front line for the Boomers consisting of Luc Longley, Ray Borner and Bradtke. The Australians finished the World Championship tournament in a creditable 7th place after losing the USA by one point where the win would have put them into the final rounds.</p>

HTML <p>In 1991 Mark played for the Boomers against the touring Italian Club Fortitudo-Bologna and on the team that won the Oceania 1992 Olympic Qualification Tournament. At the end of 1991 Mark toured to Europe for ten games with the Boomers.</p>

HTML <p>The Boomers were gearing for the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games and started 1992 with series against China and the South West All Stars, followed by gamesagainst domestic All Star teams. Mark was chosen for his second Olympics. The players played in the NBL the weekend before the Olympics.It what was less than ideal preparation. The team did play very well and secured 6th place the second best result by an Australian Men’s Team to that time.Mark had an outstanding Olympics starting at the power forward position and demonstrated that he was one of the best in his position in world basketball. He was named the 1992 Basketball Australia International Player of the Year. </p>

HTML <p>After the 1992 Olympics, Mark played a season in the Spanish League with Juver Murcia.</p>

HTML <p>He decided to leave Adelaide and join his mate Andrew Gaze at the Melbourne Tigers in 1993. His leaving Adelaide created some home-town resentment. However he sums all that up. “It was always good to go back to Adelaide. I would get booed every time I got the ball, even when I was getting out of the car they would boo me. At least I knew I wasn’t forgotten, and to tell you the truth I would have been disappointed if they didn’t boo.” </p>

HTML <p>The move to Melbourne proved an instant success as in 1993 Mark helped the Tigers to their first NBL title. He was to stay with the Tigers for thirteen seasons (1993-2005) and became part of the Tigers folklore as his combinations with Andrew Gaze became one of the great partnerships in the sport of basketball in Australia.</p>

HTML <p>Some of Mark’s NBL awards included NBL MVP (2002), NBL First Team (1994,1996,1997, and 1999 to 2004), Most Improved Player (1989), andbeing named to the NBL 20th and 25th Anniversary Teams.He won NBL championships with the Tigers in 1993 and 1997 and with the Brisbane Bullets in 2007. </p>

HTML <p>He played the 2006/7 season with the Bullets. In all he was to play 554 NBL games, was the all time leading rebounder in NBL history (6283), the 6th all-time leading scorer (9621 points) and finished his magnificent career with an average of 17.4 points and 11.4 rebounds per game.</p>

HTML <p>Mark’s career with the Boomers resumed in 1993 with six games against the touring Russian National Team, He was also on the Boomers team that won the Oceania 1994 World Championships Qualification Tournament.</p>

HTML <p>In 1994 Mark played for the Boomers against the touring USA Marathon Oil and George Washington University Teams. He was selected to play for the Boomers in the 1994 World Championships.In the 1994 World Championships in Canada Mark was a mainstay of the team, especially in the absence of Luc Longley who was unavailable due to injury. Now so much depended on Mark but he enjoyed the challenge of leading the Boomers and going against the best in the world. “I love the way that I and we as a team could test ourselves against the world’s best. It’s what I played for and really embraced the competition. Of course you get nervous before the games but the bigger the game the better. To challenge myself throughout my career against Vlade Divac from Yugoslavia, Jose Ortiz from Puerto Rico, Shaquille O’Neal from USA and my biggest nemesis ArdvidisSabonis from Lithuania, was great!” says Mark.</p>

HTML <p>The Boomers played exceptionally well at the World Championships to gain 5th place, the equal best result by the Boomers at a World Championships.</p>

HTML <p>Mark did not play for the Boomers in 1995as he took a year off basketball to travel with wife and tennis professional Nicole Bradtke on the WTA tennis circuit. In 1996 he played for the Boomers against the touring NBA Legends and the Lithuanian and Italian national teams. He was selected for his third Olympics....the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.</p>

HTML <p>The 1996 Atlanta Olympics were a big moment in the Boomers history and for Mark. The Boomers played exceptionally well and followed their 1988 achievement to make the semi-finals, only to be beaten by the USA and then Lithuania (and that man Sibonis) to take 4th place. It was a great effort. </p>

HTML <p>Mark was spotted by the NBA scouts at Atlanta and he was then contracted to the NBA Club the Philadelphia 76ers for the 1996-97 season. He performed well with limited opportunities and then returned to the NBL in Australia.</p>

HTML <p>Mark played for the Boomers in 1997 against Croatia in Australia and on the Boomers team that won the Oceania 1998 World Championships Qualification Tournament.</p>

HTML <p>He did not play for the Boomers in 1998 as he took the time to recover from injuries. Mark missed the 1998 World Championships and like everyone else set his sights on the Sydney 2000 Olympics. </p>

HTML <p>In 1999 he played for the Boomers against Russia in Australia, in the Berlin Cup in Germany, and the Acropolis Tournament in Greece. Mark finished the year with the Boomers with two games against Canada in Australia.</p>

HTML <p>The Sydney 2000 Olympic Games was to be the big challenge and opportunity for the Boomers...... playing at home and knowing they could make the semi-finals if they played well. Mark was selected for the Games. Mark and the team played a series against Russia in Australia, toured to Italy and France for games, and then to Hong Kong for the FIBA Diamond Ball Tournament. They rounded off their Olympic preparation with games against the USA in Melbourne and Lithuania in Wollongong.</p>

HTML <p>The Boomers started the Sydney 2000 Olympic Basketball Tournament slowly then found form and reached the semi-finals where they played France in a game they felt they could-should win. A win would put them into the Gold Medal game! It was not to be as France played exceptionally well to defeat the Boomers who then lost to Lithuania to take 4th place and once again fall short of that first ever Olympic Medal in the men’s competition.Bradtke had an exceptional tournament and was one of the Boomers and tournament’s stand-out players. </p>

HTML <p>In his thoughts on his career and the Sydney Olympics Mark concludes. “My memory of Sydney 2000 was sitting in the locker room after the last game. For many of us it was the end of an era. Luc Longley, Andrew Vlahov, Andrew Gaze, Craig Purdam, Dr Peter Harcourt, Coach Barry Barnes as well a few others. We sat in our uniforms with a few beers in the middle and we shared many stories and tears as we reflected on a fantastic journey that we all shared together. Priceless! I couldn’t ask for a better way to end my Olympic experience.”</p>

HTML <p>Shane Heal comments on Mark. “Mark blossomed into one of best ever “Bigs” in Australian basketball......he was great to play with and always did the little things that made the team better.....he was always a great team-mate.” </p>

HTML <p>Olympic team-mate Jason Smith says, “Bradtke was a great guy to play with. He knew his role and did it exceptionally. He was monster of man and was very intimidating to play against. I loved playing with him, he did all the little things right. As a guard, and especially as a shooter, I knew the value of Mark setting great screens to get you open to have a better opportunity to score for the team. More often than not, that scenario would end up in him scoring because his man would have to help out and leave him open. You could say he was a very smart player!”</p>

HTML <p>“Getting the opportunity to play with Mark on the Boomers team at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games and winning an NBL Championship with him with the Bullets in 2006 were career highlights for me,” says Olympian Sam Mackinnon. </p>

HTML <p>Mark played 205 games for Australia. He was a central figure on the Boomers for twelve years and a major player in the NBL for eighteen years. His was a distinguished career that was very much a part of what some have called the “Golden Period” of men’s basketball in Australia. The names of Bradtke, Gaze, Vlahov, Heal and Longley had been etched in the history of the game in Australia. Mark Bradtke had through his career fought hard, played tough, showed great resilience and drive, fierce loyalty to his Melbourne Tigers and his country and had performed with greatness on the world basketball stage. </p>

HTML <p>Mark was awarded the Basketball International Player of the Year Award in 1992 and 1999.</p>

HTML <p>After he retired from basketball in 2007 Mark continued his relationships with basketball and sport and has developed his own sporting business.</p>

HTML <p>Mark Bradtke was inducted into the Basketball Australia Hall of Fame in 2013.</p>

HTML <p>Mark Bradtke shoots over the USA’s Dave Robinson (Courtesy Basketball Australia/Sport the Library)</p>

HTML <p>Mark Bradtke on the fast break (Courtesy of Basketball Australia)</p>

HTML <p>Mark Bradtke playing against the USSR on their tour to Australia in 1988 (Basketball Australia)</p>