Todd Blanchfield

Todd Blanchfield
No. 10 – Southland Sharks
Position Small forward / Shooting guard
League NZNBL
Personal information
Born 11 July 1991
Mackay, Queensland
Nationality Australian
Listed height 200 cm (6 ft 7 in)
Listed weight 94 kg (207 lb)
Career information
High school Mackay State (Mackay, Queensland)
Pro career 2009–present
Career history
2009–2015 Townsville Crocodiles
2015–present Southland Sharks
Career highlights and awards
  • All-NBL Second Team (2015)
  • NBL Most Improved Player (2015)
  • 3× QBL All-League Team (2011–2012, 2014)

Todd Blanchfield (born 11 July 1991) is an Australian professional basketball player who currently plays for the Southland Sharks of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). The 200 cm swingman rose up the ranks of Mackay basketball before attending the Australian Institute of Sport and representing Australia in international competition.

Early life and career

Born and raised in Mackay, Blanchfield attended Mackay State High School where he had success with schoolboys basketball, being selected in his first state team when he was in Year 7 and was part of Mackay representative teams from under 12s. In 2007, Blanchfield played his first season with the QBL's Mackay Meteors and was a valuable part of the team, despite being just 15-years-old.[1]

In January 2008, Blanchfield's career began to flourish as he travelled to North Carolina on an Australian schoolboys tour, and attended an AIS development camp for the under 19 Australian Emus squad.[1] He made the final Emus squad and travelled to Germany in March 2008 for the Albert Schweitzer Tournament, going on to help the team defeat the United States to claim bronze.[2] Following the tournament, he started playing in the SEABL for the AIS,[3] and in 12 total games, he averaged five points and two rebounds per game.[4] He later re-joined the Emus for the 2008 William Jones Cup, where the team again captured bronze.[2]

Blanchfield returned to the Mackay Meteors for the 2009 QBL season and was very impressive in recording averages of 20.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 19 games, and earning the QBL U23 Youth Player of the Year. He subsequently earned himself a development player spot on the Townsville Crocodiles, signing a 12-month contract with the team in July 2009.[5]

Professional career

Townsville Crocodiles (2009–2015)

While he played sparingly in his first season with the Townsville Crocodiles, Blanchfield did show signs of potential when he got the chance, finishing the season with averages of 1.1 points and 0.7 rebounds in 10 games.[6] Following the Crocodiles' semi-final loss to the Wollongong Hawks, Blanchfield re-joined the Mackay Meteors for the 2010 QBL season[7] where in 21 games, he averaged 18.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.

Blanchfield was rewarded on 3 June 2010 with a three-year contract offer from the Crocodiles, signing with the club as a full-time player and realising a lifelong ambition.[8] In his first full season with the Crocs, Blanchfield averaged 2.6 points and 1.5 rebounds in 27 games.[6] His full-time commitment to the Crocodiles coincided with his move to the Townsville Heat for the 2011 QBL season in order to be closer to the club and coaches during the NBL off-season. He was considered the Heat's most consistent player by head coach Liam Flynn and it was evident in his production,[9] finishing the season with averages of 18.4 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 18 games, and was named in the QBL All-League team.[10]

After a great season in the QBL and having gotten more stronger and mature, Blanchfield had a very productive season for the Crocs in 2011–12 playing a back-up role for starting small forward Elvin Mims. In 31 games, he averaged 7.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.[6] On 3 May 2012, he signed a two-year contract extension with the club, keeping him under contract until the end of the 2014–15 season.[11][12] Playing for the Townsville Heat in 2012, he earned QBL All-League team honours for the second straight year[10] after averaging 19.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.8 steals in 13 games.

Blanchfield finally cracked the starting small forward spot in 2012–13 and subsequently set career highs in points, rebounds and field goal percentage. Townsville started the season at 0-10 before defeating the Adelaide 36ers on 30 November for their first win of the season and Blanchfield's play was the only real bright spark for the Crocs during this time, as he scored double figures in 14 of his first 22 games. However, a late season slump saw him score double digits just once in his last six games. On the season, he averaged 9.4 points and 4.2 rebounds in 28 games.[6] He returned once again to the Townsville Heat following the NBL season, and in 13 games during the 2013 QBL season, he averaged 17.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game.

With the decline of Crocs star Peter Crawford, Blanchfield's role increased once again in 2013–14 as he scored a career-high 23 points against the New Zealand Breakers on 18 October. Whilst the Crocs stayed in playoff contention during the first half of the season, a mid-season slump saw them drop out of the top four race. Blanchfield once again put up career highs in points (11.0), rebounds (5.3) and assists (1.5).[6] On 31 January 2014, the announcement of Blanchfield's return to Mackay for the 2014 season was a welcome one to the club and fans.[13] Playing for his hometown team again, Blanchfield dominated the league, leading his team to the Grand Final[14] and earning all-league honours for a third time.[15] In 18 games, he averaged 19.3 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

Blanchfield improved once again in 2014–15 as his move to an off-guard position allowed him to carry and control the ball more often on offense. With the departure of both Josh Pace and Peter Crawford, Blanchfield was the main wing focus for the Crocodiles and it showed with his stellar season averages of 14.6 points and six rebounds per game, while shooting at 44.8% from the field and 34.6% from beyond the arc. He was named Player of the Week twice during the season,[16][17] was awarded the NBL's Most Improved Player,[18] and earned All-NBL second team honours.[19]

Southland Sharks (2015–present)

On 9 January 2015, Blanchfield signed with the Southland Sharks as an import for the 2015 New Zealand NBL season.[20][21] He made his debut for the Sharks in the team's season opener against the Manawatu Jets on 1 April and recorded a game-high 28 points and a team-high 9 rebounds in a 100–74 win.[22][23]

International career

In July 2012, Blanchfield was named in the 2012 Australian Stanković Cup squad[24] that went on to finish in second place.[25]

In June 2013, Blanchfield was named in the Australian squad for the 2013 Stanković Cup[26] and World University Games.[27] Australia went on to win gold and silver respectively.[28]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Blanchfield makes some big strides". DailyMercury.com.au. 5 February 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "EMUS SQUAD NAMED FOR JUNE CAMP". Basketball.net.au. 26 May 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  3. ↑ "Todd on rapid rise to top". DailyMercury.com.au. 22 April 2008. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  4. ↑ "Australian Institute of Sport – 2009 SEABL preview" (PDF). SEABL.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  5. ↑ Boxall, Sally (27 July 2009). "Todd's been snapped up". DailyMercury.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 "Player statistics for Todd Blanchfield". FoxSportsPulse.com. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  7. ↑ Payne, Charlie (27 February 2010). "Todd hopes to make NBL final". DailyMercury.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  8. ↑ Payne, Charlie (4 June 2010). "Blanchfield offered NBL deal". DailyMercury.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  9. ↑ "Croc Sightings". Crocodiles.com.au (NBL.com.au). 3 June 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "All League Teams". qabl.basketball.net.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  11. ↑ "Blanchfield back with the Crocodiles". DailyMercury.com.au. 3 May 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  12. ↑ "Blanchfield extends future with Crocs". NBL.com.au. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  13. ↑ "Meteors Homecoming For Blanchfield". FoxSportsPulse.com. 31 January 2014. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  14. ↑ Plane, Melanie (1 September 2014). "VIDEO: Rockets are the toast of QBL again". TheMorningBulletin.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  15. ↑ "QBL Award Winners". FoxSportsPulse.com. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  16. ↑ "R16 Player of the Week: Todd Blanchfield". Crocodiles.com.au (NBL.com.au). 28 January 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  17. ↑ "R18 Player of the Week: Todd Blanchfield". Crocodiles.com.au (NBL.com.au). 10 February 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  18. ↑ "NBL Awards: Todd Blanchfield Most Improved". Crocodiles.com.au (NBL.com.au). 1 March 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  19. ↑ "NBL AWARDS: All-NBL First Team". NBL.com.au. 6 March 2015. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  20. ↑ Anderson, Niall (9 January 2015). "Sharks Tab Blanchfield As Second Import". NZhoops.co.nz. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  21. ↑ McAuliffe, Hugh (9 January 2015). "Sharks sign Todd Blanchfield". Australiabasket.com. Sports I.T. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  22. ↑ "Sharks vs Jets". FIBALiveStats.com. 1 April 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  23. ↑ Burdon, Nathan (1 April 2015). "Southland Sharks make winning start to NBL season against Manawatu Jets". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  24. ↑ "STANKOVIC CUP TEAM NAMED". Basketball.net.au. 5 July 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  25. ↑ "AUSTRALIANS FINISH SECOND IN STANKOVIC CUP". Basketball.net.au. 11 July 2012. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  26. ↑ "EMERGING BOOMERS TALENT READY FOR STANKOVIC CUP". Basketball.net.au. 27 June 2013. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  27. ↑ "AUSTRALIAN TEAMS NAMED FOR 2013 WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES". Basketball.net.au. 27 June 2013. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  28. ↑ Nagy, Boti (5 August 2013). "Boomers squad – without Jason Cadee and Chris Goulding – 'best in years'". HeraldSun.com.au. Retrieved 6 March 2015.

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