Basketball On The Internet.

LUCAS Walker will miss at least the next three Tigers' NBL games with his recurring Achilles tendon issue.

The high-flying, athletic, rebounding forward – whose game has improved so much since he ditched those lime-green, Granny Smith-apple playing shoes … coincidence? I think not – has been a fairly key cog in the Tigers machine and will seriously be missed on Friday in Perth, especially considering his opposite number in that game would have been James Ennis.

Walker left the court during the third quarter of Sunday's 97-84 road loss to the Sydney Kings and did not return.

The good news is there is no tear in the Achilles, but Walker will miss the games against Perth and Wollongong and also the home game against the Wildcats on February 2.

That’s a pretty significant three games.

“He won't play the next three games and then he will be reassessed after that,” Melbourne coach Chris Anstey said.

“He is wearing a moonboot, which takes the strain off it, but it's something he's had issues with over the years.”

With Walker out, captain Tommy Greer most likely will return to the starting line-up, drawing The Menace as his first defensive assignment.

STILL in Tigerland, popular forward, husband, father and cartoonist Adam “Balls” Ballinger will play his 300th NBL game when he hits the hardwood against Perth at The Jungle.

I had the pleasure of interviewing him today, with the upshot here at News Corp: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/adam-ballinger-to-break-300th-nbl-game-but-winning-a-championship-still-his-driving-force/story-fnii09gt-1226807794996

In further conversation, Balls additionally told me the biggest change he had seen during his time since arriving in Australia as an import for the defunct Victoria Giants was it reverting from 48 minutes to 40.

“That eight minutes, well, obviously you can get more shots up,” the longtime prolific scorer (he has 4977 currently) joked.

“That’s a big change in the game and the other one now is the way they (the officials) are trying to call it.

“Two-three years ago, you could really hit guys in the post and on rebounds.”

Ballinger was part of the Wollongong Hawks team which famously was wiped out 3-0 in the best-of-five 2005 Grand Final by Brian Goorjian’s Sydney Kings.

Goorjian’s teams had a well-earned reputation for physicality.

“Yeah. I think his philosophy was: ‘You can’t foul everyone out’ so they’d stay at it,” Balls said.

So, would today’s officiating have spawned a different 2005 result?

Ballinger pleaded the fifth on that question. Apparently Brendan Joyce’s Hawks were trying to do the same thing!

WAS saddened to hear from Hall of Fame great Brian Kerle of the recent death of 1972 Boomers’ Olympian and naturalised American centre Tom Bender.

Bender was another of those wonderfully imposing Americans who caught my imagination as a kid growing up – a 7-foot giant, magnificently proportioned, a tower in the post, blonde surfy hair waving, the Mexican bandit-moustache so popular then.

I saw him at an Australian Club Championship playing for St Kilda Saints, though I can no longer remember which one. Think it may have been 1972 because it was back at Albert Park. I just recall that one of my brothers, at 6-4, had to guard him.

Even my mother was terrified.

In truth though, Bender was a thorough gentleman and sportsman, even congratulating my brother post-game on what a great job he had done.

That kind of stuff stays with you.

Tom and his wife Ronit were living in Israel for much of the past decade, spreading the word of their strong belief in God.

Tom is another great loss but a timely reminder there was some magnificent basketball in this country long before the NBL.

May he rest in peace.