Josh Aitcheson has re-signed with the team for the National Basketball League season, which begins next week.
The 23-year-old guard had been a notable absentee from the signings list — both on a local and national level.
He acknowledged there was a period when he was unsure if he would play, having begun full-time work as an accountant at Deloitte.
It will leave him busy during the season — training during the day will mean he will have to start work early, or finish late — which was why the negotiations had not happened quickly.
However, he was excited to have reached an agreement and both Deloitte and the Nuggets were accommodating his situation.
"For a while there I wasn’t going to play, just focus on work," he said.
"But the Nuggets came back and said they really wanted me to play and I was able to work it out with Deloitte.
"Deloitte was happy to be flexible with me and the Nuggets were also happy to be flexible. So it was kind of a win-win, best of both worlds for me."
A product of King’s High School, Aitcheson has been the dominant player in local basketball over the past five years.
He debuted for the Nuggets on their return to the NBL in 2020 and was one of the stars as the team won the title, averaging 10.8 points — including 16 in the final — and 4.8 rebounds per game.
Last year he started every game and went at 6.0 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.
Now back for a third season, he hoped to continue building.
"I think every year that you spend in the NBL, you learn a bit more and become a bit more experienced for the next season, which is cool," he said.
"Hopefully I can bring that in and help in any way I can, especially with some of the young players we’re bringing into the team this year."
Aitcheson joins Sam Timmins and Nikau McCullough as confirmed signings for the team.
The remainder of the squad will be confirmed over the next two weeks.
The season begins on April 28, on the road against the Nelson Giants.
-- JEFF CHESHIRE
