Marquette's Ben Gold learned how to fight for his role from his older brothers in New Zealand
When Ben Gold was home in New Zealand for a brief visit in May, his older brother Sam found out that roles had changed.
After a freshman season with the Marquette men's basketball team in which he flashed his talent off the bench, the 6-foot-11 Gold had become stronger and more confident in his skills. Sam learned that the hard way during a backyard court battle like they used to have along with their oldest brother, Thomas.
"I was surprised," said Sam, a 6-7 forward at Milligan University in Tennessee. "Normally before he went over (to MU), I could move him a little. We started messing around and playing post ones (one-on-one).
"I just couldn’t move him at all. I also was surprised, he put on the size but he could still move well. That was a bit shocking to me. I couldn’t bully my little brother as I used to be able to.”
The Golden Eagles hope opponents will also be shocked by Ben's transformation. Improving on his 2.7 points in 7.9 minutes per game from last season will help MU live up to its lofty expectations as the No. 5 team in the Associated Press' preseason top 25.
Ben has learned how to fight for respect. He experienced that going against his brothers.
“I was the youngest of my family, so I was always the one coming in last the whole time," Ben said. "So it kind of gave me that competitive nature.
"I never wanted to lose against them. So I felt like that’s something that I grew up with at a young age so it’s translated to where I am now.”
Father Rob was a pro player and mother Sharon was netball legend
New Zealand might be more known for producing rugby players, but it makes sense that the Gold brothers would gravitate toward basketball while growing up in Wellington.
Their father, Rob, played for the Otago Nuggets in the country's professional National League as a rugged 6-5 post player.
“He liked to chuck the elbows,” Sam said.
Rob married Sharon, a legend in netball who competed for the national team. The sport is very similar to basketball.
"That probably has a whole lot to do with us being into basketball as well," Thomas said. "The same skills translate between sports.”
Rob coached all three sons in basketball while they were growing up. Thomas, now 24, set the path while becoming serious about the sport at 13 years old. He spent two seasons as a pro with the hometown Wellington Saints, also in the National League, before taking a job as a structural engineer.
“It’s a bit different here," Thomas said. "We play like a three-month season. So it’s real short. You only play every team twice. So 18 games.
"It’s pretty short. It’s not a massive place to travel. It’s not big crowds or anything like that. It’s cool with having imports and stuff like that. It’s a cool experience, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t think it’s sustainable.”
But before his pro career, Thomas was dominating his younger brothers on the halfcourt in the family's backyard.
"We would spend pretty much two or times a day every day in the summer just down there playing what we call 21," Thomas said. "So, all-on-all, first one to 21 wins.
"It would get pretty ruthless. Pretty feisty. But I think that’s what got us pretty intrigued on basketball to be honest."
Ben Gold develops into intriguing prospect
According to Thomas, Ben and Sam were really good rugby players when they were younger. Ben was also a track standout.
"When he was younger he was a top sprinter in Wellington," Thomas said. "He was a bit of a freak when he was younger.”
Sam had a feeling that Ben would soon surpass his older brothers in basketball talent as well, even before a massive growth spurt landed Ben on the radar of the NBA Global Academy in Australia. Thomas and Sam are both 6-7, but Ben shot past them to 6-11.
"He started developing a little more and then obviously as you get better your confidence grows," Sam said.
At the NBA Global Academy, Ben's mix of size and skill intrigued college coaches. Sam, now 22, had decided to play basketball in the United States and Ben followed his path. Sam started at Holy Names University in Oakland, California, a NCAA Division II school that is now closed, before landing with several other New Zealand players at Milligan, which competes in NAIA.
"I think a lot of the time it’s better for you if you have the chance to go play overseas," Sam said. "I think that’s more ingrained at a young age, that success is going to play in the States."
Ben Gold expected to take on bigger role this season with Marquette
Ben's brothers aren't the only ones who have noticed his improvement. MU head coach Shaka Smart has pointed to Ben as one of several players in line for a breakout season. Oso Ighodaro goes against Ben every practice, so he has seen the trajectory up close.
“He’s just grown as a player," Ighodaro said. "He’s gotten a lot stronger. And just the belief in himself. He has so much potential and he has still so much growth to go and he’s going to be a great player.”
MU doesn't have a lot of depth in the frontcourt, and Ben dealt with shin splints that kept him from playing games on the team's foreign trip. But since returning to practices, he has looked more willing to mix it up in the paint with his stronger frame while also looking more confident handling the ball and shooting from long range.
"I just wanted to take a big step on getting my body right," Ben said. "Working on my shooting, my handle and my finishing around the rim.
"Obviously I had a little setback with my injury but I felt like I made a big jump before that and then started to get back into things now. I still feel like I’m going upwards."
Thomas never got to play against Ben in May like Sam did, but the oldest brother will be watching MU games closely this season from halfway around the world.
"I’d say we’re an extremely supportive family, so everybody gets behind it from back here," Thomas said. "I feel like he plays better if he’s having fun and confident and stuff like that. Especially if he can get his legs underneath him after the shin splints, I think it will be fine.
"I think last year, I don’t know if it’s just a freshman thing, but when you’re going into a program like that, it seems to be a lot. You’re adjusting to everything at once. So it will be pretty cool to see everything come together and just be a bit more comfortable and have a cool year."
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Marquette's Ben Gold learned basketball from brothers in New Zealand
