BRENDON EGAN

April 10 2015

Canterbury Ram Richie Edwards hasn’t touched lollies, sweet foods and juices in a long time and his basketball is reaping the benefits.

Since playing for the Rams in their return to the National Basketball League last season, he has lost about 18kg.

Edwards, 24, has eliminated high carbohydrate foods from his diet, as well as treats he used to enjoy.

“I was watching what I was eating [over the off-season] and working out three times a day. I lost the weight real quickly. I’ve been able keep it off for six months now,” he said.

“I was eating a whole bunch of chicken, salad, steamed vegetables and fish in the off-season. Eating really clean. No candy, no sweets, no juice, really.”

He has gone from a playing weight of 113kg last year to 95kg.

Edwards will look to continue his strong early-season form when Canterbury host the Southland Sharks at Cowles Stadium on Friday night.

In the Rams’ opening two games, he was impressive in his sixth man role off the bench, averaging 22 points per game on 52 per cent shooting.

Last year, Edwards was named NBL rookie of the year, but was up and down with his play.

He showed his promise, torching Manawatu for 40 points in an away game.

Being consistent on both the offensive and defensive ends and backing up a strong performance with another one, was a major focus for him.

Edwards arrived at the Rams last year straight after finishing a long senior college campaign with Arizona State University.

He felt exhausted and coupled with a few niggly injuries, Rams’ fans never saw the best from him.

Spending the past month and a half in Christchurch getting ready for the new season had been invaluable.

Edwards had been able to train with his team-mates, work out, and get up to speed with the Rams’ playbook.

Last year, he was asked to trial for the Tall Blacks’ World Cup squad, but with his body not 100 per cent, opted to return to the United States and get healthy.

Making the New Zealand team and helping them qualify for next year’s Rio Olympics is a massive goal for Edwards, who has New Zealand citizenship.

A productive outing in front of new Tall Blacks’ coach Paul Henare, who is also Southland’s coach, would not do any harm.

“Most definitely this year, I want to try to help the Tall Blacks out as best as I can. I believe I’ll hopefully be able to make that team and help them qualify for the Olympics in Brazil.”

Christchurch is not too unfamiliar for New York-born Edwards.

He moved to the city aged three with his American parents, who were missionaries at the time.

Edwards spent close to a decade in Christchurch, before his family shifted to Florida.

As a youngster, he lived for hoops.

He rarely missed Rams’ games when they played at the Addington-based Horncastle Arena in the early 2000s and was once the team’s towel boy, wiping up sweat off the court.

“I used to watch them a lot when I was young. They were the main basketball team when I was here. I always loved the game and my pops would always bring me down and let me watch and learn off the older fellas.”

Edwards idolised Rams’ American guards Dennis Trammell and Michael Gardener and trained with them as a schoolboy.

“They really looked after me as a young fella. They took me under their wing and taught me how to be a professional and improve my game.”

 – The Press