Rockingham Flames star Tom Jervis celebrates major milestone with 200th game

Rockingham Flames star Tom Jervis has played his 200th game, with victory against Lakeside Lightning the icing on the cake on a memorable night.

The 200-game milestone marks a decade-long career in the State and National Basketball league (SBL/NBL) for Jervis.

Jervis made his 2005 game debut as an East Perth Eagle in what was previously known as the SBL, then moved to the United States to play for the Trojans at Troy University.

Jervis later signed on for a short stint with Mitteldeutscher BC in Germany before returning home to Australia in 2009 to again play for the East Perth Eagles.

The SBL had recognised Jervis as an outstanding player having awarded him All-Star Five honours between 2011 and 2013.

In 2013 he made his professional basketball debut with the Perth Wildcats, signing a one-year contract and earning the NBL Rookie of the Year honour.

After a successful season with the Wildcats, offers started to come in from various teams.

It wasn’t until 2016 that Jervis decided to make the move from Perth to Brisbane, accepting a three-year deal from the Brisbane Bullets.

Returning to Perth in 2018 would mark Jervis’ third stint with the team before joining the Rockingham Flames in 2021 and re-signing with the team for the 2022 season.

Asked how he felt to have reached the 200-game milestone Jervis said: “It’s a pretty cool achievement, it’s taken me a lot longer than what I thought... but I’m extremely thankful to be able to still be kicking around in the league and this milestone’s pretty special.”

Jervis said a career highlight for him was winning a championship with the East Perth Eagles, having been the first club he ever played for and their first ever championship.

“My biggest advice to younger players is to make sure you’re having fun with it and learn as much as possible from guys that are older than you or that you perceive to be at a higher level than you; so I think asking as many questions as possible if you don’t understand something makes sure that you communicate it so you can learn and get better at it,” he said.

Asked about Rockingham’s chance at taking home the championship for this year’s NBL1 West tournament he said: “I think we are definitely within the mix, we’ve had a really good season even though it’s been so interrupted.

“I don’t think we’ve actually filled in a full squad this season, so to sit second on the ladder was a pretty good feat for us.

“If we continue to play the way we have played throughout the season and that team style basketball, you know, it could happen and we could make it all the way.”

Jervis thanked Rockingham Flames and East Perth Eagles for helping his SBL and NBL career achievements.

“It means a lot to me, they’ve paved (the way for) me to be the player I am today. So I’m thankful for that.”