McIntyre takes plenty away from 'amazing' NBA Summer League with Spurs

It may have been a whirlwind experience for Fleur McIntyre with the San Antonio Spurs but the Sydney Kings assistant coach has taken plenty away from her 'amazing' Summer League experience in the United States.

McIntyre, who was an international guest coach with the Spurs, first travelled to San Antonio for a camp with the squad before competitions in both Sacramento and Las Vegas.

"Adam Forde and I actually flew in [to San Antonio] the night before and were picked by Nelly [former Kings legend Matt Nielsen] from the airport and taken to the facility then and there, before all the madness really starts," said McIntyre, who thoroughly enjoyed spending this time with long-time Western Australia friend Nielsen.

"Walking onto that court and seeing all the banners hanging from the rafters was incredible - you're just in the presence of greatness.

"Getting that quiet moment, to take it all in before everyone was there the next day, was something I'll always cherish."

GRAB YOUR TICKETS TO THE KINGS' HOME MATCHES NOW

Once the team is the road, the experience stepped up a notch, especially when they arrived in Vegas.

"The whole experience was made even more epic when we got to Vegas because of the hype and ensuing chaos surrounding Victor Wembanyama," said McIntyre, who enjoyed seeing how calm Matt Nielsen stayed on the sidelines and hopes to implement that approach to her own coaching approach.

"It was completely eye-opening - even the Spurs coaches were saying this was crazy.

"So for me, that was a lot to take in, with there a different level of scrutiny, attention and people watching.

"But from the actual basketball experience, being with the Kings the past two years and working with someone like Chase [Buford], had prepared me to be in the G-League/NBA environment, as the style and concepts they play out of are similar.

"Obviously with Summer League, they keep it quite clear and not double-down on too many details, with only a short amount of time with the team, but the way they implement it all and layered it was quite eye-opening and enjoyable for me.

"There were also little nuances and concepts that were interesting, that will add more layers to my coaching repertoire, as well as some offensive and defensive schemes that I'll try and intertwine into the Kings this season."

Watch the club's tickets on sale video via Sydney Kings' YouTube channel above. While you're there, be sure to hit subscribe, to ensure you never miss out on any of our great videos.

McIntyre also drew similarities between the Spurs and Kings organisations.

"Much like the Kings, everyone at the Spurs, you can see the care and connection people have with one another - which I know probably isn't the case with every organisation," she said,

"The Spurs have done a great job cultivating the environment they want and matching the values of the organisation with the people they employ - which is something every organisation should strive for in my opinion.

"I feel like at the Kings, Flames and whole Hoops Capital organisation, that's what we're trying to do over the past few years, which is really exciting."

BECOME A SYDNEY KINGS' NBL24 MEMBER NOW

Now she's got this taste of the NBA, McIntyre would jump at the chance to be involved again in the future.

"Catching up with people like Will Weaver and Adam Caporn, as well as obviously Chase, who spent time in Australia on their basketball journey, was great and really motivated me to continue to push myself and go as far as I can with coaching," she said.

"Obviously the sport in the United States is on a far more magnified scale, in terms of the schedule and money, but this experience has made me realise that I can actually do this at this level, which is a thought I've never really had before.

"Whether that becomes a reality in the future or not, who knows, but I'm definitely not going to shoot down that possibility - if I'm ever lucky enough to be granted that."

Stay up to date with all the harbour city club's off-season news here.