Nick Nurse today revealed how his eight-week working tour of some of America's less prestigious venues can help Brighton Bears strike deals for new players.

Nurse is working as assistant coach with Oklahoma Storm in the USBL, a small-time American summer league in which teams scattered across the country cram 30 regular season games into two months.

It is a frantic schedule but that does not dull the Bears coach's enthusiasm for the talent he is seeing.

And he reckons the more names he puts on his wanted list for next winter, the easier his bargaining position will be when he comes to piecing together a new line-up in Brighton.

Nurse said: "The talent level here is surprisingly good. Pretty much everyone on our team could play in the British League.

"The problem is they are players who go from one minor league to another and get paid a lot of money.

"They work the different leagues and might make five, ten or 15,000 dollars a month.

"I wouldn't mind taking a couple of guys from this Oklahoma team. I'm getting to know them really well.

"In fact, I see players on all teams I would like to sign. What that means, though, is there's no need to get backed into a corner by one player. There is such a pool of talent out there."

Nurse's role with the Storm involves scouting and one-to-one coaching, often with the focus on shooting, the area in which he excelled as a college player.

He is living in a hotel in Enid, the town where Storm are based, but spends much of the time on the road.

A highlight of the season was the trip to New York, to take on Brooklyn Kings, New Jersey Flyers and Westchester Wildfire.

Nurse said: "We saw the sun rise over the plains of Kansas when we left and saw it go down over the Statue of Liberty.

"It was fun. We paid our respects at Ground Zero and visited stuff like the NBA store in Fifth Avenue.

"The trip to New York was awesome but a lot of the travelling is around the mid-west, which is great for me because that's where I'm from.

"We have to make a seven-and-a-half hour drive to Nebraska twice and all you see on the way is a lot of cornfields.

"The league is a lot like the BBL. Some teams get a few thousand watching them, some get a few hundred. We don't have any national media coverage but the local guys cover us well. All our games are live on local radio.

"The games themselves are great. We really put on a good show."

Storm are heading for the play-offs in good shape after ending Kansas City Cagerz' run of 27 home wins on Friday.

Their 108-106 overtime win against Dodge City Legend, in which each team had a man ejected, was typical of the entertainment served up.

Former London Towers centre Louis Truscott was the Storm man to go for swinging a punch but Oklahoma got through by shooting at 47 per cent from three-point range.

Nurse said: "That was huge for us because the three-point line is further back, like in the NBA. In fact, we play NBA rules full stop.

"That's another good thing for me. It's useful to get used to NBA rules if that's where I want to end up one day."

Ryan Huntley, Andrew Alleyne, a well-rested Tony Holley and Ronnie Baker top the list of last season's Bears who are likely to return.

POSSIBLE TARGETS
Quannas White: Point guard who helped Oklahoma State University to the national final four before having a brief stint in France. Similar in style to Ryan Huntley. Nurse said: "He's a steady Eddy' type, just like Ryan."

Terrence Crawford: A strong, athletic forward, 6ft 6in, also from Oklahoma State. Good rebounder and defender with potential to improve his shooting. Nurse said: "I just love guys that play with that much toughness and heart."

Louis Truscott: Big man who was surprisingly cut by London Towers last season but has been piling up rebounds for Storm. Would welcome a second crack at England but needs to toughen up.

Joe Buckets' Adkins: Another Oklahoma State man who can play either guard spot. A great shooter who saw a possible career in Russia cut short by a knee injury. Nurse said: "He can really heat it up with his shooting."