Jordan Ratinho putting his best foot forward as Sheffield Sharks welcome Leicester Riders

Due to injuries on the Sheffield Sharks roster towards the end of last season, the 25-year-old Californian became an almost ubiquitous presence, logging 40 minutes a game some nights and shouldering the burden of scoring.

This season, as Sheffield have transitioned into more of a small-ball line-up to keep pace with the shifting sands of the BBL, Ratinho is being used more as a forward when traditionally he has played the majority of his basketball career – back in the States and in Sheffield – as a guard.

The Sharks remain a team transitioning into a new style but it seems to be working, their win over big-spending London Lions last weekend makes them the only team to beat the leaders twice. They welcome Leicester Riders tonight on the back of five wins in a row.

"It’s still evolving, I’m getting more comfortable playing at the power forward spot now, which I’ve played sparingly in the past,” explained Ratinho.

"That lets more playmakers come into the game, so really we have a lot of guards in the game. If we want we can put Kipper (Nichols) in there and play a real small-ball line-up.

"There’s a lot of good athletes in the league and at times that works out for us. So I’m guarding the second tallest guy on the floor, sometimes the bigger man, guarding ball screens instead of guarding somebody who is coming off ball screens.

“Since I came to the Sharks I’ve been playing more guard, and then a little bit of both. I’m pretty interchangeable – whatever works for the team.”