Chad Yates has signed with the division one Big V side for the 2010 season, mainly due to the fact he is an associate of Seahawks legend Bobby Cunningham.

Yates has played National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) division one basketball at Coppin State University while he has also had international stints in England, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.

Newly-appointed Seahawks coach Tim Gainey said the recruit had also played in Australia before but he was not sure which side he represented.

Gainey was naturally excited about the signing.

"He's 6'9" and 230 in pounds (about 104kg)," Gainey said.

"He's just going to give us a big presence and we only really have two senior players, so with his experience he is going to give the boys some leadership and some confidence.

"The boys are all pretty excited.

"It's going to make training a lot better too because they'll progress more with somebody of his talent."

The coach believed the Seahawks squad was almost finalised.

"Domestic has just started, so I'll go up and see if any local guys are capable and see if they want to train but I'd say we're about done," he said.

Warrnambool Seahawks and Mermaids Basketball Club chairperson Kerrie Sobey believed Yates would be hugely beneficial to the city's men's team.

"The Seahawks and Mermaids committee saw it as imperative that support be given to our young and developing team, who have the skills to match teams in division one but not the size," she said.

Sobey praised Cunningham and her new committee as they ensured there was adequate sponsorship and fund-raising to secure Yates.

She explained the recruit would arrive in Warrnambool mid next week before joining the Seahawks' pre-season training.

Yates will hopefully help the team improve on last season, in which it recorded four wins and 18 losses.

The signing marks a successful week for the club after it announced that WNBL player Louise McLean, of Bendigo Spirit, and former WNBL player Katie Davis would both line up for the Mermaids in 2010.