(In case you were wondering, this was my exact reaction.)
Showing posts with label NBL. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NBL. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
WHY BASKETBALL IN AUSTRALIA SUCKS
(In case you were wondering, this was my exact reaction.)
Monday, August 31, 2009
R.I.P. MIKE WRUBLEWSKI
Two R.I.P. posts in a row is never fun. R.I.P. Mike Wrublewski. And even though I butted heads with Mike W in the past (he tried to revoke my media pass after I wrote the "Sydney Kings: The Worst Team in Sports" article for Inside Sport - even though I didn't write that headline and the article was mainly criticising Mike for being too passionate about the team, which isn't the worst thing in the world). I always appreciated what he did not just for the Kings, but basketball in Australia.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
NBL = FAIL
"The relaunched NBL is set to go ahead later this year without a team in Sydney or Brisbane."Taken from this article.
So that's no Sydney, Brisbane, Wollongong, maybe no Adelaide and Cairns and most certainly no Nunawading Spectres. At this rate the 2009/10 NewNBL season could be the Melbourne TigerTitans vs Perth WildCrocs playing a winner-take-all, one-game showdown. I anxiously await to hear what JR has to say about the outlook of the NewNBL.
(Oh and the pic above is my visual to represent failure, it bookends well with the track below.)
Thursday, October 9, 2008
FIND ME A NEW HOOPS TEAM - TOWNSVILLE CROCS
I knew John Rillie would be the first to respond to my "FIND ME A NEW HOOPS TEAM" post, which means the Townsville Crocodiles are the early favourites to be my new NBL squad (as a fan, not a player - although if the Crocs need a guy who'll only take up one point under the points cap, I'm your man). Here's what JR had to say to sway me to the Crocs..."The Crocs should become your team. Why?
- The Crocs have alot of other fans that will share your passion. (SOLID POINT)
- I'm sure Homicide would love to give you a pair of "187's" if you join the Crocs. (COREY, I'M A SIZE 15/16 - MAKE IT HAPPEN!)
- You like to drink, so do North Queenslanders. You will have many friends at the bar. (HMM, XXXX ON TAP - ANOTHER SOLID POINT)
- We are 3-1. (GOOD START TO THE SEASON WITHOUT A LOADED, CAP-BUSTING ROSTER - VERY IMPORTANT)
- Last but not least a current Croc and former Croc have made it easy for you to fill column space. (YET ANOTHER SOLID POINT)
JR has covered all bases - a good team, good fans, located in my home state, and then sweetened the pot with the promise of free product! The rest of the NBL is now playing catchup.
Monday, October 6, 2008
FIND ME A NEW HOOPS TEAM
The three professional basketball teams closest to me all disappeared from the sporting landscape during the NBA/NBL offseason. Two of them - the Brisbane Bullets and Seattle Sonics - were closest to me in terms of I’ve always supported them, and the Sydney Kings were literally closest to me, as in their home stadium is (well was) right around the corner from my apartment and you could find me at most of their home games.
So now I’m a hoops orphan in need of a loving foster home, NBL and NBA. There are a few teams I’ve already ruled out, a few teams I’ve always had a soft spot for, and my reasons are explained below. Help me choose a team! Let’s start with the NBL, and the
Adelaide 36ers
Cairns Taipans
Now if you’re reading this and you’re connected to a NBL team, I’m looking for the following players/coaches/management to give me their sales pitch as to why I should jump on their team’s bandwagon. Conversely, if you’d like to pitch why I shouldn’t support your team due to the fact that teams I follow end up vanishing into thin air (or Oklahoma), that’s OK too. I’m expecting a representative of the Townsville Crocodiles to be the first to reply! I’ll update whenever I get a response.
Cairns: Ian Crosswhite, Darnell Mee
Gold Coast: Brendan Joyce, James Harvey
Melbourne Tigers: Darryl McDonald
New Zealand Breakers: CJ Bruton
Perth Wildcats: Andrew Vlahov
South Dragons: Brian Goorjian
Sydney Spirit: Liam Rush, Graeme Dann
Townsville Crocodiles: John Rillie
Wollongong Hawks: Kavossy Franklin
Oklahoma Thunder
Boston Celtics
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
STARWATCH - NATHAN JAWAI
XO is generally the spot for most NBL players when they're in town, but it's cool when you get a legit potential NBA future first round draft pick coming down to hang out. Nathan Jawai was cool as hell - we had a quick chat about the draft and my prediction that he'll go anywhere between 24-30, guessing that once teams see his combination of size and speed that he'll rocket up the charts - and his presence also ensured I was only the second tallest person in the club for once. If you're trying to judge his height, I'm 6'6" in shoes.I can't wait for the "THIS WEEK AT XO" post that I'll be putting up later today or tomorrow, as Big Kev (R.I.P.) would say, "I'M EXCITED!".
Monday, May 12, 2008
ANDREW GAZE INTERVIEW
After digging up my Big Boi interview from the archives, here's an interview I did with Australia's number one basketball superstar, Andrew Gaze. I did this one for New Idea while Drewy was on Dancing with the Stars a couple of years ago. I'd like to think this is the number one website where you can find all the information you need on Atlanta rappers, Australian basketballers and Dancing with the Stars. FUN FACT: I actually went to Gas Nightclub with Gaze, Luc Longley and some other members of the 2000 Sydney Olympics Australian basketball team back in 2000, and for one brief moment I wasn't the whitest or the tallest dude in the club. Ricky Grace got me that drunk that I ended up losing my tape recorder though, not sure what was said on the tape but it might be for the best that it's been vaporised.What was your first thought when you were approached to do Dancing with the Stars?
A bit surprised actually. I didn’t really know too much about dancing as such. I thought it was a real honour to be asked, but initially I didn’t give it too much consideration because I didn’t think it would be something that I’d be very good at.
What did the wife and kids think?
Based on my initial reaction, my wife Melinda thought there wasn’t a snowflake’s chance in hell that I’d get involved – we didn’t think too much of it. My kids were real keen for me to get involved. It was something a bit different for them, they were pretty excited about it all.
Have they been helping you out? Any constructive criticism?
I think so. Deep down I’m sure they’re pretty supportive. My two eldest, Megan and Courtney, are big Carlton fans, so in actual fact they’re pretty keen on Kouta (Anthony Koutoufides) as well [laughs]. Their loyalties are somewhat divided, but I’m sure they hope their old man does alright.
I’ve known Kouta for years though, it’s been a lot of fun to have him on board, we try to have a lot of fun on the show. Also, I do a radio show with Tamsyn Lewis here in Melbourne and I’ve known her for many years, so it makes it a bit easier when you know you’ve got friends going through it at the same time.
You’re still very involved with the Melbourne Tigers, any of your ex-teammates had anything to say?
[laughs] I don’t think they had a lot of confidence in my ability to dance. We got Lanard Copeland on board to help me – some of the fellas who saw me in the early days said I was lacking a bit of rhythm and we needed to bring in an expert. Now, I think they’re a little bit surprised with how it’s gone and they’re actually quite encouraging.
Did Lanard help or hinder the cause?
I think he helped [laughs]. He made an impression, that’s for sure. He got involved and lightened the session up a bit. A slightly less technical approach, but still a very entertaining way to go about it.
Any tips from your mum or dad?
My mum was vehemently opposed to me coming on the program initially. She came around and demanded I don’t go on her favourite show, ruin her favourite show and embarrass the family. She was not all that supportive early on. But once she came to a few practice sessions and saw what was going on, she loves it now – she’s probably my biggest fan. She figures that I’m not ruining her show and that’s the main thing for her.
As an ex-athlete, have you found the dancing to be strenuous exercise?
Oh, most definitely. In different types of ways compared to basketball though – the muscle groups you’re using in your legs, the positions you have to get into, the endurance, all those types of things. I guess also, for someone like me who’s never danced a day in his life, just the sheer amount of time you have to put in to learn the routines and the fundamentals of what’s involved. It certainly is very demanding. I don’t know if my partner Linda (DeNicola) or the professionals would consider what we’re doing all that demanding, simply because it’s a few pegs below what they’re normally accustomed to, but I’m sure it’s a physical strain on everyone involved.
Have you have any dancing related injuries?
My pride and ego perhaps [laughs]. Not physically, no. You have your aches and pains though – your knees and ankles start to ache, but because of what I’ve put my body though for the last 40-odd years, that’s going to be there if I’m dancing, playing golf, walking the dog... it’s just the nature of where my body’s at.
Are there any dances coming up that you’re looking forward to learning?
As I explained to Linda, we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We’re treating every dance as if it’s our last, because we know we could be gone at any stage. We focus on two dances at a time. Next Tuesday we have the tango, then after that we have the Pasa Doble, so while we focus on the tango, we learn the basic steps to the Pasa Doble – is that even how you say it? I don’t even know if I’m saying it right. I honestly don’t even know what lies ahead, I haven’t looked that far down the track – confidence is not of a premium.
You should be fairly confident – you’re one of the favourites.
That is fool’s gold. I think when you see the way some of the other contestants dance… I’d love to go all the way and I’m doing my very best to do that, but I think the reality of skill eventually kicks in, and I know my dancing is fairly limited.
Who do you think are the favourites?
I think Chris Hemsworth is, he moves great. He hasn’t scored too well on his first two dances, but I’ve seen him backstage and his body movement is fantastic. He’s been a bit strapped for time with his preparation, but you can tell he’s got some unbelievable body movement, and that combined with his popularity – he’s a heart-throb to millions – is a pretty good combination. Also, Arianne has been fantastic. Watching her dance, if you didn’t know Camelo, her partner, was the professional dancer, you’d struggle to know which one was the pro and which one was the celebrity. And probably the one who sticks out the most in terms of making a lot of improvement and is dancing really well, is Tamsyn.
I think you can throw a blanket over the rest of us. We all have our good days and our bad days. We try and keep up with the rest, but I think those three stick out.
If you do happen to win, where would it rank on your career achievements?
It would be an extraordinary achievement [laughs]. I couldn’t even comprehend it. It’s so unbelievable that I’m even dancing. I say to people that I’ve never danced a day in my life, and they’ll say: “Oh, you’ve been on the disco dancefloor” – but in all honesty, I haven’t even done too much of that at all. Not looking that far ahead though, my most immediate goal was not to be the first eliminated, so we got through that and it’s all a bonus from here.
Does the wardrobe department have trouble finding outfits and shoes for you?
[laughs] We have had a fair bit of trouble – they had to get in a shoe maker to specially make my shoes. With the shirts and the pants, we can’t just go off the rack. The wardrobe has been amazing in terms of designing the requests made by each couple. Linda does all my requests, I have no idea what I’m wearing – I just try to keep it pretty conservative. I’m certainly not going to be getting my gear off around Chris and Kouta!
During your basketball career you were known for having a good relationship with the refs, do you have the same good relationship with the DWTS judges?
I think so, I have no complaints. Scores have been good, there’s been some constructive criticism in there – they’ve been good to me. Overall, I think everyone’s pretty happy. Most of us are new to it all, so we take it as good advice and try to follow the instructions they give. It can be a bit discouraging, but for me it’s been great, I’m just trying to take on board what they say.
And this is what the finished product looked like in New Idea...
Friday, March 14, 2008
NBL R.I.P.
Just finished watching the NBL Finals, where the Melbourne Tigers (who are, with the exception of D-Mac and Dave Thomas, the most unlikeable champs of all-time IMHO) defeated the Sydney Kings. And it was in front of a sellout crowd at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, which means since the turn of the century the Kings have had three sellout crowds - twice for the deciding game of an NBL Finals series, and once for the first time the Kings hosted a Finals game.
What does this mean? That Sydney crowds only support a winner, or that the NBL has no idea what they're doing? Considering the fact that the Kings got crowds five times their current size when they sucked, I'd say it's the latter. The history of the NBL is an almost textbook case of how to ruin a sporting league.
Basketball in Australia started to pick up some momentum in the mid-1980s, and by the late '80s hoops stadiums around the country would be regularly sold out for NBL games. Then in the early '90s the popularity of the NBL went through the roof and guys like Dwayne McClain had their own McDonalds and Reebok commercials.
So how did the NBL capitalise on their success? They did... nothing. What did all the football codes do, seeing this upstart league cutting into their share of the market? They worked their nuts off to crush the NBL, recruiting stars like Tina Turner (right) to spice things up. And what did the NBL do to counter this? Again, nothing. By the time the NBL woke up, it was 2000, they didn't have a TV deal and I could fit the amount of people at an average Kings game into my two bedroom apartment. In 2008 I could fit the average crowd from a West Sydney Razorbacks game into a bus shelter.The NBL's marketing plans have been terrible. One year their slogan was "It's All Fun". What the hell is that? This might have been be the worst slogan in the history of slogans. The thing about Australia is that our most popular sports are all very physical, and the misconception of basketball is that it's a soft sport. Why not put together a highlight packages of guys getting fouled going to the basket, guys dunking on each other, those push-and-shove mini-fights that break out every game? No, a better idea would be to get a bunch of players singing along to High School Musical songs. So very, very lame.
One thing in the NBL's defence is the amount of marketable players in the league has gone down exponentially since the days of D-Train's Mickey Dees ads. Andrew Gaze, who retired a few years ago, is goofy and fun in front of a camera (like when he was on Dancing with the Stars, left), and Shane Heal was the perfect villain. Now Gaze is adorably stumbling over player's names (no shots) as a Fox Sports commentator and Heal just got cut as player/coach of the South Melbourne Dragons. Right now the NBL's MVP is Chris Anstey, who is as boring as two planks of wood. Most of the imports are charismatic, but the problem with marketing around imports is that for every Lanard Copeland who stays in Australia for a decade and a half, there's a Julius Hodge who stays for half a season.I used to be the Editor of PBT, an Australian basketball magazine focusing on the NBL and NBA. A deal I worked out with the NBL was they'd supply me with weekly player diaries, where two players a week would give me 800 words on anything they'd like, but it generally ended up being on how tough their next opponent would be, etc. In my five years as PBT Ed, three guys gave me columns that were actually interesting - Jayson Wells, James Harvey and John Rillie (who also has a cool blog, check it out here. JR also told me something very interesting in one of my first ever interviews for PBT when I asked him what the difference was between playing in the NBL and playing US college hoops for Gonzaga - he said playing for Gonzaga was like playing in a professional league that happened to be amateur, while playing in the NBL is like playing in an amateur league that happens to be professional).
[LATE EDIT: Just remembered three more players who were ridiculously helpful during my time at PBT - Andre Moore, Simon Kerle and Bruce Bolden. All three of those guys could kick my ass with little effort so I can't forget about them!]
While the NBL was helpful enough whenever I had a media-related request, they rarely came to me with ideas to help keep guys like James Smith (right) on the cover ahead of Michael Jordan (FUN FACT: a James Smith cover outsold the issue of PBT with MJ on the cover, declaring his return to the NBA with the Washington Wizards). This is while I was copping major heat from some NBA-fanatical internet soldiers as well, because when I took over the reigns of PBT I almost doubled the amount of NBL content (at the expense of NBA coverage, obviously) and let the NBL know that whatever they had for me, I'd find a spot for it in the magazine.Having said that, with all of the obstacles (which I've probably even overstated here) the NBL has had to face, part of a marketing team is to find angles to market. Yes, it might be difficult at times, but that's your damn job. I see that Mike Wrublewski is looking to buy the Kings again, and for all his flaws - like trying to cut off my media access to the team the year after I wrote a controversial article on the Kings for Inside Sport - he's passionate about hoops and I'd love to see him back involved with the NBL. He's a marketing wiz who knows how to keep the Kings in the public eye. It's just a shame that it looks like just as Mike W is coming back, Bullets owner Eddy Groves is on the way out. His deep pockets have come in very handy for the league in recent years.
It really kills me to watch the NBL slowly fade away, as it's one of the top basketball leagues in the world. We get top-shelf imports and the Australian talent is world-class. Basketball was the reason I moved to Sydney from Brisbane (as a journalist, not a player - my playing career extended to being a spare body at Brisbane Bullets training sessions as a skinny high school kid, which got me the chance to play with and against Leroy Loggins, pictured left), and now it seems there only one solution - blow the league up and start from scratch. Follow the A-League template if you have to (focusing more on regional cities though, as the NBL is thriving in places like North Queensland), get your marketing balanced between hitting core hoops fans and casual sport fans, focus on the insane talent levels we have down here and see what happens.It can't be any worse than what we've got right now.
Some links to give you an overview of the state of the NBL:
NBL, from sell-out to stay-away crowds, by Stephen Howell, The Age (December 13, 2003)
NBL chief concedes defeat, by Marco Monteverde, FoxSports.com.au (March 01, 2008)
Are we watching the death of basketball?, by By Tim Morrissey, The Daily Telegraph(February 28, 2008)
(NOTE: I haven't rigorously fact- or spell-checked this. It's intended to be my general overview of what's wrong with the league rather than a clinical point-by-point breakdown of everything that's gone wrong with the NBL.)
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
2008 NBL MVP - EBI ERE
Seriously, if Ebi Ere doesn't win the 2008 NBL MVP, the NBL will instantly lose half of its fan base (ie. me - I'm sure there's at least one other NBL fan out there. Right? Guys? Hello?).
Besides, could you see this guy in the Hummer H3 that the MVP will get? Son is already rolling in his Proton sitting on 14" rims!
Here's some snippets from an interview I did with Ebi for my website and PBT waaaaay back in 2004 when he was in his first NBL season with the Sydney Kings. He's one of the more interesting dudes in the NBL, quiet but with a lot to say at the same time.
OK...
How many questions are you asking?
A couple, shouldn't take longer than 15 minutes.
Fifteen minutes? Damn! What kind of interview is this...Sunday Conversation?
This is a potential... [I was trying to tell him it was a potential cover story for PBT, which it turned out to be - DJLS]
Damn, who do you think you are, Andy Katz?
OK, how are you enjoying the season so far?
I'm feeling good. We're number one on what you call the ladder, that's all you can ask for at this stage of the season.
What's the toughest aspect in adjusting from NCAA basketball to the NBL?
The toughest adjustment is being away from home, starting over with a new team. That's the toughest adjustment, because no matter where you go, basketball is basketball.
This is your first professional experience, right?
Fresh out of college, 22 years old. First professional experience.
I understand you've been "adopted" by an Australian family.
Yep [laughs]. That's my teammate, CJ, and [his wife] Jessica Bruton. They take care of me, look after me. They help me out, show me around, tell me what I need to do, where to go, where not to go...
What's been the best piece of motherly and fatherly advice they've given you?
Shit, I dunno [laughs]...probably to take care of myself and not to get caught up in the partying and the women.
When you first arrived in Australia you weren't really known as a great three-point shooter, now teams are really crowding you at the three-point line. Is that a part of your game that you've been concentrating on improving?
It's something I've worked on, to become a better three-point shooter. It really was a part of my game that was lacking, and I needed to improve it to get to the next level, because the top next level guards are all great shooters.
Did you feel any pressure when you got signed by the Kings, a team who were coming off their first title, and you're replacing the MVP of the league?
It ain't no pressure. You just go out there and play. It's all about having fun and doing your job, it's not about pressure. There's pressure on everyone on the team, not just me. The pressure is to win a championship. I don't care if your team is 4-15, 20-0, 15-4, the pressure is to win the championship.
When you were first offered the chance to play basketball in Australia, what was the first thought that popped into your head?
When my agent said "Sydney", I thought it would be a nice place to be because most people get caught playing in a small town. I've got a few teammates who are in France. They don't really like it there, they say the people are rude. The people here are all nice. I've got the opportunity to come to a pretty good place.
Who would you put in a NBL dunk comp?
[silence]
Yourself?
I probably wouldn't.
Why not?
I'm not a dunker [laughs]. Yeah, I'll go in it.
You can't think of three other people to go in it?
Nah.
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