more to it

Theres a story about that on the NBL website.

Think about all this, if Mal really wanted Phil gone he would have said 'look, thanks for everything Phil but we have decided to move the club in a different direction'. Instead, Mal has come out saying, 'Phil, if you reapply for the job, and your the best candidate from the given field, then obviously you are the best person to continue with.'

Is there any better coach than Phil out there, that would want to coach in Adelaide?

dont have sarcastic replies to this one guys, but how many of u think with the way we have been playing lately and phil not coaching badly, he could actually do well next season if he gets it.

since hodge came in, te team and phil has completly lifted and changed there season.

if he did re-apply and make it i have a feeling that the way we are playing now with hodge and balls could carry on... just my thoughts

although i am not saying new blood would be bad

your thoughts...

He was on Triple M this morning and said he was leaning more towards re applying rather than giving it up. The last few weeks have been great weeks for the team in terms of how they are playing and what they have achieved. Too bad its come too late. Had the whole season been as good as the last few weeks, we would be making a lot of teams worried right now including Sydney.

Yes, Ninnis or Stacker plus others whom will bring energy and motivation. Isn't it funny that we are a rejuvenated Sixers line up now after we got a new import when the current coach kept on to Chappell for so long. Another reason is because we are letting Dodman and Burdon play when he had them anchored to the bench for so long. Also the final reason why he should not be coach again is because even with huge injuries to the team we are beating the top teams! This team had it in them the WHOLE season to do it yet because of his tired and poor coaching we will miss out on the playoffs because of this.

what if he resign but hodges still leaves for euro or something, how would people feel then?

You have got to be joking ! Sorry but he has been a lazy coach for way too long and sure we have had good results of late but that is due to a much overdue import replacement , players lifting , some half decent coaching and catching teams at the right moment.

Surely you can not let 5 or so games erase the last 3 years of utterly frustrating well below acceptable performances .

Also the tactics and combinations that have brought success are the same ones that punters have been logging here for donkeys .

Can you imagine getting half way thru next season and be in the same position as this year .
Surely can not be risked .

If PS motivation is aroused now suddenly because we are winning then clearly he has not been motivating his troops well enough or if it is because of Hodge then why give coach the credit .

rotate on this, "why give the coach the credit", why give the coach all the blame? Who do you think is responsible for Chappell's extended stay in the team? Where does Mal fit into this? After all, he is only the owner. I am suggesting that the reason why he hasn't said good bye to PS but invited him to apply for the job is because he is accepting some of the responsibility for this season.

6 seasons since our last finals win, consecutive seasons where he's seemed bored and disinterested, and consecutive seasons (likely) without making finals - his tenure is done.

Errr hello....... any coaches with more than 3 NBL titles to their name please stand up.........
Hello


Anyone

OK, how about 2 NBL titles?

Errrrrr

Is there anyone there?

Time for all you whinging losers to get off his back. He ain't perfect, he ain't even good 24/7, but he knows how to get the job done. What about all those years Boy Goorj put so much pressure on his players that they choked, and we came in with that laconic coach who kept his players loose so they could out play the Goorjian robots.

Times have been tough, but this could be the moment Phil gets inspired. No one can stay motivated when he has to continually push shit uphill. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, and I hope its not Scott Ninnis or Stacker, or some amateur whos going to have a go with my club.

For all you guys who want a change, who has Phil's credentials? Anyone?

DoDaBonk, how many NBL titles have sydney gotten since BG took the job (with another one possibly on the way)? not to mention 1 with south east melb. so to my count if he wins one this year it's 5. with if they win this years 4 in the last 10 years which has beaten PS.

but hey i don't like him but, if what you say is true then statistically BG is better than PS.

but if i had anyone coach the 36ers it would be Carl Bruton. don't forget when the canons were on death's door he rejuvinated them to the point that they actually won a couple of games! now imagen what he can do with a team with the in built desire to win another title.

Yes! Lets get Stacker. Problem! Hes said he doesn't want to coach here. Ninnis. Problem! TWICE has been not resigned/sacked as lead assistant coach, great resume that is.

I agree with DoDaBonk, nobody comes close to what Phil has achieved over the past 10-11 years bar one person.

i dont get how some of u people can forgive phil for the last 6 years, sure we won 3 titles but what about giving up newley and ingles? keeping chappelle too long? not letting any young guys play until this season, keeping and overusing mark nash for too long, openly admitting to the public he doesnt care much anymore.. the list goes on but these are just a few i dont see how he can still be coaching after so many faults.
still thats 1 heck of a career and my hat is off to him

Yes and he has been one of the WORST coaches over the last 6 or so years so what is your point? I can't believe people still go on about who has a better resume then PS for the job. Well if that is your argument then he should have never been hired in the first place as he had never coached an NBL team before and the fact is if he didn't get the sixers job he was going to be coaching a high school basketball team instead. Hell someone with a win loss record of 1 win 999 loss's would be more suited for the job then when PS first started. Is the Washington Generals coach still available?

On the other hand, excellent post rotate on this!

and the calibre of Mee, KB, Cat and co didn't make Phil look better than he really was when he first started coaching in the league.... no of course not...

When did TR mention that the 36ers don't need a coach?
What he is saying is that anybody could have coached that team and probably got the same result.

not to mention 1 with south east melb. so to my count if he wins one this year it's 5. with if they win this years 4 in the last 10 years which has beaten PS.

Has every team Boy Gorg coached gone broke?

What are Scott Ninnis's credentials?
Is there any comparison of Ninnis's and Phil's records before Phil coached in the NBL?

Phil never coached before getting the gig here. I hate the way most people assume either Phil, Stacker or Ninnis are the only 3 people on the planet capable of doing the job. I also don't like the thinking that if Phil goes then Stacker is the obvious automatic replacement simply because he's already had a lot of NBL experience and isn't currently coaching another team. Brisbane recruited out of left field with Joey Wright and I can't see why we shouldn't seriously be considering doing something similar (for all I know we already are).

I know there's been at least one applicant yet to be mentioned here.

Also, was reading about Goorjian's costs - apparently he was spending $40,000 on supplements with a past team. The support crew (conditioning guy, etc) wouldn't be cheap either. However, the Kings haven't really had any major injuries like most other teams, so it's probably paying for itself in that regard.

PS should also realise that the crowd and support was to say thankyou not please dont go .

Rupert Sapwell anyone? I believe he has also thrown his hat in the ring.
Was being talked up by Al Green on 5AA the other day as well.

Actually, if he stays or goes doesnt bother me anymore. i just want a decent team out there. i think there are way too many holes in our line up. phil's not that bad. any coach with our current line up couldn't beat the dancers in a scratch match.

-the word of Joey

What a total disaster , this whole episode is embarrasing for a professional club . How are you going to get the best by having current coach say he will apply and without strong approaches to get the best.why compare phyl with scotty or stacker as there are many more qlty. coaches out there to put some life into team, not rely on a new import to do that or Brett to carry the team to victory.
Remember 2 of those phil premierships were in first 2 seasons where probably Dunlaps systems and D work were important to the fresh Phyl approach.
Phyl hasnt put the work into progressing fwd in training, implementing systems, recruiting and for him to say he hasnt 2 months holiday in 11 yrs is total joke with short seasons and team only get together 6 - 8 weeks before season most times and certainly doesnt scout for plyrs in off season and has a much more active social life than average 40+ man with ample hols. with both sides of his life.
Then to block us real supporters that make up the regular 4k each game from voicing our opinion is childlish. Those phyl supporters are poss.the same that were saying Chappel was going to come good. look how right we were there and would have made finals if done earlier. If cant make top 8 in NBL means you have had a very ordinary year .Please Mal be serious about next season and stop messing around sign up ballinger and Hodge with a NBA out only and get us a new coach ready to work hard with our potentially very good squad to move fwd . Since this debacle I struggled to be enthusiastic and even on sat. night could not get into as should have and hardly visited this site since but noticed that poss. not only one with match day post only half normal numbers.
As phyl is one of highest paid coaches the budget should be ok to get the best

Thanks Sturty, you covered what I was implying.. You can't say Phil is better than Ninnis due to Ninnis having a loaded roster when he coached Sturt. Phil had a loaded roster when he began his coaching that contained 2 players with NBA experience and arguably the best role players seen together on the same squad in a long time.

If Phil applies and is found to be the best person available then so be it.

Was Phil's system all that good in the first place, or was it the calibre of players that made Phil look better than he is. Phil is still using that same system now and look where the 36ers have ended the last few seasons.

I've grown more in favour of Tab Baldwin and I hope he chucks his name into the hat for consideration. He's currently employed by PAOK in Greece.

Taken from Wiki:

Tab Baldwin was born in Florida and came to New Zealand in 1988 to coach the Otago Nuggets.

He was promoted with them from the second division to the NBL and then joined the Auckland Stars in 1994. In eight seasons with Auckland, he won 5 NBL titles (1995, 96, 97, 99 and 2000) and was named NBL Coach of the Year three times (1995, 97 and 99).

He remains the most victorious coach in the history of the New Zealand NBL. In 2001, he took the reins of the National Team. By winning the 2001 FIBA Oceania championship, the Tall Blacks qualified to the 2002 FIBA World Championship and even reached the semi-finals - the best performance in the history of New Zealand basketball. Baldwin has coached Banvitspor in Turkey for the past two years and reached the semi-finals this season.

Double Clutch posted recently about Baldwin having been cut from his European club, or that he had a really average record? Haven't heard any suggestion of him applying from anything other than Boti's article FWIW.

Thanks Sturty, you covered what I was implying.. You can't say Phil is better than Ninnis due to Ninnis having a loaded roster when he coached Sturt. Phil had a loaded roster when he began his coaching that contained 2 players with NBA experience and arguably the best role players seen together on the same squad in a long time.

If Phil applies and is found to be the best person available then so be it.

Was Phil's system all that good in the first place, or was it the calibre of players that made Phil look better than he is. Phil is still using that same system now and look where the 36ers have ended the last few seasons.

For what its worth, I see the majority of the team's improvement in recent times as a direct result of the play of Hodge. He's a genuine superstar. Leading the Sixers in scoring and the league in assists and offensive rebounds. That has to have an effect on a side's performance.

skip - Sapwell is still underdone as a coach. Give him a few move years and he may develop, but at the moment he's quite a ways (in terms of technical abilities) off the pace.

PS has done very well when there has been a star to build the team around. Struggles more when required to get an extraordinary performance from a regular team.

If Hodge returns, PS would be as good as anyone because his approach works in getting strong performances from big egos.

Having said that, the crowd was saying goodbye, close the door on the way.

I agree with Jess, Carl Bruton is a great coach, but I think Cal (Calvin, Black Pearl) Bruton, father of CJ is better.

It's time for a change. Personally I don't think our great wins over the past couple of months have been due to PS, but rather Hodge; Ballinger and Davidson who've lifted those around them. Most of our recent losses have been when Ballinger hasn't been able to get the score on the board. Have always found it disappointing that we have never seen PS at an ABA game or nationals, e.g. last nationals at Wayville Scott Ninnis was there and even a scout from the States. We fans did the right thing and gave a standing ovation, PS do the right thing and don't reapply.

Ballinger and Hodge asap but dont sign Phil. Phil has these guys on his side and wont sign until they know he is appointed

Administration and money plays a big part in this...money talks!

Contradict yourself much?

..."Newley signs with the Sixers even though he would never play under Phil according to some of the people on here..."
I think this statement still stands true...

#172629, that is the (and there is no other way to describe it) stupidest post in this thread. You don't know that for sure. All those comments are pure unproven conjecture. In fact, they have been proven, they're not true. So give up on it.

As for giving Phil one more shot, I thought this season was supposed to be just that? Two seasons where we were knocked out of the play-offs in the first round, then followed up by a miserable season where we finished last.... Lots of people were calling for his head, but he was given one more chance to show what he can do with a larger chequebook and more room to recruit how he wanted to. Look what happened? We need Cairns to lose for the rest of the season to make the play-offs.

When will this all end with you Phil fans? Next year, if Hodge ends up on a NBA roster and this teams goes back to what it was before he arrived, what will be your defence then, 'Oh, if we had a stacked roster, then he can win'? Doesn't hold up. Funny that when he gets the best player in the league, who almost single-handedly turns this team around, all of a sudden Phil's flaws are forgotten about, isn't it?

Oh and Ingles' decision was about money? Well, he had a choice of a development spot here, earning whatever scraps they do, or go to the Dragons, and earn some good coin for a rook and get to play huge minutes. Which one was he supposed to chioce? And who were we stuck with here, who were more deserving of a roster spot? Nash and AJ, was it?

DICKO, is there any chance that Mal has changed his mind and Phil will be actually re-signed? Seems that everything you say falls on deaf ears around here....

#172570
Speak for yourself!!! Not true for many of us.

Dearest Danaial , was wondering how long it would take you to enter the frey .

As I said before. Opinions on here do not represent the majority...thank goodness.

What does that mean Dana? You know more than everyone else? You have your finger on the pulse? Did you make a poll from the 7000 people at the game?

#172691....what about asking the same of #172570

Yes i do know more than most Danana .
And It comes not only from having having some semblance of peripheral vision .
Back to blinkersville # 172570 .

Can i retract one of those havings please , damn cats .

twenty four, this has to be one of the most ridiculous quotes I have ever heard

"Oh and Ingles' decision was about money? Well, he had a choice of a development spot here, earning whatever scraps they do, or go to the Dragons, and earn some good coin for a rook and get to play huge minutes. Which one was he supposed to chioce? And who were we stuck with here, who were more deserving of a roster spot? Nash and AJ, was it?"

As if Ingles was not in charge of his own destiny. If he accepted a role with the 36ers, it wouldn't have been long before it was realised that he was capable of playing major minutes and his talent used. If he accepted a role with the Dragons on the understanding that they would give him major minutes and then played crap, how many minutes would they actually give him? With either team he would have played the minutes that he is capable off. So if money was the deciding factor, don't blame Phil. Also how does Phil differ from any other coach who's success rides on a stacked team? The fans are happy at present with the way things are with the 36ers. All they are asking is for it to continue the following season because what we have right now, is a team capable of going all the way. We just haven't had it long enough. When something is broken, like the 36ers earlier this season and then fixed like the arrival of Hodge, you don't need a replacement.

First let me state I am a proud 36er fan of over 20 years standing, an unabashed Smythite and for a long time a follower and occasional contributer to this site. In the time that I have been following the 36ers we have won four championships playing a fast free flowing attractive game of basketball. The type of ball that puts bums on seats and fills a stadium even when a mediocre season is virtually over. This style of basketball has only been made possible because coaches of the calibre of Ken Cole and Phil S have assembled teams with the talent to and given licence to play in an open free manner. They have been allowed to display there skills and individuality within a broad and successfull structure.

Under Ken Cole there was an opportunity for a dynasty, being runner up in 1985 and winning in 1986. His tenure was prematurely cut and the sixers were left in limbo for twelve years before Phil S arrived.

It was Phil S that assembled the teams that won in 1998, 1998/99 and 2001. Unfortunately due to administrative incompetence that eventually led to a Government/Private Sector buy out of the team and restructure of basketball in this state, teams with the talent to fully exploit Phil's system could not, were not, put on court.

At the beginning of this season it appeared that he had finally assembled a team that could emulate those of the past. Then everthing went pear shape, first Newley went to Europe, Chappell arrived injured and never fully recovered and this was followed by a rolling injury list to key players at key times. You didn't have to be Einstein to see that Chappell was not producing the numbers expected fron an import and he was perservered with too long, but was this entirely the fault of the coaching panel? I don't know, I am not and have not been privy to discussions between the front office and the coaching panel. Anyway when the necessary adjustment has been made the team has started to perform to the expectations of the coach,I suspect the owner and definitely the supporters.

It is my opinion that given the cattle the present coaching panel can return us to the halcyon days when we were a force in basketball. If we are to take a new direction we have to make sure that we do not jump out of the fying pan and into the fire. Alternative coaches mentioned on this site have not shown anything to suggest that they hva the skill set to be better than the present coaches. Stacker had a better than average junior squad and won a world championship but could not repeat the record with an NBL team. In a club similar in structure to that of the 36ers. Ninnis won a local competition with stacked side. His playing record was good but not great. Goorgian would not want to come here, but if he did he would probably send another owner broke.

Isaac has said that Baldwin is off the, or has never been on the, radar. He insinuates that he is aware of someone that is of interest to the Sixers but refuses to name names.

I will continue to support the 36ers, whoever is the coach. I only hope that it is the current coaching panel.

EC, in regards to the Ingles issue let me put this to you. Assume you've just finished a university degree and are embarking on an office based career, there are two main companies you're interested in working for. Once company says "Ok, I suppose we can squeeze you in somewhere, let's see, perhaps we can make room in the basement for a desk, although you won't be able to be connected to the server down there so we'll give you one of our old PC's that no one uses. Oh, and we'll pay you $20k for your troubles". Meanwhile the other company recruiting for the same roles says "EC, we really like your style, we're prepared to offer you a corner office, a brand new PC, a car park out the front and extensive training because we want you here. Oh, and we'll pay you $50k for your troubles"

Which one are you going to choose? Obviously the seconds one as it gives you the best chance of success in your career. The fact the money is much better is great but it's not the only factor at play, far from it.

So I will repeat myself, if money was the deciding factor, don't blame Phil. Remember Ingles chose the Dragons the previous season when the government was in control of the spending.

EC - did you even read my post? How about the bit where I said "The fact the money is much better is great but it's not the only factor at play, far from it". To clarify, I don't think the money was the deciding factor, i think the fact he was welcomed, recruited and made to feel valued rather than just development squad training fodder that was the deciding factor.

Do you care to respond to that?

Bake, I said that I had not heard anything about Baldwin other than Boti's article suggesting him. He may or may not be on the cards. *shrug*

EC, you've completely missed the point. We offered the guy a development spot. South offered him an active (or whatever you want to call it) roster spot.

I'm sure Joe has his reasons for going to South, and there are many of them, but don't you think that offering, basically, a better job could've given us a better chance? Maybe he doesn't like Phil and does like Ninnis, maybe he wanted to play for a new franchise, maybe he wanted to play with his childhood hero, maybe it WAS money, I don't know. But c'mon, Phil was the one who didn't think he was worth a spot in the 10.

Would you even consider working for someone who doesn't truly believe in what you can do, when you have other offers from people who appreciate you and offer a better overall deal?

Ec, your support of the caoch is admirable but sadly misguided.
I would like to give you just 1 example of this:
Ingles decision was not about money at all, in fact there were other clubs that would have paid him more.
The FACT is that out of the 7 clubs that chased his signature the 36ers came ......... you guessed it, 7th!
Why, because of the person you so blindly are going into bat for at every opportuniy.

And Billo - the first company did not even have his name spelt right . He had done work experience at that company previously and made a decent impression i am told . The company gave an office and paid nicely a guy who has been around but never really made the grade . Company 1 screwed the pooch .

anon, I agree with them, the teams that won it back-to-back hardly needed coaching, they basically coached themselves. They all had extremely high basketball IQ's and a competetive streak unmatched.

Personally, I hope that PS re-signs, however, if he doesn't, would Brett Brown be a possibility? I understand that his wife is from Australia (Melbourne?) and he has talked about coming back here at some stage. He was always a good coach but should have improved further following his work with the San Antonio Spurs.

Thoughts?

Thanks Bake. A refreshingly new style of post.

Bizzy,

I agree that the teams we had early in PS coaching career needed little in the way of on court guidance. Players such as KB and Darnell were able to make adjustments in the flow of the game without the need for a Goorj style timeout and rigid offence.
In saying that I believe that PS was a vital ingedient to be able to control such a team of highly successful athletes and their egos. He certainly seemed to have all the players respect and was able to mould the group into a quality team who wanted to play and win for each other.
Many times we have seem teams that 'on paper' that should dominate but often these groups cannot come together for a common goal and as a result struggle. To say that any coach could have got similar results IMO is a bit harsh and doesnt give PS the credit he deserves for his role in these Championships

Statman , nicely put and something most of late ( rotate included ) have lost sight of ...

He definitely deserves alot of credit for the loosey goose 02 championship that we snaffled .

Statman,

While I'm not taking away from PS coaching, I was making the point that the team really didn't require coaching, it required the ability to keep ego's in check.

I will say that PS has a that gift, the ability to control ego's. What he appears to lack is the ability to develop and control the game from the sidelines.

I did my part and remained seated during the whole thing.

It was the least I could do...

"DICKO, is there any chance that Mal has changed his mind and Phil will be actually re-signed? Seems that everything you say falls on deaf ears around here...."

OK.......Here is the situation, as I understand it.

Phil is gone....The way this happened was an attempt to remove him nicely. Personally, I think all it's done is added confusion. From what I here, Mal has NO interest in having Phil back, but probably lacked the balls a bit to just flat out let him go.

There are a number of people of interest in the coaching race.

Stacks recently denied (to me personally) that he had applied for Adelaide. To be honest, I'm not sure I believe him.....I think he would be talking to them.

Ninnis is obviously in the mix....he's cherished the position for way too long not to have a good hard crack at it.

My understanding is that the club asked Bevo to consider applying for it, but I have no information about whether he did or not.

There is another couple of ex-Sixer players, who now coach at varying levels, that have put their hands up. I know of one that is VERY keen, apparently. Did Boti name anyone in the 'tiser recently? If not, I'm not prepared to do so.....sorry.

All you guys can do is wait, it's a process that needs to be followed and careful consideration is paramount. This season isn't even over for you guys yet.

I don't know that Mal lacked "balls", but more that the coaching position is up for grabs to all applicants. If the incumbent wished to apply, why would Mal stop him?

I agree that it's potentially added confusion, but it's not a bad move and shows a good deal of respect to Phil.

I haven't heard anything else about the ex-36er that you had previously mentioned to me - if you've got the right person, I don't think they'd be a serious contender, but might be wrong.

Sapwell or Brooks.
Both have experience at ABL level, brooks getting a title with Elder at Woodville. Sapwell getting together a solid roster.

I'd rather Ninnis over both though.

It's quite simple really, when the Sixers were prepared to rort the salary cap and thus buying superior talent, then PS's team won. Now, and for the last few years when that rorting no longer took place, coaching abilty needs to fill the gap that this lack of talent has created. PS has proven he cannot do this. So, without denigrating PS's past achievements, he is simply not the right coach for the the current time.

I wouldn't necessarily go into "rorting" as the issue.

It's more a case of Phil coached vets (who knew their roles intimately) very well.

The 6ers are looking at having to attract and develop some new young talent to fill the shoes of guys like Maher (who must retire at some stage), Ng (who you would assume is going to take up his medical studies...He'd be a fool not to), Copeland (who is retiring), etc.

They need someone who can attract and develop the NEXT group of Formans, Holmes, Ingles, Newleys, etc. Maybe even attract one or two of those guys back.

I wouldn't call it a rebuilding Phase just yet, who would with guys like Ballinger, Hodge, Maher, etc, but it's certainly something they have to start thiking about. Every indcation here suggests that even the best of the 6ers current young guys MIGHT become a good role player, none look like being legit NBL stars.

Putting together THAT sort of team, and developing it is not Voldemort's strength.

Here is some hopefully some 'undisputable' Evidence of why we need a new coach.

It took Voldermort two months to develop a press breaker play this season to combat full court presses that were absolutely killing us and lost us a lot of games

Voldermort is rarely seen at Sixers functions (ie Quiz Nights), is rarely seen at local games, and is rarely seen at post match conferences.

Voldermort does not develop youth very well.

Don't mistake the change in form over the last 5 games as good coaching, we have a new sensational import.

Voldermort has been given the team of his choice this season - and it has failed to deliver this season.