Good to see the club being proactive as a lot of people have wanted to hear Clarke's thoughts.

Discusses that DJ, Tom etc are all on track.

Says that a big surprise after training young men is how set in their ways the vets are and aren't easily changed and has led to a lot more re-teaching than he first thought would be required.

Mmmm. Marty says he's laid the foundation this year to build on next year. "The work we've done this year will help us next year'

Interesting, with DJ the only guy contracted for next year (i understand) bit of a bugger if everyone else leaves and you have to lay another foundation next year.....

Maybe we were sticking the 'stubborn' label on the wrong guy.

Silly Innedmore, therein lays next year excuse if they don't do well :P

"Interesting, with DJ the only guy contracted for next year (i understand) bit of a bugger if everyone else leaves and you have to lay another foundation next year....."

yeah but when does that ever really happen!!!

he frustrates the hell out of me as a coach this year, but i am sure he knows more than me about basketball (and anyone else on here) so i say if the man and the club have a three year plan, i am going to give him three years to prove it! no doubting the young guys are good, creek, daly, etc. lets see what he can do, all good things need a little time.

I thought Ballinger and Creek were also contracted for next year? Or are they options?

"Says that a big surprise after training young men is how set in their ways the vets are and aren't easily changed and has led to a lot more re-teaching than he first thought would be required."

Not that many vets left in the team right now? Shannon and Ballinger? Maybe Holmes? Veiled dig at them?

I guess some (EC, Spinner!) will say that a coach should adjust a strategy to suit their players (even if it's because they're stubborn) but recent championship teams have been pretty structured, he's trying to correct on what's failed before, etc.

Pretty sure Ballinger and Creek are contracted for next season.

I saw some tension between Howard and Clarke
with Howard requiring the most re-teaching .
Holmes appeared the easiest to teach.

Thought he spoke well on Johnson , Creek and Bruce's circumstances. Very well actually. Very interesting.

Johnson with Ballinger and Creek are signed for next season, here.

He cleverly makes reference to the Breakers program as a work in progress & how it took them 6 years to get to the top of the table. Careful 36ers fans - i don't buy it. He handled the interview well & all success takes time but he lacks the proper gut instincts to be a good coach. He also lacks Penney & Bruton!! Danger Will Robinson...

I don't doubt for a minute that Clarke has had his work cut out for him this season and he works really hard for the team, but there are always those niggling questions you can't help asking. He may have a great basketball mind but veteran players you would assume are also very skilled at the game. Why can't he get the veterans to change their ways? Why do they need to change their ways? The veterans of the league have become veterans being part of the NBL and other high level men's leagues overseas. Clarke has become a great basketball mind teaching juniors. What is it about what he is trying to do with veterans that makes it the best thing to do?

Also, the often asked question about his 3 year plan and yet very few of the players being signed for 3 years makes it hard to embrace. My only guess there on how its going to work is that they intend to re sign every player in the team. I wonder how many of them will go a 2nd and 3rd season under Clarke. The rookies maybe.

Anyone appreciate the irony of Brad Hill and Luke Schenscher's name being situated behind Marty's head.

They are the only active NBL player names on the back drop that are visible and reflect the best and worst of Marty's legacy for his first year as the Sixers coach.

I think Marty hit on one of our biggest problems when he commented about our lack of resilience/ confidence and how this prevents us from stopping our opponents momentum. I have lost count of the number of games this season where one sustained run by the other team has laid us out on the canvas.

The other interesting comment was about DJ's shy personality. Perhaps DJ has found it tougher than he expected coming to a new city? If he is not settled off the floor, perhaps this has contributed to his lack of confidence on the floor as well? Might also explain why Marty has not felt comfortable thrusting him into the limelight as a starter most of the season? Hopefully a bit more time will see him come out of his shell and get the most out of his basketball ability.

On this he could parry adroitly.
E.G. ' Bruce told me he was ready to play , but maybe he wasn't. Can't be judged on that.'

On Overtime , he didn't like the questions.
Gave oblique or absurd responses.

Interesting contrast with Nagy's comments re teh Breakers' 6 year plan, where he correctly observed it had more to do with recruiting the right players than developing a team in situ.

Others have commented on the "veterans are set in their ways" comment. My additional comment is that it indicates that he's used to gettign raw material and shaping it to his vision of what the team should be. I contrast this with Smyth's initial successes, which revolved around recruiting the players needed to fit the vision of what the team should be. Goorjian operated in this way also - particularly with import selection (or non selection in the years he ran with a single import). Hopefully, Clarke will recognise the need to be more diligent in recruiting experienced players who will fit his vision for the team, rather than expect the players to change from what has made them effective in the past.

Apart from Imports and Bruton who else have the Breakers recruited? They are local talents that have all been developed over many years.

They have an entire country to pick the best talent from to put into one team. i believe the Breakers run development for the whole country akin to having the 36ers run the AIS program.

IMO Goorjian shaped raw material. Barlow, Worthington, Kendall, etc. Then at the Dragons had Worthington with Ingles, Herbert in one of his first NBL seasons, etc.

Still, I don't think any championship team has had success without very aggressive recruiting and/or picking the right imports (more recently, complementary rather than starring?).

Boti poo-pooed the Breakers six-year ra-ra in today's paper, citing strong recruiting. But how long has it taken to get them all together? Certainly not one year.

Vukona was there, left and then returned. Bruton and Boucher didn't get there until 08/09 (three seasons ago). Penney got there around 2007. Took two separate years to get an import combo that looks like it might win it all.

One of the big coups was the Bruton/Boucher combo and even then it's taken until the third season of them with the team for them to look threatening and be in a clear winning position. Yes, some water-treading in the early years, but it's a multi-year effort to assemble and you can bet serious amounts of money made it happen.

Clubs are not just contracts, they're reputations and that is a multi-year process. In the case of the Breakers, they have had a reputation of looking after players. I know that the 36ers under SOS have made a particular effort to try and repair the club's reputation - a quick example is helping Herbert and Gilchrist through recovery from injury.

and importantly they are still yet to win the title

Yes. While favourites, Perth and Townsville have both troubled them this season.

At this point, I think we'd be happy with making the finals though!

Clarke maybe a great coach and like another poster said know a lot more than me .
But when he says we made progress etc etc so he can now join Boomers program then sorry what bl-- y progress . We have gone backwards as season gone on , early could not win away now cant win anywhere even with 15 point start in 1 qtr.
Seriously what is the positive we have out of this year .
Then blames players not peforming under pressure and game ends .
Well Mr Clarke you are the one that gets caught out with opponents change of tactics and your own subbing and have team so tight and confused nobody wants to take the game on when need .
Surely also the fact all 4 of imports fail must say not only is your selection is crap but so is your handling of imports.
Now I am fine to believe in him to have another season but hell this puffing of chest re Aust. Assistant role and digs at players supporters etc really annoy me especially after losing a unlosable game last week .
Mr Clarke your supporters are suffering the SOS must and will suffer in always and all you want to do is beat your own drum .
In a year that promised so much has been a massive disaster and I cant see what you have structured to build on I am sorry mate

Have to agree with a lot of what Bretts The Man said.
If you have a three year plan and you don't make ANY progress in the first year, your three year plan is rubbish, or you just have a two year plan.

I can see it now:
"Marty, by finishing 9th this year you've actually become a worse team than the previous year,'

"Well yes, but what you have to understand is that sometimes you have to take one step backward to take two steps forward.'

AAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!

If your first year fails learn from it and adjust your plan.

I think that's what we are all praying for.
It's just the writing on the wall isn't overly encouraging.

ADELAIDE 36ers coach Marty Clarke believes much of the groundwork of rebuilding the NBL club is in place.

Couldn't agree more Anonymous. We could even go back a few more years and you'd still be on the money.
But if you don't put it on the coach who do you put it on?
He get's paid to do a job, if it isn't satisfactory he is let go, like anyone doing a bad job.

See Smyth (at the end), see Ninnis.

Out of interest, who do you "put it on' when a team wins a championship?

As a spin doctor, this coach might make a good dentist!!