Probably wanting a big guy as they would be super small playing those DP's

Who is out? Henry, harvey and the 3rd starter?

Is Crosswhite out as well?

Tough luck if they want a big but have other DPs, I would've thought?

Crosswhite's out for 3 weeks (end of the reg season likely). Harvey & Henry.

It seems like a very short-sighted approach by the league.
Not even short-sighted. No-sighted maybe?

So teams that aren't going to be in the finals, can't improve their chances for the next year by bringing in some promising young blood?

I could, perhaps, understand if tanking was an issue, but without a draft system, what's the point?

Yeah may as well let it happen. Ben Knight won't be a factor in anything infact he will prob embarass himself, so let em go...

Man i hate these rules,

i think it should be simply if the 10-12 guys you are suiting fits under the points and salary cap then its all good.

Let the kings have Ubaka and Knight, its alot fairer than not allowing them to replace them at all. Huge disadvantage. I reckon most teams would agree as this situation hits everyone from time to time. Its not like they planned for these guys to get injured and are looking at bringing in studs to upgrade them.

I can get the 7 games to play finals rule, but still not a huge fan, i doubt many would be able exploit it if it didnt exist anyway. Most top imports are still in season around the world during the NBL so not likely to be able to be rushed in for the playoffs and even if they can be its a huge disruption for the team so could end up being a disadvantage anyway.

If they have to keep it, keep the 7 game rule in with the exception you can replace a player who is out injured anytime and have them play in the playoffs if relevant as long as the injured player is seen and diagnosed by an independent league appointed doctor. As soon as the injured player is ready they MUST come in.

So basically the Kings can have Ubaka and Knight for as long as Henry and Crosswhite are declared unfit to play by a league appointed doctor. Henry wont be back, but as soon as Crosswhite is good to go he MUST come back, again not an issue as Knight will be a huge downgrade on Crosswhite at this point, so kings would be rushing him back asap.

Isnt that much fairer and a better way, without killing the Kings season after they have done so well to be in the playoff picture after being predicted to finish bottom 2?

The NBL quickly forgets how Wollongong had their assistant play the game in Perth last year.

Consistency is all that should apply. Wrong decision and NBL need to correct it. At least Ben has played this decade.

What's that got to do with anything? You think the rule says "no coaches are allowed to suit up"?

I am going to argue with everyone on here and say it's a good rule and glad the NBL uphold it.
You have to look at how it impacts on the rest of the teams.
If a player isn't going to be able to qualify then they shouldn't be allowed to play.
What if they brought in Shaquille O'Neal for one game, beat the 4th placed side and move into 4th spot knocking them out of finals?
How pissed off would that team be, especially if Shaq drops 40 and 20 and Sydney would have had no chance to win if it wasn't for the Daddy!
If Knight plays and he has 0 points and 0 rebounds but gets a steal or makes a block in the dying seconds to win, would you not be pissed off?
What it comes down to is poor team management and recruiting on Shane Heals behalf.
All teams have injuries but that's why you have back up players, to fill that spot.
I used to get pissed off when Forestville would bring in Pero for 6 games knowing full well that he wouldn't be there come finals time because he would fly out to Europe. Knocked us out on the last game of the season one year and then Forestville went on to struggle in finals.
Good on the NBL for sticking to the RULES!

FM, wasn't that earlier in a season?

I would assume it is to stop teams saving a portion of their budget until the last few weeks when wins seem to matter most and then bringing in a player they could not have afforded for the whole season.

I understand this isn't the case here but I can see the logic overall.

"What if they brought in Shaquille O'Neal for one game, beat the 4th placed side and move into 4th spot knocking them out of finals?"

This is the only justification for the rule that I can think of. While its unlikely to happen, I can see the merit in the rule if this is what they are trying to avoid.

Panther I agree 100% with you. This finally shows some backbone and governance from the league. All teams know the rules when they start the season. Poor roster management from the Kings and Heal should have taken the time to understand them better before assembling his team. If you don't spend the time to identify young development players to take the spots of injured players, then it is the club at fault here and not the league. Stop bringing back old men who are no longer playing for a reason and start looking to the future of basketball in this country. Hats off to Cairns, Townsville, Perth, New Zealand and the 36ers who all have promoted the next crop of NBL stars by embracing them as part of their team.

Oh... and I should have said Wollongong. Deric can go.

Yea, thats why you stipulate a player can only be replaced if a independant doctor says the injured player is unfit to play, this should help stop any scams going on wouldnt it?

The Kings are not trying to pull a scam, they are just trying to replace genuinly injured players, and the replacements wouldnt be considered upgrades.

If it was the Tigers saying Rush was 'injured' (when he was fit to play) to bring in say Worthington then id agree with the decision/rule, but having an independent doctor having to declare Rush unfit (which they wouldnt if he wasnt) would help stop that scenario wouldnt it?

If an injured player is unfit to play then he needs to be removed from the roster so points and salary cap is protected.

Yea say injury waivers, meaning that player cannot play for atleast say 4 weeks.

My point is also what if Crosswhite was out for the rest of the season, the bring in Worthington for the remainder of the season, knock out a team from playing finals and then come finals time they don't have Worthington and they don't have Crosswhite.
They shouldn't be rewarded for the efforts of a player who has been there for 3 games and won't be there for them in the finals.

If I was the League Commish I would be saying, "Shane, maybe you should have thought about that when you recruited 7 guards to your side and one centre....twit!"

JimmyBuckets, why can't they just play their development players to get a full roster? League only requires them to suit eight players. They could take someone with them and just not play him if things got that desperate.

My guess is because their development player is probably another guard! Lol..

Yea they can play a development player, just a huge drop off on talent from say Henry to a DP or player like Joyce, i think it would have been good to let them have Ubaka, keep them about the same level and not destroy there season, would think the same for any club when a key player goes down with a season ending injury. Im a 36ers supporter, not a fan of Heal and the Kings, but sort of feel sorry for them and the Hawks having there seasons go from almost certian to make playoffs to having there seasons destroyed by injury and may hang on if they are lucky.

The only difference between Hurdle going down, who was able to be replaced by Grant, and Henry going down and not being able to be replaced is timing, not sure thats totally fair, not like teams plan these injuries at certain times to rort the system, so yea id give the kings Ubaka for Henry, and allow Knight to play for Crosswhite. Assuming both fit the points and salary caps.

But i guess that is pro sports, injuries can ruin a season, happens in all sports/leagues i guess.

I personally think as long as its within both caps there should be no other restriction.

To stop the 'Shaq' coming in a dominating argument, make it they have to pay the injury replacement player a certain salary, could be say 50-80k, so wont get you the stud, but would be enough for a solid Ubaka type import, if the team has a import spot available, as in this case the kings do.

I think its better for the league to have Ubaka come in and replace Henry rather than Joyce/White being thrown in the deep end to replace him, who would the average fan rather watch play? Id say Ubaka.

I spose a rule is a rule, but imo roster restrictions should be looked at and simplified imo.

If your roster fits within the caps its all good, end of story for me.

Let him play, he would probably get injured aswell