Yep, the league has lost a lot of very good players but seems to be more than making up for it! Such is the cycle.

It would have been great if DJ and Goulding stayed. Is this the most talent the NBL has seen in recent memory?

Compelling argument being made for it, RMQ

You know, as much as some people deride Ennis (not me however), his entry into the league last season really kicked some teams in the ass in terms of the product they are bringing to the league. The Wildcats did something a little different to get a different team mix, and then Ennis started to get some domination and then media attention and other teams went : Id like some of that.

Now the Kings being a Sydney team went all in and got burned a bit, but this year Id call the rise of the Import.

I wonder who the 10th spot will go to now ? Only 2 points to spend.
There are rumours that if U'u isn't picked up soon the cats may be able to use a loop hole in the player points system to sign him. They also recently brought in Anthony Fisher over as a " development player" .....maybe he could be the Plan B if U'u doesn't work out ,

you mean after NZ won 3 championships in a row (including sweeping Perth in the finals) and introduced a Guard called Cedric?

Anonymous is crazy; Cedric Jackson > Beal on exposed form.

Agree that a fit Damo would have made the third GF series more competitive though.

I personally lament that the 2011/12 series was marred by injury and illness on both sides. Both teams at their peak would have made an already great series a true battle of titans.

jackson hit them clutch free throws against perth didnt he?

I also don't disagree that it would have gone to 3 if D.Martin was fit.
Look at how quick NZ dropped off without Jackson. He makes them a whole lot better with how he breaks traps with ease and pushes the tempo and then gets into the lane and either finishes at the rim or finds an open 3 point shooter. Then at the other end he uses his length to get steals and rebounds the ball very well for a guard

Jackson does it exceptionally well at both ends. His 2013 season was right up there with the best.

I love the hype about best season ever or in a long time.

Realistically we've lost Clarke, Goulding, Ennis, Johnson, Ogilvy, Wilkinson, Tiggs and Martin. We've replaced them with Jackson, Childress, Daniels, Barlow, Kickert, Dennis, Brandt, Duinker etc.

It's a pretty even swap, but the point is many people seem to be looking at the NBL more positively these days, where the focus used to be mostly on negatives.

That's an important step to have made.

FWIW I think this year and last year are as talented as the league's been outside the peak of around 99-02, so it's not just hype.

Just fyi, we lost our top 3 mvp's. Clarke, Goulding, and Ennis. Who got 4th in mvp? Wonder if they stayed..

The only team that appears to be worst on paper this year is Adelaide.
Think Breakers, Townsville, Melbourne and Wollongong are clearly better with Cairns, Sydney and Perth probably similar on paper.
Should be a good competition this year!

Wollongong are still a question mark. Their backcourt last year was outstanding once Martin got fit, and Tiggs at the three-spot was very good. Who will replace Martin and will the Hill/Coenraad combo at SF get the job done?

Wollongong
Last Year
Martin/Cooks
Rotnei/Demos
Tiggs/Coennard
Forman/Gruber
Davidson/Harris-Tunks

This Year
Ervin/
Import/Demos
Coennard/Hill
Forman/Ballinger
Davidson/Gruber

This years is deeper as long as Davidson isn't out for too long and the second import is decent they should be better.

Deeper if Davidson's not out too long, but not necessarily better. If Martin and Davidson aren't there they lose their biggest advantage, and if they have to get an import big and replace Martin with inferior locals they will be worse off.

Anyway, judging teams on pre-season paper is just a ttime filler for fans, talent on paper is just a small part of success.

Everything looks great on paper but its how a team gells is the most crucial thing.

@Phillip the Troll:

Rotnei Clarke 128 (replace with 2012/13 MVP Jackson)

Chris Goulding 122 (replace with 2013/14 preseason MVP fancy Dennis)

James Ennis 106 (replace with DeAndre Daniels)

Daniel Johnson 79 (replace with Kickert)

Sam Young 70 (replace with Childress)

Jermaine Beal 65

Ben Madgen 63

Joshua Pace 63 (replace with Barlow)

Tom Abercrombie 62

Damian Martin 61

Gary Ervin 60

Brian Conklin 59

AJ Ogilvy 58 (replace with Brandt or Duinker)

Mark Worthington 58

Apparently no out-clause on this one!