Kenny is likely to suit up with limited minutes this Thursday!

Wouldn't bother unless he's 100% recovered and they are just easing him back in..

"and construct your sentences that they make sense."

*and construct your sentences IN A MANNER that makes sense.

JasonC

This game hasn't even started yet and the trolls are out in force.

"JasonC"

Jason C

;-)

Kings @ $1.72 sound good to me.

Heartening that Kenny is a chance to return, even if it's only limited minutes.

Not sure I like the sound of "limited minutes"?
If he's recovered, and they just don't want him to overexert, then that's fantastic. Just hope he has actually recovered.

It will be good when he's back, we should at least look respectable.

Hard to think the Cats will lose at home again.

Defence still needs working on. But pretty sure Sydney will feel the heat.....no easy game against the Cats at their home ground.

"Can only hope that Sydney can still draw a massive crowd"

This 'massive' crowd probably won't materialise until Sydney gets into the Grand Finals or the season after they win a title. Even then I'm skeptical. Currently, the Kings receive very little news coverage on FTA channels and very brief mentions on radios. NRL, AFL and A-league dominate the sporting scenes in Sydney.

There was a time during the D-Train era or when they won 3 in a row that the Kings could have cemented their spot amongst the major sports, but they blew that chance and disappeared for two years even.

Still, Sydneysiders love winners and can be massive band-wagoners. I vaguely recall the Kings vs. Razorbacks Grand Final in 2004 where it was sold-out and had over-capacity crowd standing at the back aisles. I think there were at least 12,000 in there and on the final few minutes when the Kings made their run, the place was so loud you could tell the Razorbacks were intimidated and choked.

Should be close, if recent form is a guide- every Wildcats game is.

Kings to win, by 5-7 points, on the back of their pressure D forcing a few extra TO's and getting out in transition.

Even without Damo (or Kenny) Perth have managed to grind other teams down over the course of the game, but I feel Sydney will just have too many options for them.
I could be wrong, but I reckon this game goes one of two ways: Sydney should get out to an early lead, then either Perth does enough to hang in, claw back, Sydney gets rattled, and we have another nailbiter. Or Sydney will just be too good and pull away. Could become a blowout.

"Luuuc thinks whoever is playing the cats is always good value"

That's not actually far from the truth. I do feel like we are frequently shorter priced than we deserve to be, and over the long term I am well ahead on going with my gut on that one.

Kings at $1.72 is obviously not the value that NZ at $2.67 was last round.

NBL Nation podcast for this week:
https://soundcloud.com/user-540849461/round-7

Kenny is rubbish.
Surely the wildcats have signed a decent replacement for Damo.?!

Kings by 8 (irrespective of Kenny suiting up - lol)

Lisch will torch the Cats this week. He's back in form and with no Damo annoying him, I fear for Perth in both games this week.

Surely the wildcats have signed a decent replacement for Damo.?!

If Perth lose both games to Sydney this week I think we may just see some roster changes. If they play well and get the split the roster should stay the same. 11 more weeks wthout Damo is too long to go if the rest of the team can't get the job done.

I hate to back them, and maybe this will be the kiss of death: Violet Crumbles to win both games this weekend, barring injury to Lisch.

I suspect Perth are pinning a lot on the return of Kenny. If he makes it back soon, and the Cats look decent with him, they'll sign some local spud as a Damo replacement and run with that.
But yeah, if they're still struggling, expect another "de-activation."

I think it's still going to be pretty tough for the Kings to get the win in Perth...

They're still not 100% clicking as a team since Blake joined, and have relied on individual brilliance from some players to get wins the last few rounds... Sure, when those players are Lisch and Newley, it's something that is easy to rely on, but certain Wildcats players seem to step up against us (Wagstaff hitting a thousand 3s against us last season still stings) and Powell will really have to keep his head in check with the attention that he is so obviously going to get from most of the Wildcats players (especially Wagstaff) and the more vocal courtside fans...

Lisch and Cadee will hopefully have their way with whatever backcourt the Wildcats can scrounge together, but otherwise the Kings will have their work cut out for them... Prather will be tough and same with Knight... Hopefully we can avoid too much home cooking and not let the foul count be a factor, as Maric and Whittington especially will be keys to a victory...

I don't care if Perth have 10 guys out injured and are fielding a SEABL side, I'm never particularly confident about any team's chances against the Wildcats @ home.

We *should* beat them, but I think it will be close.

Yes games in Perth are always tough. It's the longest flight for most teams, biggest time difference, big crowd, etc. If we had Damo back, I'd back the Cats notwithstanding Sydney's quality and depth. If we have Kenny for a full game, it could be close.

A lot depends on JJ and McKay. If they cut lose the Cats could actually post a respectable score.

As long as McKay is on the floor that is.

Cats by 10.

Wildcats $1.80, Kings $2.00 for tonight's game atm, so not much in it.

Worst value bet appears to be the $10.00 being offered for Corban Wroe to score the first basket of the game.

50% off Bronze & Silver tickets for tonight's game via Student Edge.

https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/276405

I despise both teams

Like watching Carlton and Collingwood ....

or two ex girlfriends fighting you don't care who wins as long as they beat each other up

Kings by 15+

McKay's gametime is a bit of a worry. Only 14 minutes last week which was his lowest of the season. Gleeson barely played him in the second half and didn't even put him on in the 4th. I was surprised since NZ have some really good bigs and Knight did most of the work.

Wise words from the double e-d Wookie!

Cats always make the game a fight & if they can run the Kings off the 3 point line, get inside Powell's head & get the bigs in foul trouble (which has happened a few times this season) then the Cats are a chance!

But on paper..... the Kings by a thoooooouuuuusand, yet they're under the cap? ; )

need to limit newly and lisch, every team play there best when they play here. Perth get the split, think we would be happy.

would love to see a fully fit Perth,Sydney and United! go for that top spot.

I feel like the Kings backcourt will kill ours, and Newley is a worthy opponent for Prather so if we have an advantage at that spot it's marginal, therefore our chances once again hang largely on what Knight can produce.
This would be a good time for Jesse to rediscover his perimeter shooting form.

You'd assume the guard line of Lisch, Cadee, Blake and Newley would dominate Johnson, Kernich-Drew and... umm... whoever else Perth has.
Prather, McKay, Knight and Johnson would have to come up huge for Perth to win, you'd think.

Perhaps I am too cynical, but I would be surprised if Perth kept the margin within double digits...

Need Waggy to knock a few 3's

Brisbane and Cairns beat us by out-working us, which is Perth's biggest strength, too. I can see Matty Knight having a huge game today.

Except Gaze.

Stream not loading for anyone else?

No stream for me either, wasn't this game meant to have started 10 minutes ago?

Yea no stream just some stupid ad

11-5 cats

"Ooyala"

Yay...

Every single bounce of the ball going the LUCKY Wildcats way so far...and i mean every bounce/deflection

Is anyone else NBL TV not working?

Every single time a shot goes up, it just seems like a real struggle in the NBL to get a rebound.

Seems like players are so poorly positioned fundamentally in this league

No not Ooh La La, more like WTF?

Lol Kings, Cats 11+ looking good :)

Bloody hell NBL.tv.. looking like a good start too by the Cats..

Goddamit missing the demolition :@

Refs have good cash on the Wildcats..

Lets see if they can get them home to collect there bets

Nearly 20 minutes in and bloody stream still hasn't started yet.

Glad I'm with Telstra and didn't pay for this Crap.

lol

What about that alternate link the NBL posts when NBL.tv isn't working, anyone got that URL?

Annoyed to be missing this. Two teams I've been following particularly closely.... Argh.

We back

DKD hit it too :(

Blake is the worst guard defender in the league... can not stop a drive or pull through.

DVD da bessss

*DKD

Kings need something....give Hill or Moller a go!!!!!

lel Kangz

'Lisch plucks his eyebrows'

It's how they do it in the NBA where Lisch is ready for

Kings are the most overrated team the NBL has ever seen...I told you all...there NBA imports are nothing but rejects who couldnt get jobs anywhere else...

Kinny bro wtf

Lisch is sooooooooooooo good!
The rest of the Kings have gotta play some D. Seriously.

lol @ Kings interior 'defense'

Vlahov :(

This Bragg guy can play

WHere's he been?

Loving Bragg!
Just made Jason his Caddie : )

Kings lucky we're not down 30 points.

Bragg could be this year's Jarrad Weeks?

LOL, they asked Blake why he chose Sydney...the first thing he said was "because the weather is good"

Thats the only reason he is here and no other team put an offer for him.

hoops.com.au feature request - "Mute Tempo" icon.

Robbins is decent on the mic, but needs to break away from the "we" stuff when talking about the Wildcats.

Yes Bragg looks a lot better than Wroe. Looks more agressive than Kenney as well.

Powell on the court for 11 minutes and NOT ONE rebound.

LOL, no wonder no team wanted him.

Every NBA player that lands here is here for a reason..and not a good reason for the team he is playing in.

Best thing about Bragg as far as young guys go is that he knows when to pull back and when to attack. When he's racing it up court a lot of guys with his foot speed will drive into a packed key as soon as they beat the guard pressing him up court, but so far Bragg seems to pick his spots well.

Tempo again with his groundbreaking insight as to why guys play in the NBL rather the NBA.

Tempo, kind of like how you're here for a reason... and not a good reason for every other poster?

That was gold Jesse, gold!

So far its Perth playing to win and Sydney playing not to lose. Lets see if we end up with two teams playing to win.

Amazing display of heart by the Wildcats. Championship stuff.

yay Imports

Mason Bragg an absolute find. Prather on MVP form.

Seriously Tommy, it's not you setting the screen at 10 seconds there, it's Powell setting it at 5.

Much better Q from the Kings, but it's probably too little, too late. Can't give the Wildcats such an advantage on their own court.

Did Blake just get beat on the drive again? By a forward? You need defenders Gazey to complement Lisch & Newley.

Dammit Newley killing my Cats 11+

So... let's just keep feeding Newley eh.

Is Powell even playing tonight?
Or just waiting to post stuff on instagram?

Kenney with dat clutch gene

Just too many missed wide open 3s for the Kings.

Air Delay...i keep telling everyone...do u think these "EX NBA" players are here to win or are here for a holiday?

COme on 11+!!

And Tempo, we keep telling you - you're a moron.

If i hear 1 more time how stacked this Kings team is...i will scream..

THEY ARE NOT...they have 2 FORMER NBA players...one is 36 years old and is here because of the "weather"...the other was nothing but a fringe bench player a number of years ago who also bounced from league to league.

Maric is arguably the worst centre i have ever seen...The guy is a lumber jack and has feet for hands.

The only GOOD players are Lisch and Newley...EVERYONE else is a hack. Cadee thinks he is Steph Curry..

This team is the most overrated i have ever seen in world sport.

I'm starting to believe Tempo...
Has Cadee had a doughnut tonight too?

Can't teach heart & the Cats have had way more than the Kings tonight.

LOL @ Steve Blake...

That is exactly why woeful teams such as the 76ers didnt want anything to do with in your twilight years..

It is showing....just retire and stop embarrassing yourself. You have no heart, no motivation and are here just for a Xmas holiday

13. Well played Mikey

The arguable worst center Tempo has ever seen has achieved more in his professional basketball career than Forum Troll Tempo ever will achieve in his life.

LOL...it shows you how bankrupt we are for talent in the NBL when people get excited when a 36 year old "NBA" player who cant even get a gig at the woeful 76ers comes to Australia

Sydney lived by the 3 and then died by it, they stalled when the threes stopped dropping with a few minutes to go.

Newley was worth the price of admission. Now that the Cats have to go on the road, let's see if they can keep this up. I do like the double header fixturing with teams matching up twice in a round, makes for interesting viewing.

Cheers. And I just scored a cracker with Pogba in FIFA :P

Points in the paint 48-16.

Ouch.

Rebounds 37-28(and that includes the stretch of 30 seconds of play at one stage where the Kings got 3 or 4 second chances in a row).

Cats with so much heart tonight.

They need to find a way to keep Bragg on their roster when damo is back. His speed and energy are real assets.

DKD is an absolute gun! Pure shooter, good handles. Someone needs to tell Gleeson he deserves more minutes.

just saw Powell jump in a car with some chick

or is just me? don't want to assume anything different! I'm not taking the piss.

Sydney then daylight then LV,s left ear .... even more daylight ... then LV,s right ear.

No need to get hysterical Tempo, it was a pretty entertaining game that could've gone either way after Newley's last made 3pt.

Wildcats gave everything they got and Gleeson coaching masterful in this game. Its a very well deserved win.

The Kings in their current state are definitely not daylights ahead. There were flashes of that potential but LV is right, there's still Khazzouh to return, Gaze to get better and some players to hit their form with the right mindset. Its a bit unfair to tease LV about the daylight comment everytime the Kings lose and it gets old hearing the cries of stacked, over-the-cap team everytime they win.

Yeah I hope we get to see these two teams with their full roster with every player on both team bringing their 'A' game. Would be an incredible game to watch and please if it does happen make it double OT game :).

Fun night.

Much more fun than I expected :-)

Wow!
What a game.
I knew have Kenny back would help settle things, but I never expected that.

I could be wrong, but it seems if the Kings get rattled early, they struggle to regroup.

Newley is a legend, single-handedly kept them in the game.
But champion teams know how to close out a game. Just look at the Breakers.

Bragg looked impressive. He's certainly very quick and energetic, and made some nice moves tonight. Wroe might have to fight for his spot.
NB: Bragg is a DP, and we can always suit up at least one DP every game.

McKay was down with some kind of illness, but still came up with some big plays. And of course JJ had a good game.

Prather already has the Cats MVP award in the bag, and has set his sights on the league.

"Game 2" just got really interesting. I hope its a sellout for the Kings. Perth are extremely tough at home, not so on the road, so Kings should go in favourites, but still this result should liven up expectations.

Tempo is operating at a very slow tempo.

Very, very, very slow.

(Let me translate for you, tempo: you are dumb)

Really enjoyed this game and a great way to celebrate my birthday. Perth's offence was pretty damn good in the first half. Casey Prather is up there with the best player in the NBL this year, he makes everything looks so easy. How spoilt we are to have players like Newley, Prather, Randle and Lisch in the NBL this year.

Some good signs for Perth with DKD, Bragg and Brandt putting in solid games and stoked to see Kenny back.

^^hahahahaha

I love the nets at Perth Arena

Although they could be a little shorter to reduce flippage

Anyone that said "if you're relying on Kenny, you're going to have a bad time" has just been shown to have zero knowledge about how basketball works.

Kenny is seriously underrated, his influence on the game can't be measured by stats. Perth look like a different team when he was on the floor.

Gutsy team win, but as impressive as the guys were on the court I fully expect the NBL to disqualify us tomorrow once they catch wind of chairgate. It's one thing to have the advantage of a passionate home crowd, but having an unfair numerical advantage in bench area chairs is crossing the line for sure, and not a win I feel morally comfortable with accepting.

Here's the press conference with Gleeson & Prather:
https://audioboom.com/posts/5295538-perth-wildcats-93-def-sydney-kings-80
Trevor of course being a flog and acting as if the win was honest and above board.

Gleeson is a flog

Gleeson may be a flog, but he's getting the job done.

To his credit he's managing to keep his flogginess levels just shy of tech foul territory during games.

"Should Bragg take wroes spot. Once he gets more experience he'll be handy."

Yes, I don't think this is even a question after tonight...

Great win considering the injury issues with our back court. Didn't think we could win this one, and i'm tipping Sat night will be a bit tougher.

What baffles me though is we see a lot of the carry on from the coaches, yep Gleeson is one of the worst, it could be fixed pretty easy by the refs, some of the stuff the coaches do and say would not fly in any other league around the world, the refs need to get tougher on all the coaches and start with the tech fouls, that will shut them up pretty quickly.

A ref had the perfect chance with Gleeson last night when he thought Bragg was fouled on the drive, the carry on was embarrassing and should have teched straight away, would stop all the chat from the coaches straight away.

I was told last year the league liked seeing players and coaches carrying on after calls because they thought the emotive stuff made good TV. I don't know if that's true but if it is I don't really agree, we should be focusing on the play, not the refs.

Did not see whole game. Kings can't go 1/9 from Blake and Cadee and hope to win. Cadee is very erratic in shot selection. He can get really hot but he is not consistent.
Really worried about Andrew Gaze's body language when things are not going well. Looks resigned.... angry..... blame look to me.
Definitely not the same Gaze at start of season, when they were looking the goods.

Lol @ People who failed year 5 comprehension, flunked year 7 English and then get on internet forums and have a crack at people who are more intelligent than they are.

Kings should be back on top of the ladder by the end of this round.

Not daylight yet, but they're still the best team out there until somebody proves otherwise- and no, last night was not proving otherwise.

I'll say this though- Prather is probably MVP of this comp so far. At worst, second behind Randle.

If he keeps this up all year, they will finish top 4 and will prove a tough match up in the semis.

"but they're still the best team out there until somebody proves otherwise- and no, last night was not proving otherwise."

Why wasn't it? What factors will you cherry-pick in order to claim the second-placed Kings are clearly the best team?

A DP with 2 games experience severely outplayed Cadee and a 12 year NBA veteran, in a third of the time on the court. Cracks are appearing in the Kings team - maybe anointing them the greatest time of all time after just six games was a bit premature.

"Kings just think ..."

No

Let's see how they respond tomorrow before making sweeping statements about the team's attitude.
They've got top notch competitors in Lisch & Newley leading the team so I'm not expecting them to just wilt away.
(btw I'm not denying that they got pantsed in the effort areas last night, but that was 1 game)

I think the Kings imports issue is a very complex one.

Tempo has an insightful theory about the subject that he's been working on, which delves deep into the many facets of it. Hopefully we get to hear more about that one because as wild as some of his ideas are I think he really might be onto something.

"What factors will you cherry-pick in order to claim the second-placed Kings are clearly the best team?"

There's no cherry picking involved- even after last night, they have the best record (7-4 with 5 home, 6 away is easily more impressive than 6-3 with 6 home, 3 away), and the best +/-, with + 39 compared to Perth's + 25.

"Cracks are appearing in the Kings team - maybe anointing them the greatest time of all time after just six games was a bit premature."

SMH.

I said- once they have their full team and once they click, they'll be stacks better than anyone else this season.

They havent yet got their full team, and it's still early days so we can't judge whether they have clicked. In other words the jury is still out.

I'll be perfectly happy to admit I'm wrong when the time comes- but it's far too early to pass any judgement at this point.

FYI Sydney are still one of two teams who don't have a losing record away from home. They're 3-3, NZ is 2-2. Everyone else has a losing record.

Let's see if the Cats can do the same. I doubt it. Their only road win so far is a 3 point victory over United minus their best player.

Oh Sydney's been rubbish for the majority of their last 5 or so games. Absolutely right.

It took a hot streak from Cadee in the first, and some classy efforts from Lisch in the last to get out in front of United, but as a team they didn't even look better than their opponent- who was missing 3 starters. And they got burned in the last in Brissy, got locked down in Cairns- yeah they are totally struggling, no doubt about it. Gaze needs to change their offense up, they run the same plays and everyone knows what they're doing.

It'd really help if Powell, Cadee and Whittington recaptured early form, and they just aren't clicking as a team. They can't rely on Newley and Lisch' brilliance to carry them through a season.

The ball is in Gaze's court now, they need to introduce some extra spice to their offensive sets. And the effort factor needs to remain consistent instead of wax and wane- rebounding remains an issue.

But I still think they'll get through it and come out on top- although Casper Ware's signing in Melbourne gives some cause for optimism there, Perth just keeps on being Perth. Cairns, NZ, Bris all looking strong. It's fun to follow this season.

"Let's see if the Cats can do the same. I doubt it. Their only road win so far is a 3 point victory over United minus their best player."

And there is the cherry-picked stat I was waiting for. Perth lost one of those road games by 5 to the Hawks, without Martin and Kenny. IF (and we're allowed to use "if's", right?) they had at least one of those players, the result would have likely been different and they'd be the only team with a winning road record. Daylight!!!

"once they have their full team and once they click, they'll be stacks better than anyone else this season.

but it's far too early to pass any judgement at this point."

So which is it? They will be stacks better, or its too early to pass judgement?

Yeah but they were playing Illawarra- clearly the worst team to date- when you factor in health.

Even United minus Barlow, Blanchfield and Goulding stayed in their game in Wollongong until the last few minutes. The Hawks have literally played one impressive game all season, and you want to hang Perth's hat on the fact that they made it close against them, despite being injury riddled? Come off it!


[So which is it? They will be stacks better, or its too early to pass judgement? ]

Just to give you a bit of help here mate. Since you're clearly struggling here.

"They will be stacks better once they have a full team" or "it will be Kings vs daylight" - they are *predictions*.

It's too early to tell if my predictions will turn out to be correct. Hence, we can't pass judgement yet.

"and you want to hang Perth's hat on the fact that they made it close against them, despite being injury riddled? Come off it! "

But you labelled Perth's losing road record as a key factor, while ignoring the specifics of one of their losses, yet being specific about one of their wins! You can't pick and choose when you want to look at things from a high level, or when you want to delve in to what goes on in a game eg Perth beating United only when they were missing their best player.

It's pretty simple- Perth have been winning the close ones at home, and they've been losing them on the road.

I predicted that they wouldn't win many road games this year. So far I'm correct, since they're 1-2. Let's see if it stays that way.

But regardless of my specific prediction, the point right now is that Perth have had the easiest schedule to date- so even given their injury woes, 6-3 isn't all that impressive. If they can keep winning on the road, then I'll be impressed.

LV are you kidding me? We almost beat a firing new zealand without a legitimate PG and our MVP getting fouled out, then beat the league leaders with a less than 100% back up pg.

I personally agree as a cats fans, that we can be quite arrogant at times but seriously we back it up? finals every yr, 7 chips and after the circus we've had this yr with injuries, imports etc we are again sitting atop of the ladder.

You almost beat a firing NZ, whose Point guard had just gone down with an achilles injury and whose replacement hadn't arrived yet, you mean?

There's been loads of injuries this year, Perth's haven't been any worse than several other teams. (Cairns, Adelaide, Melbourne).

So just to sum up, LV has declared it's the Kings, daylight, six teams, daylight, then Illawarra.

Yep. Very astute reading Paul.

Specifically- My prediction at this point would be:

-Sydney to finish on top, winning 18-20 games.
- No one else to win more than 17 games.
- Illawarra to finish bottom.

But- not as confident in the Illawarra prediction, I originally predicted (before round 1) they'd be top 4, but they've forced me to reconsider.

But I figure Adelaide has the trump card- Jerome Randle- so he's the thing that has me putting Adelaide ahead of them.

I originally thought NBL teams would figure him out a bit, and he wouldn't be quite as effective this year. But he's been even more dominant. Based on what's happened so far, you'd think he's good enough to ensure- almost on his own- that Adelaide at least gets to 10 or 11 wins (which, historically would mean they're very unlikely to finish last).

But Illawarra have just been very, very disappointing.

Why do people insist on pointless arguments?
Arguing about who is "the best team" is puerile and usually the domain of sadsacks who just got proven wrong.
End of the day there will be four teams in the finals, and I expect both Sydney and Perth to be there. One will win the ring, they can lay claim to being the best team.

This was a great game, and in the end Perth won comfortably. Perth are tough to beat in Perth, harder for some teams than others.
I expect the return leg to also be a cracker, but you'd have to tip Sydney at home.

Why can't people just enjoy the season, instead of trying to crystal-ball the finish then mounting bitchy arguments to defend their predictions.

"Perth have been winning the close ones at home, and they've been losing them on the road."

But that win was against a heavily favoured United team so that must count for something...

Just to sumarise LV, Randle has been completely dominant and Illawarra have been very very disappointing, as evidenced by Randle averaging 12ppg in two losses to the Hawks. ;-)

Yeah, as I said before, Illawarra have played one impressive game all season. That game being round 1.

Although Their second game- when they went down by 4 to Sydney, was decent too.

But no prizes from me for beating Adelaide sans Creek and Johnson. Randle can't do it on his own every night.

So to summarise LV, the Hawks have had one decent game, as well as some other games that were decent too. ;-)

One impressive. No prizes for putting in a decent performance.

Most of them- and I've seen at least bits and pieces of the majority of their games- most of them have been rubbish.

You got issues Lv

So to sum up LV, most of Illawarra's nine games have been rubbish even though they've won four, lost to Sydney by 4 and trailed the Wildcats in Perth by 2 with 0:40 to play.

Their issue isn't they haven't played well, it's they have had good patches mixed with really poor patches in games that have cost them, especially defensively.

Their D has been terrible.

They were very unconvincing in a home win vs United minus Goulding, Blanchfield and Barlow. They beat Perth minus Martin and Kenny and in Johnson's first game post exile, in another concerning performance.

And then they beat Adelaide minus Creek and Johnson. (I can't comment on this one as that's one of the few games I didn't see).

A lot of the time when they've played full strength opposition they've been made to look like fairly horrible- eg the first one vs Melbourne, vs Cairns and the game in Sydney.

In fact, Perth beat them quite comfortable, leading all the way even though they only beat them by 7 or so in the end.

So in other words, when the Hawks haven't even got close to *anyone who hasn't been decimated by injuries*.

So leading by two points with 40 seconds to go is comfortable? I like the way you regularly redefine the English language on here, you should really be an anon!

Did they really trail by 2 in Perth?

I seem to remember they made a bit of a comeback, but thought they got to within 5 or 6, I don't recall them getting to 2. (No need to be narky, I don't go check the play by play every time I post!)

But even so, Perth was leading that game all thru the 3rd and 4th, Illawarra played 5 minutes of good basketball. If they'd snatched it, they would've stolen an opportunistic win. For most of that game, Perth had them well and truly locked down.

Even if they had won that, that'd still be 3 games out of 5 vs full strength opponents where they got given a beating. As it stands, they've copped 3 beatings and had 2 close (ish, I'll pay that then..) losses. Not impressive in anyone's language- English or otherwise.

And more importantly, compare it to the other 7 teams- who have mostly had serious injury woes- and Illawarra looks pretty bad in comparison. Can they turn it around? I do have faith in Bevo- great coach. We will see. I tend to think the defensive issues are here to stay though. So finals highly unlikely.

Indeed they did. Harris had a three-ball to bring them within one with about 20 seconds to go.

I think most of your comments this season - and I've read at least bits and pieces of the majority of them - most of them have been rubbish.

Well since many of my comments form the basis of bets I put on, and I've cashed in some handy profits and am on track for much more, I'll take that one on board with a grain of salt. My sportsbet account seems to agree that I know a thing or two. But hey, everyone's welcome to their opinion.

(Disclaimer: NBL is pretty much the only thing I bet on, since I think I know it well)

(And Gamble responsibly, hoops.com.au doesnt condone gambling, etc etc etc)

Keep taking the bait LV, unfortunately I don't anymore time for fishing today, but to summarise LV one more time, I'll tell everyone I'm good at betting to cover for getting my facts completely wrong.

I said Perth beat them comfortably.

I forgot how close Illawarra got in the 4th (after Perth did lead comfortably for most of the contest!) That's a minor memory failure. Apologies for upsetting your sensibilities with my poor memory!!

(I like taking the bait. It's all good fun. I hang around here to see if I can learn anything. Occasionally, I do. And when I do, it's Often from you- if I will be willing to admit that for a second ;-) )

"They beat Perth minus Martin and Kenny..."

Oh, so we're allowed to look at specifics again? Man, make up your mind.

My comments stand as I state them- in this thread, my observations about Perth have been valid if you want to speak generally, or if you want to look at the specifics.

I mean if you want to talk "specifics" as far as Perth is concerned then they are *very* lucky to even be 6 and 3, since there have been loads of games where the result was u for grabs and could've gone either way in the last minute or two, and Perth has won most of those contests.

PS: I never said you couldn't talk "specifics". Talk about whatever details you want.

They are also very unlucky not to be 8-1, with a winning road record.

No, they're not.

For them to be 8-1, almost every single close game would have to go their way. That would make them *extraordinarily* lucky.

Why not? In two of their losses, the result was up for grabs and could've gone either way in the last minute or two. That is your logic. Apply it to the Hawks and Breakers for just beating them (both games without Martin and Kenny) and its very easy to put a positive spin on it.

...which would not make them unlucky in the context of their season.

I'm not saying it's a coin flip, either. Some teams will be better at closing out close games. That's what good teams do.

So his articles are good, but his opinions on message boards aren't....great anon logic!

"I like taking the bait. It's all good fun. I hang around here to see if I can learn anything. Occasionally, I do. And when I do, it's Often from you- if I will be willing to admit that for a second ;-)"


It's all good LV, I'm sure you know it's nothing personal, just a bit of fun.

Anyone know the attendance at last nights game?

10,364