Does Goorj even know who the best players are? One thing for certain. Bolden isn't stopping Cooks.

Kings should win by plenty.....but I bet it's a lot closer than it should be.

Imo Goorj does know who his best team is but as people get older they soften, he's lost his ruthless edge. Again imo kings will be around the money but not near as deep as first predicted.

Goorj was plenty ruthless cutting Cooks from the Olympic team so that doesn't jibe. Goorj just isn't the coach he was since coming back to the NBL in 2020. It happens a lot of older legendary coaches fall away at the end Lindsay Gaze, Lute Olson, Dean Smith, Larry Brown agrguably even Gregg Popovich.

The Kings made the mistake of hiring a 71 yo, like I said at the time even if the Kings put together an all-star team, which they have, if they don't win it Goorj will be the reason why. The Hawks 2021 SF loss to a Cotton-less Wildcats was humiliating and should've ensured he never coached an NBL team again.

I thought Goorj was great at the Hawks. The results were better than expected considering the limited depth of talent he had to work with. They just couldn't quite make that final step, but he had them challenging and threatening the very best teams in both seasons.

He left us in a mess though. Left no legacy whatsoever and saddled us with Jackomas, who turned out to be the very worst NBL coach I’ve ever seen.

Imo Goorj has still got it, the sacking of Cooks from the Olympics was certainly a coaching team decision, not just on Goorj. Time will tell but I think he's still got it.

2 offensive boards and a bolden foul first play. Gonna be a long afternoon for the Breakers

In what I said above, I certainly would start Oliver and Bruce above the two he picked

Oliver might be kings most important player, so good.

"I thought Goorj was great at the Hawks. The results were better than expected considering the limited depth of talent he had to work with."

I didn't think he was very good at all and made some big mistakes like signing Deng Adel to a $600k+ contract, signing Cam Bairstow as a key piece despite his lengthy injury history at the Bullets, giving Max Darling a 3 year deal that got torn up after one year, not playing through Duop Reath enough and of course the disastrous 2021 playoff exit followed by all of Goorj's pleas for an extension in the media and when it didn't happen annointing Jackomas as the heir apparent.

Not to mention all the financial problems he lumped the Hawks owners with which saw some of them bail on the team and then they had to be financially rescued by LK. Aside from making the playoffs both seasons, to be expected with the high spend from owners, I though his time as coach there was a disaster.

Cooks isn't that fit, runs out breath as soon as any pressure applied. PJC is magnificent and he’s bringing the breakers with him.

Nz by 4 at halftime. It's alright to play fast but you have to play smart as well and kings got a few low iq players. PJC is in mvp category, absolutely fantastic. It’s gone from who will stop Cooks, they have, to now who’s stopping PJC, no one present.

No doubt Goorjian was a good coach. I am undecided whether he still has it or not. One thing I am certain about is that he is the best at sucking every last cent out of owners. Every team he has coached has ended in financial hardship, his last team 'Bay Area Dragons' folded for financial reasons. I never believe in coincidences.

To be fair to Goorjian, even though he's destroyed a number of NBL teams financially, yes his Asian team folded after his one year as coach but that was likely due to them originally being based in Hong Kong and China having very strict Covid protocols still in place at the time so the team had to relocate to the Philippines for that entire season which would've cost the owners a fair bit and thus the team folded.

PJC is mvp of the German league, it's showing. Oliver has to play more.

I'm happy my prediction was way off the mark because cracking game happening here. Nz are far better than all thought.

I'm glad NZB stuck with Gillespie over Tacko Fall, assuming Fall was ever a realistic chance of signing. Suspected that was BS from the get go.

Gillespie has shown a bit in in this game including that block of the year contender on Oliver.

Gillespie been great

Why is Robertson playing instead of Bruce???? Perhaps it's his secondary education background

How many games do Sydney give this coaching group before changes are made??

Things are getting very interesting in the Harbour City.

No matter what happens I think Goorj will see out the rest of the season. Would be a PR nightmare if they fired him in the first year of his 3 year deal.

Nice interview with Gary Payton after the game.

Very interesting question CD, kings coaching make up roster now looking not like it was supposed to be. Oliver benched for sooking, not chasing, not good. Some said they weren't tall enough up front and it probably coming home to roost. Kop and PJC put on a coaching and playing master class and all breakers players buying in. It was a cracking game. Be interesting to see what owner Bogut says on his podcast.

I'm still surprised by that result. Yes breakers had some nice runs but should never have won and kings defence was woeful. As much as I love the way Laupepe plays I'm not sure he's worth his minutes based on performance at both ends of the court at the moment. The team seem a bit restricted by him on offence.

The important thing to remember about Goorj is that he has never ruined an Olympics or World Champs campaign by the Boomers. LOL!!!!!!

People still listen to Bogut's podcast?

Goorj saying Adams out for a while.

Disappointing weekend of games for Sydney. Lack of size hurt us on Friday, and lack of effort yesterday. Cooks was passive offensively like in the Adelaide game and looked gassed any time he had to move at full speed, and we just aren't good enough to win if he's not having a 20-10 kind of night, especially with Adams out.

I'd consider dropping Oliver at this point - not a 'Goorj' player, every time he mopes about after a miss and/or not getting a call and lightly jogs back on D he gets yanked and that's his night. I get it, but a lot of the Kings' ceiling was based around his addition, so if he's not going to play we might as well release him and sign a natural 5. With Adams out, you could even bring them in now as an injury replacement and make the call on who you release based on the quality of that replacement player.

Breakers on the other hand I thought looked like a well-oiled machine. PJC was his usual self - I thought Kuol did a great job pressuring him without fouling, but everytime he was switched off him PJC just cooked whoever was defending him - but Mooney in particular was super impressive.

Kings changed their strength and conditioning team after last season who had been there through their championship runs I was told, they just don't look fit to me. Goorj was complaining about them being exhausted, nz been around world and back. Oliver is a very good player, maybe start him and see if he stops sooking, a few clubs would be very happy to get him. Goorj also said he was going to start to get ruthless and make tough decisions, watch this space. Cooks needs a hard working foil, Noi, Oliver are not that, Hunter anyone, possibly moller. Goorj also saying Adams out is hurting, obviously, then complaining young Robertson still learning, F me, start Bruce. It’s a very hot and cold roster, Cooks, Kuol, Toohey, Bruce normally bring reliability every week but the rest can be very hot and cold. I still believe that kings will be there at sharp end but it certainly hasn’t looked like the unbeatable side as yet, most punters thought.

Interesting question is which sports coaches have been successful past the age of 70?

Wayne Bennett?

I wasn't overly impressed with Goorjian in Illawarra, and his Boomers stints were OK without being remarkable. Patty won us the Bronze with an epic game.

Basically, the past few years Goorjian hasn't quite lived up to the stellar reputation he earned with Magic, Titans, Kings and Dragons.

With Adams out, I think the kings biggest issue is lack of elite PG...

Goorj had some pretty stacked rosters at Illawarra...

Harvey, Jessup, Cleveland, Reath, Froling would be one of the better starting 5's in recent NBL history, he couldn't get it done for them.

To be fair, I think they'll come good as soon as Adams comes back, but who knows how long that is?

That's not that good a starting line-up. Which of those guys would you call high-level defenders? What has Jessup gone onto achieve? How old was Froling then? I think the level the Hawks achieved under Goorjian was about right.

Jessup has played very well in Spain and now Germany, high quality shooter, he's done.

Robertson is getting way too many minutes I agree on that dunkman. The breakers clearly focused on exploiting that weakness and did well.

I didn't see Oliver sulk or get pulled but a quality coach should be able to deliver a message in the right way and get him back out there motivated.

The scoreline actually flattered the kings because of it weren't for leafa having a rare night from chucking up his threes they would've lost by more.

Only one player from that roster getting double figure points to a coach who hasn't got their players motivated or playing with a clear plan

I remember Oliver's attitude getting worse in his second season at Cairns but knowing he was still pretty young then I thought after four years away he would be a lot more mature at Sydney but doesn't look that way.

There is a reason Goorj is bringing Oliver off the bench and I dare say it's a combination of attitude and fitness. He's no where near as explosive athletically as he used to be and settles way too much for jumpshots. He should be embarrassed that a guy like Leaupepe is starting over him yet doesn't seem to care.

Has the trouble in the kings camp that was there last season still happening. A few of my kings mates believe so. Oliver was roasted by the commentary for not chasing on D. He never saw the floor again.

It's Sydney Kings, they've been an over-hyped, underachieving club for the majority of their history.

Tigers, United have won six championships. Kings have won five. Not a lot difference there. After last season, United tip from start, like kings this season, to win it only choke it away, it happens.

The difference being Tigers/United have been championship contenders for the majority of the last 30 years. This is reflected by grand final appearances, playoff appearances and overall winning percentage

Kings have a 3 peat and a B2B but have gone long stretches without being a serious team. Disappointing for the biggest city in Australia and all the associated hype

Goorjian was a great coach, but recent Boomers campaigns have shown that he is either past it and/or the coaching world has overtaken him. Gleeson, Vickerman, Lemanis, and Roth, at least, are all better coaches in 2024.

Kings 3-peat makes the franchise look good, but overall they have underachieved given some of the talent they had in that time. For me it's Perth, Melbourne, daylight, in terms of long term competitiveness year in year out.

A lot of people writing off the Breakers and Coach Kip prematurely. Regardless of whether the Kings are underperforming, it’s hard to win without 3 key rotation players and all the travel they have had and being a new team and coaching crew. It also looks like Fall may still replace Gillespie.

Tacko Fall is a slow footed sideshow.
Gillespie is averaging just over 18mins a game and is narrowly in 2cnd place for blocks per game behind Marcus Lee.

I thought Gillespie played well against Sydney and no one on the Breakers played well against SEM.

"Jessup has played very well in Spain and now Germany"

He's been solid in Europe but saying he's played very well is a stretch, and he's struggling early this season. Good player, but he's not someone that makes a line-up an all-time great one in the NBL, especially as a rookie.

I was not sold on Goorj as coach this time around largely because it felt like the Kings had done a complete 180 degree turn after last season and gone with the safest possible option after being burnt with the last outside-the-box hire. I've got great memories of the original Goorj era in Sydney like every other Kings fan, but this hire felt like Disney throwing callouts to the original star wars movies in the new trilogy... forced fan-service. He's not entirely to blame - we have a roster stacked with guys who deserve rotation minutes or better, which is not always a great problem to have. Goorj has made some decisions on that end in different games, but guys like Galloway in particular just aren't getting the minutes they need and are not on the court long enough to really get going.

I'm not counting us out this season by any stretch, but some of the Goorj-isms like lots of minutes for the "system" guys like Robertson/Leaupepe - who have both looked really good in stretches - that give 100% effort and do all the things Goorj looks for over the more talented guys who don't works sometimes, but with the lack of height (and scoring talent, with JA out) we're at the point where Cooks and Oliver need to be on the court together for large stretches of the game. Someone on Twitter put it perfectly re: Cam - you have to take the good with the bad. Does he pout and not hustle back? Yes, sometimes. Do we need his ability to rebound, defend size, and keep the scoreboard ticking over? Also yes, most possessions. Over the course of a game the good tends to outweigh the bad, but he has a very short leash with Goorj right now and the team isn't better for it.

Gillespie had 11, 5 and 3 in 22 minutes. His energy was good, he can defend the rim, and he is showing hard as good as Mika Vukona did back in the day. But he was also -3 and still looks lost on the court making poor reads (offensively and defensively).

I know Euro teams keep imports hanging around, which is unusual here, but maybe this is a low risk high upside move to have someone ready in case Gillespie gets injured or Fall proves in practice he can handle the NBL.

I'm not sure of what defensive coverages I'd use with Fall to account for his foot speed and lateral movement, but I do know on the other end it will be awfully hard to guard the Breakers if PJC and Mooney have a lob threat to go with their shooters.

Re: Kings, agree that Goorj needs to play Galloway and Oliver. Le'afa and Leaupepe's minutes needs to be trimmed.

The gillespie circus makes me laugh and cry. He's delivering what he always has historically (and actually more points) but despite this everyone including the club it seems is expecting more and different output.

He's a role player and always has been. If you signed him to be delivering 10-12ppg I'm not sure he's the problem!

On top of that there's bigger problems than him which are being papered over at the moment and with the kings win. Until a reliable offensive structure has been developed they're going to slide down the table