Go Hawks, if they win Sixers get Kings in Sydney in the play-in. The only play-in matchup the Sixers would be favoured to win.

Reckon this one will be played in finals mode. Both teams will be on song.

Yeah, Hawks for me too.

Hawks have nothing to play for having secured the 1 seed, also have some injury concerns. Never know.

Feel like this will be an easy Sydney win, Illawara wont want to risk injury and have locked up top spot. Interesting that the bookies have them at $2.75

Cooks out, still think Sydney win but won't be as convincing.

While Cooks is clearly overpaid he's still a massive loss. Kings weren’t big before but now are to small, no excuses for hawks now.

Did they just the Hawks have a 21 day break before their next game? Get rid of the play in!

Nice little Bruce started skirmish at end quarter there. Olbrich can replace Froling in the hawks team if Froling is asking to much.

Peatling an absolute beast of blue collar worker, these guys win you games

Kings hanging in tough here. Kuol got learn to defend properly, so many dumb fouls.

So many people have said it before, Kuol is the dumbest player in the league.

Game on, kings bench doing very nicely.

Maybe, but Kouat is the most an-NOI-ying

Adam's you grub

Adams gone, ejected, will be suspended you would think, can't poke opposition players in the eye. A lot lot kings players are Prima Dona’s. Unbelievable stupidity, kings got so many dumb players

Agreed Dunkman , overpaid and over hyped

Sydney obviously aren't the worst skilled team but they’re definitely the dumbest.

Theres also nothing more laughable than the NBL pushing Toohey as an NBA player.

Not much poker opposition in the eye. Could do permanent damage to the other player. Dirty and unca6fir. Push is not much poke in eye should be suspension

And Sydney don't even make the top 4, after all that offseason spending

Overpaid but that's what you need to do to bring players back in there prime. Not having a dominant season, thanks Brian, but he's a player you can just plug in and he performs without fuss and ego like White. I think every team in the league would want someone like him.

Also Noi can tell everyone he's the best sixth, most improved but I’m taking Hickey every day of the week. Hickey plays team, both ends of the floor, Noi is a glorified chucker and average defender.

Really liked that win. Had plenty of reasons not to turn up. Secure position. Two imports out. Travel from NZ.

But that would be the Kings way.

Kings are toast. Cherry ripe for whoever plays them..

This season highlights how atrocious Jackomas was as a head coach and you have to question how on earth he got even within a sniff of the nbl

Goorj elevated him.

For the local talent Sydney has this year I reckon their biggest problem was when they resigned JA & signed Oliver.
After last years shit fight in Sydney with their coach, JA's attitude is ordinary & can’t be pulled back into line. The BS that he has been in consideration for MVP in this league is laughable. He is nowhere near the level of player he was when he first got here a couple of years ago.
For Oliver well to me his attitude stinks, thinks he is a top calibre import, sooks & talks to much trash.
Just think if Sydney chose their imports better how much better they could’ve been

And (the elephant in the room) hire a better coach?

Not convinced all kings locals are that good either, Cooks is a very good player but to get him back to nbl they paid well overs. If reports are right he's earning 500k a year more than Cotton. They would have been better getting two top locals for the money. Humphries for a start.

Sydney's problem this year has been shooting, imports and Kuol.

The imports are talented but seem difficult to deal with and Kuol has not performed to marquee level. Imagine if Sydney had say a Mooney, Edwards, Cook type/level player instead of Kuol or Humphries/Hunter on their roster instead of Kuol.

While Cooks is paid a lot of money. Most of it doesn’t count against the cap and he has been consistent.

Most of Cooks' contract might not count against the cap but they're still paying him $1.2 million a season. The Kings would be spending a shitload on this roster, possibly the most expensive roster in NBL history.

That crazy roster spend is why they tried to cheap out on a third import in Lamonte Turner. It was a FU to Goorj he put this ultra-expensive roster together and it's clearly a flawed one too. Goorj was whinging in the media throughout the second half of the season about him needing more so the owners eventually were only willing to ad a cheapy import which in part due to going after a cheapy, didn't work out.

Exactly Zodiac, the roster is a shambles of over paid players, some with very low iq. Yes Cooks is a good player better than good but they could have got two local at 600k each that would be more useful, starting with either Humphries or Hunter which would have allowed for better imports. Kuol, and Leafa haven't really done well either. Considering there spend this season and still paying there last coach it’s been a disaster.

I said at the start of the season I thought Sydney were far too revered, and almost no one agreed with me.

Yes, I am having a "hey look at me" moment, haha.

Adams, $1550 fine or one week suspension, eye gouging, ha, ha, unbelievably weak suspension.

LK protecting a big market team right before playoffs.

I like most had them as certs for Top 2 and that was despite knowing Goorj isn't anywhere near the coach he used to be. I expected to Cooks to come back hungry to prove himself maybe to try and get back in to the NBA that hasn't happened. Far from it. He's still been good but when you're the highest paid player in NBL history you need to be out there kicking arse and taking names.

Also I had expected Adams to bounce back and play more like Adams 1.0 rather than the continuation of Adams 2.0. Oliver was a power dunking machine in Cairns and even though 4-5 years removed from that but he's still only 28, just entering his prime. He plays more like he's 35. His numbers in China last season were very underwhelming for a mediocre league like that which I should've put more stock in.

I expected Galloway to start showing something in response from being cut by the Bucks, didn't happen and given the amount of hype Bul Kuol got in Cairns and with the Kings marqueeing his contract I expected him to kick on, he might be the most disappointing player in the league this season.

Kouat Noi has surprised me really stepping up and saving a few games for them this season and saving Goorj blushes really, without that he might be getting sacked at the end of the season. Wouldn't surprise me if Goorj quietly "retires" after this season.

Adams was never getting suspended, it would end the Kings season.

I don't think Goorj is any less of a coach, I would just say that at some point the games passes you by. Not unlike Pop at the Spurs maybe?

Nah the massive choke job as Hawks coach against a Perth team without Cotton and despite winning the opening game of that 2021 SF series should've been the last we saw of Goorj in the NBL. It was humiliating.

Harrell, $1550 fine for punching Ili in the face, no suspension - Harrell = protected species

Zodiac, but Goorj lost semis and grand finals amongst his championships too. I can't remember the context of that season you refer to, so not sure if the Hawks underachieved a bit or not.

I just don't think this about Goorj being a lesser coach than before, he's just dealing with the cycle of change, probably in a way not unlike prime Goorj taking over from the older dogs of his time. As the game passes you by, it is probably his influence that has changed. That might mean the same thing to you anyway I suppose.

Never anything as humiliating as that. Bryce Cotton tore his hamstring or calf with about 4-5 games to go in the regular season, putting him out for all of the playoffs. Their whole entire team was built around Cotton.

Perth had home court advantage due to having Cotton most of the season. The Hawks were obviously expected to swiftly dispatch Perth. They even won Game 1 in Perth and then proceeded to lose Game 2 at home and the deciding Game 3 back in Perth. Perth somehow found themselves in the GF and lost to Melb 3-0. Understandable without Cotton.

Goorj spent 11 years in China from 2009-2020 but that humilating end to his first season as Hawks coach, not to mention his unedifying exit after his second season should've ensured Goorj never coached in the NBL again. Then again everyone said Shane Heal would never get a coaching gig again and this same Kings/Flames regime threw him a lifeline which expectedly blew up in their faces too.

No chance this Kings roster is the highest cap spender.

I have Adelaide AND Perth both higher.

The top 7 for Adelaide are all on big big $$$

Perth get hurt as Bryce can't be a Marquee on cap for his million+

Wish the league would release the #’s.

We will just have to wait and see who leaks to Olgun or Logue in the offseason.

If Sydney are spending over $1 million on Cooks then they are the biggest spender in $$ terms for sure. It's not like Adams, Oliver and Kuol would have come cheap.

What do you think they paid for Goorjian? He would have been bl**dy expensive too.

Imho this is his last NBL gig. Poor value for money nowadays. I can't see him selling himself for a rock-bottom price, and I doubt if any other team would be dumb enough to pay what he’d demand.

What do you think they paid for Goorjian? He would have been bl**dy expensive too.

Imho this is his last NBL gig. Poor value for money nowadays. I can't see him selling himself for a rock-bottom price, and I doubt if any other team would be dumb enough to pay what he’d demand.

Lets come back to this once salaries are leaked in offseason.

Can't wait to see.

From previous salaries, I reckon Goorj would be on around $600k, which if included in the cap would make the Kings the biggest spenders. I agree Bul Kuol would be far and away the biggest disappointment of NBL25. Not even talked about in relation to DPY and a non event on the offensive end.

Don't forget the supplements budget under Goorj - during the Kings three-peat it ran in excess of $100K per season.

There are many hidden costs with him.

"Nah the massive choke job as Hawks coach against a Perth team without Cotton and despite winning the opening game of that 2021 SF series should've been the last we saw of Goorj in the NBL. It was humiliating."

Hardly humiliaiting. Perth ran a very good Melbourne team hard in each game of the GF series, they went to another level defensively in the 10 games after Cotton went down, only allowing 74.7ppg.

It was a good example of Gleeson's quality as a coach, finding the team's new identity quickly and doing some things they couldn't with A tiny SG like Cotton in the line-up.

^^^^ so true, people have short memories, Gleeson was at his best and united were also stacked.

Despite winning the championship United were astounded and taken aback at how close a depleted Wildcats took them in each Grand Final series game.

Hooley in moments that matter, if Adams had done this in any of the other codes he would have multiple weeks, he's very lucky. Hopefully Sixers send them packing.

Very surprised he wasn't suspended, such a bad brain fade and definitely worthy of at least one game.

Not that it matters either way - Adelaide have way too much size for us. The way we are constructed we just are not equipped to deal with certain teams, and none more so than Adelaide.

I'll mention the name of Hunter for you, kings don’t really do local juniors recruiting that well. Easier to pinch from Wollongong or Cairns.

What's going on with Moller? He still hasn't signed anywhere.

Last thing I heard that King was keen to sign him as he finished his rehab there. That was a month or so back. That's King from SEM, not kings. Probably went OS.

Adelaide to destroy Sydney. Worst nightmare. P k ay in game against most lethal team. Don't matter how st a rt season it's how you end it on fire.. too much talent. Only Perth are equiped to counter..

He hasn't signed anywhere overseas surprisingly.

Imagine Moller under King at SEM next season.

I'm hearing there is talk of it. I saw a Insta post the other day from Norway, so I’m guessing he’s there somewhere. My contact still gives some info but nothing on moller and it’s on a my ears only basis. I’m certain king new moller from Germany.