NBL Round 1

Perth v Singapore

The Wildcats look to open their account this season with a win against the Slingers. Perth have brought in highly rated guard Rashad Phillips to call the shots from the point and potentially lead them to a championship. Phillips would be best described as the human blur moving along the court. Coach Scott the ‘FISH’ Fisher will be looking for a repeat of last years early season form but of a much more consistent standard.

Shawn Redhage will once again be the focal point of the offence as he is one of the most reliable imports in the league. Just how much they can get from their second tier players will be key to their fortunes however. Peter Crawford and Aaron Trahair will provide the long range bombs. Paul Rogers, their centre, is out for this game so they lack a little inside, but hopefully Alex Loughton can fill the void. If the preseason is anything to go by he will well and truly be in the running for rookie of the year.

Singapore were surprisingly competitive against the Tigers at home but just failed to finish off their good early work. They were impressive nevertheless and the final score was not a true reflection of how close it was. Mike Helms was held in check for 19 points by one of the leagues best defenders in Dave Thomas and he should have much more freedom in a game like this. Ben Knight tallied 20 points and 9 rebounds and can always be depended upon, while new import Rod Grizzard was effective if not spectacular in his debut performance, chipping in with 16. I liked the production they got from Janev and Cameron also. The negative is they are on the road with all their young players in a cauldron where the Wildcats lost only 2 games last year. This might be a bit daunting for the Slingers and they will need to be better on the boards and from the stripe.

Selection

With Fisher bringing in Phillips and with no Paul Rogers in the paint the tempo should be breakneck. Helms should get enough freedom to score and pairing with Grizzard will give the Slingers a good look. Janev and Cameron will go into the paint with confidence and as Fisher has said himself, they have a lot more run and replacements who will be a lot quicker. Phillips, while being an excitement machine offensively, could be a liability on defence, with his small stature a major concern. Slingers score lines away from home also tend to be higher. They can not afford to fade out in the 4th quarter like they did against the Tigers. The Cats will be pushing the ball down the court at every opportunity to see if they can catch them napping.

I like the Over 201.5 at the TAB 1.5 units (over 201.5 @ 1.862 with Pinnacle Sports)

Sydney v Gold Coast

The Kingdome will be rocking as the Kings look to quickly put pay to new franchise, the Blaze, in their home opener. The biggest off season signing was that of Glen Saville for the Kings. With the likes of Saville and Jason Smith defending the ball it’s going to lead to some exiting plays at the other end. Coach Goorjian and his players will be looking to bounce back from last years disappointing performance. Dontaye Draper joins the team and the 182cm point guard hopes to bring some stability to the Kings import situation. Goorjian gets the best out of his players because every single one of them knows his systems and believes in them. With half the squad competing for Australia under Goorjian’s guidance they will be well prepared to tackle the Blaze here. The Kings were 7-0 in the preseason. Mark Worthington, Russell Hinder and Ian Crosswhite will be looking to dominate the glass while Luke Kendall provides an all round game to compliment them.

The Blaze started the game brilliantly against the Bullets but were not able to keep it close when it counted and allowed Brisbane to control the game in the critical stages.

Jason Crowe 26, James Harvey 23 and Juaquin Hawkins 20 provided the bulk of Blaze points. The supporting cast didn’t provide adequate assistance when it was required though. Too many costly turnovers at inappropriate times damaged them, however to their credit they fought it out to the end. And while they were quite good on the glass their free throw shooting was a lowlight, shooting at just 47%. That strength inside will be required again against the bigger Bullets.
Jason Smith teaming with Saville will create havoc in the passing lanes so the Blaze need to protect the ball better. It’s difficult to predict who will win the battle of the boards. Blaze need their inside game to be established early so they can have the freedom to fire away from the perimeter. The Kings will set the tone with their defence and turn plenty of fast breaks into points.

Selection

Goorjian has never lost an opening game during his tenure at the harbour side club.
They are too well coached and defensively sound to give Blaze any sniff here.
Dontaye Draper feeding off the defensive pressure of his team mates might break the game open with his superior athleticism in the open court.

Sydney -9.5 at the TAB 1 unit (-9.5 @ 1.85 with TAB)