Dech Reveals Why he Snubbed Hawks for Sixers

New Adelaide 36ers signing Sunday Dech has opened up on his decision to join the club and not return to The Hawks in the latest Gibbo Goes One-On-One Podcast Driven by MG.

Dech inked a three-year deal with the Sixers last month after spending NBL20 with the Hawks. The 26-year-old has called the decision to move teams a “tough” one but explained how he felt Adelaide presented him with the best scenario.

“There was definitely an opportunity to stay (with The Hawks),” Dech said.

“When the season finished it was time to exhale and see where the pieces fell. The Hawks were going through an ownership change and a coaching change and a lot of roster overhaul as well.

“Myself, management and the people close to me making the decision, we waited to see how that would look like in the landscape. When it did come time to make the decision, Adelaide was a really good situation for me.

“Talking to Coach (Conner) Henry and Adelaide’s situation, I felt really comfortable. Their vision for where they wanted to go and what they wanted to establish aligned with mine, trying to reach the championship and keep growing that way.

“I was really excited about that and I’m going to be a really big piece in their vision moving forward and that excited me as well.

“It was a tough decision in the end, it came down to a lot of factors but just being comfortable...last year was an up and down year with The Hawks, so I was looking forward to a fresh start.

“(I’m looking forward to) seeing how this journey with Adelaide plays out in the next three years and hopefully we can push for the championship in my time there.

“It’s a really exciting roster with guys who are willing to get after it every day, which is awesome to me because I think the guys there are hungry, want to prove themselves and have a chip on their shoulder and that’s some good energy you want to have when playing.”

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Dech has wasted no time connecting with his new teammates, spending the offseason working out with fellow 36er guards Josh Giddey and Daniel Dillon.

However, a teammate Dech already has a strong relationship with and is looking forward to reconnecting with is Keanu Pinder.

“We are childhood friends, we grew up playing for the same junior club in East Perth and have followed each other’s careers,” Dech said of Pinder.

“He grew up five minutes down the road, so we would hang out non-stop when we were younger. That’s someone who, when I found out he had signed, I was super excited and I was like wow, we get to chuck the ball around again like we are kids again.”

While he has moved on from The Hawks, the club had a massive impact on Dech’s development.

Spending last season rooming with NBL Next Star and projected top three NBA draft pick LaMelo Ball enabled Dech to join late night workouts with Ball and his mentor Jermaine Jackson.

Dech has provided a window into those workouts, praising the work ethic of Ball and his determination to get better.  

“I think Melo and JJ, it’s what they did beforehand before they came to Illawarra and it’s something they continued to do,” Dech said.

“Early on I wasn’t playing so I was just trying to find any opportunity to get some more work in and try to get better. He invited me down to one session and when he invites you down, it’s not something you say no to.

“The session was at midnight and we had training the next morning at 8am. I looked at the clock and I was like, yep, I’m going down. I went down, worked out and it was really cool because you’re working on skill and everything. I was able to keep growing confidence and keep getting better.

“They became more frequent as we progressed in the season and I think that helped my confidence when I did play as well because I was like, look I’m putting in the work and no matter what is happening on the court or game night, I know I’m ready when that chance comes.”

According to Dech, one of the biggest benefits of the workouts were the drills catered towards improving ball handling and on ball skills.

“Talking to JJ he was like, hey look, work on it because this is stuff you are always going to need,” Dech said.

“I was able to get more and more comfortable as the season went on and working on it did give me more confidence in games to trust my abilities and get to spots where I wanted to get to.”

Listen to the Gibbo Goes One-On-One podcast driven by MG every Wednesday night at 6:30pm AEST, as Adam Gibson is joined by a special guest each week. Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

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