No Joy Left for Departing Mitchell

Wednesday, February 22, 2023

Departing South East Melbourne Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell has revealed he lost his joy for the job this season.

Mitchell and the Phoenix have parted ways, after the club’s inaugural head coach stepped down from that position on Tuesday evening.

Mitchell led the Phoenix to a 47 per cent winning record and two finals campaigns. However, the last two seasons have ended in disappointment, with a Play-In Qualifier loss to the Perth Wildcats this season and a failure to make the post-season last year.

When reflecting on his decision to leave, Mitchell referenced his feelings after December's thrilling double-overtime victory over the Sydney Kings as an example of his diminishing joy in the role.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">BREAKING: Simon Mitchell won't pursue a new contract and has stepped aside as head coach of the <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SEMelbPhoenix</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> <a href="https://t.co/WpxEDz56Xr">https://t.co/WpxEDz56Xr</a></p>— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ/status/1627976180476399616?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

"Even the wins. Everyone brings up the Sydney double-overtime win: 'what a great game'. I'm sitting in the car after the game, absolutely f------ exhausted,” Mitchell told ESPN.

“All I can think about is that's Zhou Qi's last game potentially, Rowdy's injured, Gary Browne's injured, and I've got a two hour f------ drive home. There was no 'f---, what a win, this is great'. It had me thinking on the drive home, f---, where's your joy coming from?

"It's little things like that throughout the course of the year that you self-evaluate. Am I enjoying the wins? The losses always hurt, but can you enjoy the wins anymore?”

Mitchell added he doesn’t have the energy to take the Phoenix to the next level.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Phoenix head coach Simon Mitchell has decided to not renew his contract for NBL24<br><br>More ??</p>— South East Melbourne Phoenix (@SEMelbPhoenix) <a href="https://twitter.com/SEMelbPhoenix/status/1627984186501115905?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 21, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

"Ultimately, we've stagnated. Regardless of why, we have. We've had the same record a few years in a row,” he said.

“I just don't have the desire to do that right now. It's a culmination of all these things that have helped me come to a very clear decision that the club is better positioned finding someone who's got that energy, a different view.

“I think the players could freshen up (from it). A fresh mind, fresh new ideas I think would be a really great rejuvenator for the club.”

South East Melbourne has started the process of searching for a replacement.