Preview: Illawarra v Sydney

When: 8pm (AEST), Saturday 1 October, 2022
Where: WIN Entertainment Centre, Wollongong
Broadcast: ESPN; Foxtel; Kayo; Sky Sports NZ
LIVE SCORES & STATS

Who won last time?

Sydney 99 (Adams 29, Martin 23, Clark 17) d Illawarra 87 (Harvey 21, Reath 20, Rathan-Mayes 14) – Semi-Final Game 2 at Qudos Bank Arena, Sydney

When the Hawks led semi-final Game 2 by 15 in the shadows of half-time the series seemed set for a decider, but Sydney put their defensive foot firmly to the floor – holding their hosts to just 33 points after intermission – and their big four took the O to another level, scoring 50 of their team’s 55 second-half points to propel the purple and gold to the grand final.

What’s new?

Of that big four – Jaylen Adams, Ian Clark, Xavier Cooks and Jarell Martin – only the X-man remains, making this a title defence with a difference. The Kings may be slow starters, as they were last season before clicking once Clark arrived, but the return of Jordy Hunter after missing NBL22 with injury does give them a post presence they didn’t have last season.

Brazilian Tim Soares fills some of the scoring hole left by Martin, Justin Simon makes the Kings even more dangerous defensively and in transition, Kouat Noi sures up their league-best defensive rebounding, while an MVP-sized weight will be on the shoulders of former Pistons PG Derrick Walton, who showed in the Blitz he fits Sydney’s up-tempo style.

The Hawks have also undergone serious change, with Brian Goorjian departing from the sidelines, experienced Next Star Justinian Jessup no longer on board as a de facto fourth import, Duop Reath now stretching the floor in China, while Antonius Cleveland’s defection to Adelaide is a huge blow to their ability to turn defence into offence.

Can Wani Swaka Lo Buluk and George King replace Cleveland’s defensive impact? Can Deng Deng continue the significant strides he made in Brisbane to fill some of Reath’s output? Can Mangok Mathiang produce the elite form he once showed in Europe? And how effective will assist-guru Justin Robinson make his teammates, particularly Tyler Harvey?

 

What’s working?

Arrogance – Kings coach Chase Buford was happy to promote his team’s high level of confidence, and why not? Sydney play an audacious brand of basketball that isn’t for shrinking violets, and with five new faces it will take some coaching to find the balance between speed and smart. Buford achieved that last season, no reason he can’t again.

Disruptive defence – The Hawks kept their three Blitz opponents to just 76.7ppg at 39 per cent shooting from the floor, giving an early indication their attention to defence has not lessened under Jacob Jackomas’ watch. In Illawarra’s two Blitz wins they forced 19.5 turnovers per night, but in their loss to Adelaide that number was just 12.

What needs stopping?

Sydney’s ‘dribble out’ – The Kings make you play on the back foot, advancing quickly into offence, then loading their d-trans to force opposition to play half-court, as evidenced by the fact they gave up a total of just six fast break points in three Blitz games. Their prime weapon to achieve such speed is their rebounders cleaning the glass and starting the break, with Xavier Cooks, Kouat Noi and Justin Simon all more than capable ball-handlers.

How does Illawarra limit this? Is it ‘tagging up’ to put Sydney’s frontcourt under pressure when advancing the ball? Is it looking to attack early on offence before Sydney can pack the paint? Is it loading up their own d-trans to make Sydney execute in the half-court? Or is it trying to monster big brother on the o-glass so they have to spend long periods defending?

Glass domination – If it’s the latter, the Hawks have some work to do, because in the Blitz they grabbed just 23 per cent of available o-boards while giving up 35 per cent at the other end. Sam Froling led his team in rebounding last season, but the next four leading boardsmen have now departed, meaning the glass must be a focus across the roster.

Interestingly, the Kings pulled in 12.8 o-boards per game in six meetings with Illawarra last season – well up on their 7.5 average against the rest of the NBL – and demolished their intrastate rivals 91-63 on second chance points, which effectively negated the Hawks’ 88-57 advantage from points off turnovers. Possession points will be crucial again on Saturday.

Who’s matching up?

Justin Robinson v Derrick Walton – While it’s a small sample size, Robinson’s 16 assists in two Blitz games indicate he will be the facilitator the Hawks desperately want to get the best out of Tyler Harvey, while coach Buford would have loved Walton getting to the foul line 13 times against South East Melbourne in pre-season. Perhaps this match-up will tell us more about the defensive prowess of both new point guards, because their offensive output seems elite.

Tyler Harvey v DJ Vasiljevic – In the two Blitz games Robinson played, Harvey averaged 20 points at 46 per cent and the Hawks were +20 with him on the floor. Without his new running mate against Adelaide, he scored 10 points at 25 per cent and was -22. Vasiljevic shot 3/16 from range in the Blitz, but with no Ian Clark, the Kings will need him hitting shots to consistently win games. He showed in last season’s playoffs he’s ready for that challenge.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The set back to the ultimate comeback.<br><br>DJ Vasiljevic’s journey to a championship and now a new contract was something else ??<a href="https://twitter.com/3jvasiljevic?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@3jvasiljevic</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SydneyKings?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SydneyKings</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> <a href="https://t.co/mts8dm9yBr">pic.twitter.com/mts8dm9yBr</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1531498801634353153?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 31, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Who’s saying what?

While Tasmania rightfully became the story of NBL22, fairytales aside last season will be remembered for the ‘Freeway Series’ rivalry going to a new level

Sure, the folk of the Illawarra have always held a grudge against their bigger brothers in Sydney, but not since 2005 have both clubs had such quality rosters, and perhaps not even then.

In six meetings last season, both NSW clubs won three, all four regular season games were decided by four points or less, and true to 2005 form the Kings took it up a notch to sweep their playoff series.

It leaves a chip on the Hawks’ shoulders once again, with GM and club legend Mat Campbell very happy his new-look team gets a chance at early redemption in NBL23.

“I remember way back in my career days that you only had to win one game, and that was to beat the Kings at home,” Campbell told the Illawarra Mercury.

“That’s been instilled into the group through generations of players, so to have our arch-rival as the first home game of the year is a great way to start the season for the new coach, the new guys coming into the franchise, and also for our fans.”

Kings coach Chase Buford knows the other reasons why the Hawks will have extra motivation to give his team an early lesson.

“We’ve got a target on our backs for a variety of reasons,” he said.

“One, we’re the champs, two, we were a bunch of arrogant pricks all of last year. Everyone wants to knock us down a peg or two.

“We’re going to come in and be ourselves, be a bunch of dogs and not concern ourselves with what everyone else thinks of us.

“It’s a mentality that resonated with our group.”

With five new players there could be some growing pains expected in Sydney, but Buford pointed out he has a headstart on last season when he was teaching his system to a completely new group.

“The carryover from last year and the guys returning, knowing exactly how we like to play, has helped a lot and put us in a more advanced position from this time 12 months ago,” he said.

“It's also helped the new guys in the group get up to speed quicker.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We&#39;ve run out of things to say about Xavier Cooks&#39; brilliance <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeTheKings?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeTheKings</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> <br><br>? <a href="https://twitter.com/10PeachAu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@10PeachAu</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> Freebies <a href="https://t.co/FNcLPtdVWi">pic.twitter.com/FNcLPtdVWi</a></p>&mdash; Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) <a href="https://twitter.com/SydneyKings/status/1500332403763851267?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 6, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

And the basics that made them champions – defend the interior, clean the glass and run – will be their pillars once again.

“Fans will see a similar approach to what we had last season, with a couple of tweaks mixed in there,” Buford said.

“We want to be true to what we achieved as a group last season and build on that, from being dogs on the ball and starting it all with our presence on the defensive end.

“Our players know, if we get stops, then we can get out, run and get the shots we want to take. It worked for us last season and I have full faith it will again this year.”

New Hawks boss Jacob Jackomas has also placed a heavy emphasis on defence, notably when recruiting replacements for Xavier Rathan-Mayes, Cleveland and Reath.

“Justin (Robinson) is a great ball defender, key facilitator and most importantly a scorer,” he said.

It’s no different when bringing in George King, who will spend time in the three and four-spots.

“He gives us elite shooting and defending on the perimeter and believe he will complement the other guys on the team,” Jackomas said.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What a finish to the quarter ?<br><br>A Man????? Mathiang (<a href="https://twitter.com/mangok_mathiang?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@mangok_mathiang</a>) rejection followed by an <a href="https://twitter.com/DererkPardon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DererkPardon</a> ??? ?<br><br>Follow along with the second half of this <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> Blitz clash live on Kayo Freebies ? <a href="https://t.co/fnM3VqYNqI">pic.twitter.com/fnM3VqYNqI</a></p>&mdash; The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1572140913136377858?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 20, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


Perhaps the biggest question mark is Aussie big man Mangok Mathiang, who had a cup of coffee in the NBA in 2017/18, and then impressively averaged double-doubles in Italy’s Serie A and Turkey’s BSL.

That’s no mean feat, but can he repeat that after two years away from high-level basketball? Jackomas thinks he can be a contributor on offence, defence and in transition.

“Mathiang is known for his physical play, rim protection and high motor,” Jackomas said.

“His versatility and athleticism really suits the style of play the NBL is headed towards.

Despite so many new key pieces, GM Campbell has liked what he’s seen in pre-season, and is confident of giving the old rivals a whack to start NBL23.

“It’s outstanding to see the new group come together,” he said.

“They played well at the NBL Blitz and we won two out of three games, and gave Adelaide a real shake without Justin Robinson playing, so I’m pretty confident the guys are coming together well and we’ll start the season off with a bang.”

LIVE SCORES & STATS