Honesty session could be key to success for Sydney Kings
WHEN you are a franchise that hasn’t established a stable identity and you’ve been plagued by poor results and cultural issues, honesty is the best policy.
It’s a reality that hit the Sydney Kings squad and coaching staff during a team building session at Terrigal in August.
Conducted by former AFL player and premiership-winning Sydney Swans coach Paul Roos, the players and staff had to critically assess each other’s strengths and weaknesses.
The session was provoking, prompting some to take offence but it was exactly what the Kings needed, according to assistant coach Lanard Copeland.
“Especially after the last couple of seasons,” Copeland said.
“If this was a totally new team and we hadn’t had any problems, the session could have been over the top.
“But given some of the problems we’ve had over the last few years, we needed a session like that to help make guys accountable.
“And I won’t lie, it was confronting.”
Kings marquee man Andrew Bogut loved the honesty session in Terrigal.
Never afraid to speak his mind, Bogut lapped up the opportunity to learn about his new teammates in a testing environment.
Although the big man concedes he never conducted an honesty session like the one in Terrigal during his 13 seasons in the world’s best basketball competition.
“No, we don’t do any of that stuff in the NBA because it would end up in a punch-up,” Bogut said. “Guys would take it personally.
“And maybe a few Kings guys took it personally in our meeting as well but everyone was copping the good and the bad.
“So it was a good exercise to learn a bit about each other. It was really cool and I’d recommend it to any professional sporting team.”
Bogut said Sydney’s recent struggles remind him of when he signed with Golden State in 2012.
The Warriors worked hard to go from cellar-dwellers to claim two championships in 2015 and 2017.
Bogut believes the Kings can emulate Golden State’s success story.
“Definitely, and it doesn’t happen overnight,” the Boomers star said.
‘‘ NO, WE DON’T DO ANY OF THAT STUFF IN THE NBA BECAUSE IT WOULD END UP IN A PUNCH-UP
ANDREW BOGUT
“It starts with culture off the floor and in the locker room.
“With Golden State, guys were on one-year contracts and all over the place and it ended up being guys that actually wanted to get together and hang out off the court.
“That builds bonds where you might learn about a teammate and it creates a closer bond on the court.
“That is what we are trying to do here in Sydney. It is very hard to achieve in professional sport because guys have individual goals as well.
“But for the four or five months we are together, we are trying to keep it on the same page.”