Strong finish will put Machado in running for NBL MVP
he closes the season strongly he is well into the running and could buck the trend with 16 points a game but dishing up a tasty eight assists a game. Cotton is serving up an entree size three-and-a-half assists a game. Either way, Cameron Oliver and DJ Newbill owe Machado a huge ham and a thank you hamper for their contract boosts for next season.
You have seen some great point guards up here over the years — Trice, Wilbekin, Wilson and the rest — how does Machado rate in that bunch?
Well it’s only a discussion between Wilbekin and Machado. Let’s be clear we are comparing a young 21-year-old Wilbekin, who was destined for next level the moment he disposed of Damian Martin in the pre-season, against a mature 29-year-old experienced Machado at the peak of his game, hungry to break back into NBA. Wilbekin commands close to $2m for his 13 points and three assists for Euroleague club Maccabi Fox Tel Aviv while NBL contracts sit around a tenth of that. I think it could be scary to see what Wilbekin would do to this league at the peak of his game so for me he has the edge. But, Machado tapping into high confidence is coming close behind and is a dream teammate and point guard for any club.
The 36ers are the opponent this evening, what do Cairns need to do to defeat Joey Wright’s men?
Joey’s teams have perfected the run and gun game since day dot. When in doubt, run and gun some more. The flipside is if you make Adelaide play defence for more than eight seconds it starts to break down. So the Taipans will need to control the tempo and keep the game on their terms. They need to outwork a team that pride themselves on having higher energy than their opponents so hopefully the extra rest for Kouat Noi means he is good to be let loose in this game. This is the biggest game of the round without question. There is so much at stake. I tip Taipans by two points in a nailbiter.