REFFING WOES TOP LIST OF NBL GRIPES
INCONSISTENCY in NBL refereeing is the main concern among the players and coaches.
A host of players told Matt Logue in News Corp’s NBL Survey that referees have changed the way they officiate this year compared to the last three years.
The players feel the officials are allowing more contact and physicality than previous seasons.
NBL legend, championship winner and league MVP Chris Anstey believes the officials are doing a decent job, but he’s concerned about the referees’ struggles officiating big men.
Anstey says the NBL made strides forward in 2019 when NBA and Boomers centre Andrew Bogut starred for the Sydney Kings to win the MVP.
However, he fears the league has regressed when it comes to refereeing big men, as he noticed during a recent Kings versus Breakers game.
Kings guard Jaylen Adams got cross matched on to Breakers big man Yanni Wetzell and bear hugged him to prevent a scoring play.
“There was no malice, and Jaylen didn’t intend to hurt, but he intended to not allow Yanni to score,” Anstey said.
“They reviewed the play, and it was called a common foul.
“Could you imagine if Wetzell got cross matched on to Bryce Cotton at Perth and he thought ‘I’m in trouble here, I don’t want to give up a shot, so I’ll just hug him’.
“It would be an unsportsmanlike foul and that is inconsistent.”
Anstey wants the officials not to penalise big men for being physically superior.
He says it’s a struggle he experienced all his NBL career.
“As a big man, we get penalised our entire league for being too big or too strong if smaller players get cross matched onto us,” he said. “I’d love to see consistency and an understanding that there is supposed to be a physical advantage like there is a speed advantage for guards.
“If we want to continually get quality bigs to the league, then we need to continually improve.”
Other issues raised included:
EXPOSE CLUB SPENDING
Club spending becoming public knowledge has long been a big debate in the NBL and the players and coaches agree.
Of the 75 people who voted, 45 believe club spends should be public for transparency purposes.
Major market teams like Melbourne United and the Sydney Kings have long been accused of having an advantage over regional teams like Illawarra or Cairns, but what is the reality?
In contrast, players were strong when saying they didn’t want their wages made public, with a whopping 53 of the 75 polled saying no.
ALL-STAR GAME RETURN
NBL fans haven’t seen the AllStar concept since the 2012-2013 season, but the players want to see it return.
Of the 75 players and coaches polled, 51 would love to participate in an All-Star game. NBL home grown versus imports perhaps?
SPLIT ON NBA INFLUENCE
PLAYERS are torn when it comes to emulating the world’s best league, the NBA.
Of the 75 polled, 42 don’t want the NBL to introduce a play-in finals tournament like the NBA while a majority would like to see the Australian league return to the 48minute game like the NBA.