Breakers are out of control
That early season enthusiasm that was around the Breakers has long gone as the club continues to test its fans’ loyalty.
At the beginning of this season the buzz around Spark Arena for their home games was incredible.
The block by RJ Hampton on fellow future NBA star LaMelo Ball in the game against Illawarra can go down as one of the top 10 moments in the club’s history.
Crowds have continued to come to Breakers’ home games and Hampton singlets have been one of the most desirable fashion items in Auckland.
Yet, despite all this, the Breakers continue to shoot themselves in the foot at every opportunity and their image has gone from being a family-friendly club, to one where it’s OK to sign a player with Glen Rice Jr’s history.
There’s no doubt Rice is an incredible player and the Breakers probably would have won their game against Melbourne United earlier this month if Rice hadn’t fouled out.
But Rice showed that a leopard doesn’t change its spots and after less than two weeks in New Zealand he was arrested after an incident at an Auckland bar on Thursday morning.
Rice, who is appearing in court today, has been suspended indefinitely by the Breakers.
Breakers owner Matt Walsh was right to cut ties with Rice but what’s concerning is that it took so long to take this action.
It took the NBL to step in and stop him playing against Perth on Sunday. Surely this should have been done by the Breakers’ management.
Firstly, because it’s bewildering that the club would turn a blind eye to Rice being out on Thursday morning when he had a long flight to Perth coming up.
With the team having such a poor start to the season and needing to beat Perth to get back on track, Rice let down the club, his team-mates and their fans by being out at that time, regardless of whatever else happened on Thursday morning.
Walsh should have stood Rice down for the Perth game just for going out, let alone when it emerged that Rice had been arrested.
Before this, there were the appalling scenes in the game against South East Melbourne Phoenix when Hampton got into an altercation with an opposing player.
That was bad enough, but to some extent is part of the game, but the worst part about it was Walsh getting fined for getting into a heated argument with ABL commissioner Jeremy Loeliger after the game.
Walsh was fined $5000 and given a two-game ban, and he responded by fronting media, wearing a ‘it’s only money’ hoodie.
As owner of the Breakers, Walsh should be setting a better example and it also sent out a bad message to the club’s fans.
The latest incident was on the flight back to Auckland from their troubled trip from Perth, with some players drinking and misbehaving.
Police were waiting for the worst-behaved of them, Tall Black Tom Vodanovich, who later said he had no recollection of the flight after taking a sleeping pill in conjunction with alcohol.
Vodanovich has apologised for the incident, but Walsh has said he will come down hard on him.
And Walsh has to. This must stop here, he’s got to throw the book at Vodanovich.
The club’s reputation has been badly tarnished and that’s more damaging than the poor performances on the court.
Changing the culture of the Breakers, or the perception of it, has to be the top priority right now. At the moment they look like an organisation that’s out of control, one where the players don’t have any accountability or take responsibility for their actions.