Hoops

Adelaide tanking to get Cairns into the playoffs?

So, just to finish off, I thought it would be interesting to run a final what if. (Included here, rather than start another thread.)

So, what if Adelaide had finished with 4 wins:
Perth finish clear 2nd, and lets be honest, make it to the GF.
Hawks finish 3rd.
MU finishes 4th.
(Guess Tank won't be on DD's Christmas Card list.)

3 wins (lost to the Hawks.)
Perth 2nd
Hawks 3rd
MU 4th
so no change.

2 wins (losses to Hawks & NZ)
NZ pushes out MU

1 win
Cairns edges out NZ.

Tank job complete. Cairns gets second

Sixers tanking no. Sixers have the worst form going into the finals and after tonight we see that to be true. Best part about all the permutations is that the Wildcats miss out.

So, by your reckoning, it's 50/50 anon^?

they've got a snowflake's chance in a unicorn

@ROFLcopter, since praying has never been proven to work and there is no evidence of hell either, in biblical terms anyway, I guess they are cooked then...

No, Joey shall henceforth be known as
3 time NBL Coach of the Year, Joey Wright

Anon, do you have fat fingers or have you been drinking a bit too much there, old bud?

Well its official, Joey shall henceforth be known simply as "Tank."

I still think they'll win the lot, and deservedly so.
But I will shit myself laughing if Karma bite him n the arse.

This season is far too unpredictable to automatically assume Adelaide are going to win a final....let alone 5 to win a championship.

IMHFO, them being swept out in the semis is just as likely as them doing the sweeping.

Will be interesting to see if Sobey has any composure in the big games or if he goes to water like CG43 has done on every single occasion.

Without Sobey, Randle & DJ firing, the 6ers haven't a prayers chance in hell.

Watch them be swept away....

So many experts. Adelaide have earned the right to win or lose as they choose and do it in which ever way they decide. Form is a slippery slope. United looked beastmode in Sydney and then at home against the Hawks for duck all result after nz butch slapped them. Adelaide will be ready come finals and all the experts will have to find other areas to attack besides the 'form leading in' factor.

Appatently other trams can tirn it on and iff and they still didn't make finals..

I hope adelaide get swept in the first round. Have not been the form team tanking or not. You cant just turn it on and off like a switch.

Jump on to NBL TV, and have a look at the replay. In fact I'll save you some time, just watch the last minute or so.
Game was there to be won, Joey put his worst players on the court.
ie he lost deliberately.

He didn't tank anyway

WHY did he tank?
Don't know.

The 36ers clearly did not deliberately lose.

They managed their big minute players to ensure they didn't risk injury

If u was adelaide I'd prefer perth than nz. Perth unfortunately has been all over the place. Nz I think is more likely to get and stay hot

Adelaide have looked in control at various points of their last three losses. It's just been that extra determination from the opposition that's been the difference. Against NZ, Adelaide were a bit lazy in those closing minutes and the opposition has just been more desperate.

Adelaide still look good though. I think this is a better team than the one in Joey's first year.

Dazz the definition of tanking:
"Match fixing, more specifically when a competitor deliberately loses without gambling being involved"

The 36ers clearly did not deliberately lose.

They managed their big minute players to ensure they didn't risk injury or fatigue. AFL clubs do this all the times in the lead up to Finals.

"WHY did he tank?
Don't know."

To rest his star players and give the bench guys a run. How many times does this need to be said to you?

Did Adelaide tank? No. I think they played to win, whereas tanking is playing to lose. Could they have gone harder to get the win? Yes. Maybe it comes down to your definition of tanking.

That is tanking, to win you play your best players. Not questioning the situation but if you talking about tanking that was it. If you try to win the best players play. Plain and simple.

Do you blame them no! People pay money to see the best players play on any comp, I personally don't like it even in afl or any sport, teams and competitions need the teams to be playing to win.

Randle might be doing warm ups and his hammi will go, injuries can happen any where any time. I'm not saying anything is wrong what Joey did, I'll do the same but people pay and the casual fan last night wanting to see is cairns good enough to make it instead of here beat the bench and you are good enough.

How can you tank in order to get a desired opponent in this league when pretty much the entire final 4 will be determined by multiple last-round results?

Great move by Joey Wright. It wasn't an important game to win, and he got to put hsi second unit on the floor in a real pressure cooker situation. Adelaide have come out as well form last night's loss as any team that's ever lost a basketball game.

We (Taipans) will have to play out of our skins to get a W on Saturday, and Joey has the luxury of using Johnson in the 4th Q, leaving Sobey on beyond the third minute of the 4th, and/or using Randle for more than 11:11 if he wants a win.

I hate to say it, but I think Adelaide are in a great position to win it all, going into the finals, because they are cruising in without stress as a team, while individual players who might need the stress of big game situations have played in those conditions.

Other teams are all scrambling to even make the play-offs, and that wears on you physically and mentally.

Did Adelaide tank? No. I think they played to win, whereas tanking is playing to lose. Could they have gone harder to get the win? Yes. Maybe it comes down to your definition of tanking.

Is it important for them to win on Saturday? Yes. Unfortunately, I think they will. By about 15.

Good chance to throw the bench in the deep end before things get more hectic. I don't think they did too badly either. Some poor shot options, but barely lost and guys like Deng and Doyle will be better for the minutes.

Joey will want a whinge before finals

Adelaide will want a win before finals

Thanks Joey.

Coming into Round 19 I thought the most likely scenario was Cairns winning game 1 of the split and losing game 2. Still think that's the case after watching last night's game. I've always had a soft spot for Cairns and they deserved last night's win, but in the return leg Adelaide will have a point to prove and will come out firing.

Good on them, they have earnt a guaranteed finals spot, why not do what is best for your team.

Tanking doesn't work. Crocs (allegedly - but we all know...) did it a few years ago to force us into a playoff scenario against them. We wiped the floor with them 2 - 0.

I think they've done it in the right way too. They didn't completely rest the guys, like Melbourne last year. They just limited their minutes, like Perth did against Adelaide in 2014. Both resulted in losses but I would suggest that United completely threw their form out the window.

While im not a fan of this concept, Sixers had the luxury of resting their players. Any other team in their position would have done the same thing. Perth did it last year against Sydney as did Melbourne against NZ. Im sure if they ended up winning last night with the lineup they played, they'd still be more than happy as it keeps them in form.

Its their reward for finishing on top of the ladder by a fair margin. Whether it comes unstuck on them in the playoffs will remain to be seen.

I wouldn't call that tanking. That's resting key / veteran players in preparing for the finals.

Why go balls to the wall for no upside?

No other side has played predominately their bench for the last quarter in order to win a game. That was great team training yesterday, we get into foul trouble, have injuries etc. we KNOW we can play 10 deep and not really lose anything.

Could this cost us if Cairns comes 2nd? Who ever plays Cairns in the semi's could essentially rest their first 5.

And for Italy

Expected responses regarding Adelaide's right to do at they wish and other teams own fault for being in their position. Correct on both counts. But this thread isn't about that, it's about whether Adelaide will take the decision to tank Cairns into the post season or not

Good enough for Lemanis Boomers ! LOL

In theory a team could lose on purpose to help a team into the playoffs, thereby keeping another "better" team out.
Unlikely at the best of times that the clear #1 team would ever doubt themselves enough to do that. Even unlikelier this season with playoff picture still so unclear.

Nah, I really don't see that happening.
Wouldn't surprise me if Prather is leading at the half way mark of the season, but he dropped off after that. Lisch had Newley taking a lot of votes off him at the start of the season. Clarke had a very slow start to the season.
I could see Craig getting runner up, but I really don't see how anyone could get near Randle even under the current crappy system.

speaking of Randle as MVP... does anyone think he won't win? Obviously he is the deserving MVP and the bookies now have him at an unbackable $1.01. But I keep getting this feeling due to the way the system work that it might be similar to when Clarke/Conklin have won where players who helped carry their teams a bit more won. Has me thinking a Prather, Lisch, Craig, Clarke could win it.

^^^ mvp

If you're good enough, you will make it. When you relying on other team's, you are up shit creek. Perth have blown leads all season, Sydney just went to sleep after a great start, United played out of sorts + injuries don't help, cairns had a tough draw to start and have done well also nz had a shit run with injuries.

You like to rest players, it happens all the time and when you have to play sometimes you can't get back in the groove as quickly as you want.

Hate to say it but I enjoy watching them play this season, Randle is in a different league, deserving map! Sobey been awesome and great role players doing what they are meant to do.

I doubt Adelaide gives a stuff what happens to the other teams. They've earned the right to use these last games to manage minutes and play around with combinations & tactics.

If that was tanking it was magnificent. Great coaching by Joey, not risking his guns down the stretch but the full court pressure in the 3rd almost had us!
We had to produce some big plays & shots down the stretch!
We might have been on the better side of some 50/50 calls also....
Great game

The Sixers were definitely trying to win. They were just trying to do so with the clutch lineup down the stretch of Doyle, Teys, Drmic, Deng and Hodgson.

(And I was already suspicious before this game. Which is the main reason I put a few multi bets on this round involving Cairns winning one or both games. And why I put a bet on Cairns to make the playoffs at $5 a couple of weeks ago. So far, so good).

It would mean that if Adelaide won their semi they might play Cairns in the GF- a team they've comfortably beaten twice in games where they've been trying to win.

Nothing is ever provable in situations like this, but I'm suspicious.