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Dean Vickerman has apologised to import Jordan Caroline for throwing him under the bus with his post-game comments after going down to Sydney to be 2-4.
The brouhaha is an interesting situation which has been building at Melbourne United for a couple of weeks and Vickerman’s words were at best forthright, at worst callous.
When he said in the presser “I’ve been open, we’re searching for a guy. We haven’t found the right guy yet” it was nothing that he hadn’t already told his struggling import.
But he has backtracked by telling radio station RSN that he initially texted an apology to Caroline and then did likewise in front of the team at training.
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“Any time you feel like you bring any type of disrespect to a person, which I certainly didn’t mean to, you need to make sure you’ve got that one covered off. He was great with it,” Vickerman said.
Dean Vickerman. (Photo by Graham Denholm/Getty Images)
“He just turned up, ‘yep coach, I understand’, and he’s given everything he’s got. He’s a warrior for us.”
To be fair to Caroline, he’s been forced to play as undersized centre due to United’s injury woes but he went into last weekend knowing his job was on the line after Vickerman had already engaged in what he called “some honest conversations” with him and talked about getting the best out of him “while you’ve got a guy on your roster”.
Kings guard Dejan Vasiljevic took to Twitter to chastise Vickerman.
“Honestly bro I feel bad for Caroline. He understands he’s under pressure but for a coach to come out publicly and throw him under the bus is not it. I’d comment more but I’ll leave it at that …”
It’s hard to argue he didn’t and it will be tough for Caroline to keep performing for the next fortnight until he’s inevitably shown the door sometime during the November FIBA window.
We want coaches and players to let us know what they’re really thinking with their media comments instead of talking in cliches and Vickerman was at least speaking his mind but he was too brutal with his honesty.
Caroline is still relatively young at 26 but he’s been around the block enough with stints at Israel, Taiwan and Italy to know the life of an import gun for hire is a double-edged sword. Your contract status is only secure if things are going well and unfortunately for him, the fit at Melbourne hasn’t worked and he’s on borrowed time.
United are saying they’re trying to recruit someone after centre Ariel Hukporti went down with a season-ending Achilles tear but it would be a surprise if Caroline doesn’t get replaced as well.
Here’s all the talking points for this weekend’s Round 5 fixtures.
Brisbane vs Illawarra at Nissan Arena, 7.30pm AEDT
Brisbane star Aron Baynes (17 points and 14 rebounds) is getting back to his best after his year off the floor due to spinal surgery, which could be danger signs for the rest of the league.
Former Breakers point guard Peyton Siva will make his first appearance for Illawarra to replace import Justin Robinson after his season-ending knee injury. They’ll need more than his arrival to turn their fortunes around.
The 82-56 scoreline on Monday against Brisbane flattered Illawarra, with the Bullets breaking their duck to consign the Hawks to bottom spot on the ladder leading into their rematch. They shot a woeful 22/71 from the floor, including 7/35 on threes, and were a dismal 5/12 at the free throw line.
Adelaide vs NZ Breakers at Adelaide Entertainmen Centre, 7.30pm AEDT
It’s still hard to get a gauge on the 36ers after their late start to the season due to their NBA pre-season sojourn. A 25-point drubbing at home to Tasmania, before a win over the struggling Hawks and a four-point upset in Sydney. They can prove they’re back to being legit title contenders if they can bag back-to-back wins this weekend over the Breakers and Phoenix.
Perth vs South East Melbourne at RAC Arena, 9.30pm AEDT
The Phoenix are rising on the back of wins over the Breakers and Bullets but Perth are still way too reliant on Bryce Cotton and Luke Travers. They scored 18 apiece in the 103-72 shellacking to the JackJumpers and no other Wildcat reached double figures.
Illawarra vs Melbourne United at WIN Entertainment Centre, 5.30pm AEDT
Both teams will be desperate even if the Hawks jag a win on Thursday in Brisbane. What got lost in the wash of Dean Vickerman’s comments last week was that he took responsibility for the team’s poor form by saying he was not trusting his bench enough, which meant his overworked starters were running out of gas down the stretch.
(Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)
Sydney vs Cairns at Qudos Bank Arena, 5.30pm AEDT
The Taipans were minutes away from the top of the ladder before their late collapse at home to the Breakers. They’ve beaten the Kings already in the Harbour City this month yet are still joint last (with Illawarra) on the championship betting markets. Good value at a $41 dividend if you have a few spare dollars to gamble responsibly.
NZ Breakers vs Tasmania at Spark Arena, 2pm AEDT
The Breakers built their championship years of a decade or so ago on defence. They are leading the league again with the best-ranked defensive unit, giving up 78 points per game. Their offence is yet to click and when it does, they could also rise from the cellar to be genuine trophy contenders.
South East Melbourne vs Adelaide at John Cain Arena, 4pm AEDT
If the Phoenix can get a split from their trip to Perth and home date with Adelaide they’d take that. The NBL needs to come up with a schedule where Perth heading east or teams flying west don’t have to back up less than 48 hours after the first game. With matches spread out from Thursday to Monday each round, surely that can be worked into the draw most of the time.
Melbourne United vs Perth at John Cain Arena, 7.30pm AEDT
To continue the travel rant, this game should be the Phoenix one. South East Melbourne were the team that has had to fly across the country then back again to play whereas the Wildcats hosted a match on Friday then got an extra day’s rest before going to Melbourne and then don’t play again until Thursday at RAC Arena.
NBL Round 5 Talking Points: Vickerman sorry for Caroline sledge, Draw needs rejig for Perth trips, Baynes back – The Roar
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