The following is the preview with betting tips for the Grand Final series, G4, of the 2019/20 NBL season.
IMPORTANT UPDATE: the remaining grand final series games have been cancelled. The official tournament winner has yet to be announced.
Below is a portion of the NBL press release:
“Game four was scheduled to be played on Friday at RAC Arena. Sydney Kings management have indicated today that they did not wish to proceed with the remainder of the series given the global uncertainty and effects around COVID-19.
“Having consulted with the Australian Basketball Players’ Association we have decided the remaining games shall not be played. With Perth leading the best of five game series 2-1, we will now consider a decision on the outcome of the championship over the next 48 hours.
“We acknowledge both teams for what has been a fantastic series and season. Sydney was the only team to have gone through an entire NBL season on top of the ladder and Perth was leading the Grand Final series.
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Friday, March 20
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Perth Wildcats v Sydney Kings9:30pm AEDT |
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Game 3 Recap:Â At an empty Qudos Bank Arena, the Wildcats showed all the class and poise in the world, as they took a lethal and potentially decisive 2-1 series victory, via their 111-96 thrashing of the Kings last time out. Q1 saw Perth put on a show, as they won 29-18. Q2 saw the Kings edge it back by a point, as they won 28-27. Despite a flurry of Kings made shots, Q3 still belonged to Cotton & Co, as they won it 28-24. And Perth again won Q4, 27 points to 26. Perth were hungry for it, they went out and they got it from the get go. This G3 victory sees them now just one win away from an insane 10th Championship trophy!
Cotton scored 31PTS! & Kay backed him up with 30PTS! Cotton hit 3 triples, as he also registered 7REB AND 7AST. Kay hit 7 triples! As he also registered 12REB, 4AST and 1STL. What an emphatic performance from the duo! Plumlee shot 6/8 for 13PTS, as he also got 7REB, 3AST and 2BL. White hit 50% of his 2’s, as he also had 10PTS, 2REB, 4AST and 1STL. The only remaining other starter in the form of Norton, shot 1/1 from the court, as he also dished out a dime. Steindl coming of the bench, shot 75% from deep, good for 13PTS. As he had as well 1REB, 2AST and 1STL. Martin made 1 from deep, as his other stats included 4REB, 4AST and 1STL. Wagstaff had 4PTS and 5 boards and Majok 2PTS.
Tate shot 9/12 for an impressive 20PTS. He also had 6REB and 1AST. Newley made a pair of 3’s, as he ended the game with 19PTS. He also had 5REB, 1AST and 1STL. Lisch made 3 from beyond the arc, as he had 16PTS. His other stats included 2REB and 1AST. Bogut hit 4/6 shots, as his night ended with just 8PTS. He also got 6REB, 3AST and 1STL. Ware was again cold as he went 5/20 from the floor!!! He also had 11PTS, 2REB and 2AST. Of the bench, Didi had 9PTS, Bruce 7PTS and Cooks 6PTS. Didi also had 5 boards. Bruce had 2REB and 3AST, as that made up some of his other stats. Cooks had 9REB and 2BL next to his name. Kickert had 1 board and 1 dime, as he shot 0/3 from the floor, for 0PTS.
Key Players:Â As evidence, last match, Wagstaff shot just 1/4 and Martin 2/5 from the court. The rest of the bench combined collectively (so just Majok), outside of Steindl, registered 2 shots. He brings the BANG of the bench, when Cotton & Kay need a well earned rest. He is a sniper and Perth’s version of Klay Thompson. The man has been tormenting the Kings of the pine so far this series. In G1, he scored 9PTS, while hitting 2 triples. In G2, he scored 12PTS, while hitting 2 triples. And in G3, he scored 13PTS, while hitting 3 from deep. Playing against a Kings bench unit that features players such as Louzada and Kickert, he is keeping them competitive when the Wildcats main guys are subbed of. And what he’s doing is no easy task, that’s for sure! Before the series against Sydney, 5 of his previous 6 matches saw him score in double-figures. The peak of that ironically being against the Kings, when he scored 19PTS and went ballistic from beyond the arc, hitting 5/7 3’s! He is a legitimate threat who will keep the pace going whenever he gets his chance to shine. Watch him crucially keep up Perth’s offence and score at least 10+ PTS and make at least 2+ triples in this encounter.
Lisch, Lisch, Lisch! The former Wildcat turned Kings has been simply balling out this series! When Casper Ware has struggled, which has been most of the time, Lisch has given the Kings a Guard capable of creating his own shots and running a lil bit of the offence as well. In G3 he had 16PTS, he also hit 3 3’s. In G2 he scored 19PTS and had 3 3’s. And in G1 (all against Perth here), he scored 17PTS and had 4 3’s. He’s doing his very, very best to keep the Kings in this thing and to make up for Ware’s brick-house like game. And boy oh boy, haven’t the Kings needed some of his crazy good offence alright? As he’s kept them in games with some tough shots that he’s converted. Back in 2010 with Perth, he won his only NBL Championship to date. He’s hungry for more. And he’ll know what he has to do to deliver his side the crucial and critical W at RAC Arena on Friday night, to keep this series alive for another game. Watch him score 15+ points and get at least 3 3’s, as he’ll level up the series for his beloved Sydney Kings side. RAC Arena might be noise-less due to the crowd ban, but hear Lisch give it his all in this one. There’s no 2nd chances for this man. He’s in for it, all or nothing!
Tate. The former Belgian Cup winner is having an absolute blast in his first season Down Under. He was a member of the All-First team this campaign, as he was a massive reason as to why the Kings finished the regular season in 1st place. He’s also a massive reason as to why they’re still alive in their playoffs series against Perth right now. In his last 2 games against Perth, he’s scored 20PTS each time and he had 11 in G1. Last game, he shot 9/12, before that it was 7/9, including 3/3 from deep. And before that, he made his only shot from beyond the arc. His REB totals have also been (in order) 6, 3 and 7. His inside game for the Kings particularly has been an absolute diamond. No two ways about it! He can euro step, dunk, layup. You name it, he can do it close to the rim. He is a genius with the ball. And expect him to get 20+ PTS in this one, as he’ll take on a massive offensively responsibility for the Kings, in order to ensure they get the win. In what should be a close encounter as well, watch him be clutch. That’s just one more thing he’s amazing at!
What Should Happen:Â The Kings win to push this series into a title deciding G5. At the end of the day here, there are no 2nd chances for the Kings. Lose and your done, it’s all over until next season. They are not the so-called Violet Crumbles anymore. They’ve shown all throughout the regular season and the post season, that when their backs are against the walls, they can come out like a house on fire. When they got beat by 45PTS vs MEL in G2 of the semi-finals, they didn’t bow down and succumb to their bogey team. Instead they won by 2 to advance to the GF Series in the next match. And when Perth beat them in G1, they launched an instant attack in the next game and won that one as well. They are a truly great team and that will be fully on display in this game. Tate, Lisch, Bogut and Newley are the four men that will deliver the Kings a critical victory in this one. They have season averages of 16.4PPG/5.8RPG, 6.9PPG/1.1SPG, 11.9PPG/4.4RPG and 8.2PG/8.8RPG. These fearsome foursome, will be getting the job done on Friday night! They have all the experience, the motivation and the talent and grittiness to do so!
Ultimate Defining Factors:
DF1-Â Ware has made one of his last 19 attempts from three-point range! Yep, Ware has made one of his last 19 attempts from three-point range! One more time, Ware has hit just one of his last 19 attempts from deep!!! It gets talked about every preview, but here it is again, he needs to play well this game. There are no more second chances this series, although hes had a LOT of them. The reality of the situation is that he should not be starting, Bruce should be. Or Tate should be playing some sort of hybrid PG role. But for whatever reason, Will Weaver continues to persist with him as Sydney’s starting PG. He needs to repay that insane faith showed in him ASAP. He needs to give the Kings a chance in this one. When he’s on, he is the only player in the league that can legitimately challenge Bryce as the NBL’s best. For the Kings sake, for his sake and for his mental-well-being sake, he needs to be on in this one. Don’t give the Kings fans another reason to not want you around next season!
DF2-Â How well will Sydney cope under pressure! For Perth it’s easy, this is their 8th GF series appearance in 11 years. But for Sydney, it’s their first since 2005. The two teams are in way, way, WAY different situations here. Will Ware lift his game up? Will Weaver have the right game plan? Will Bogut be able to show of his poise and experience? How will players such as Bruce and Kikcert do of the bench? All these questions and more give a good insight into the Kings and the utter most pressure they face in this one. It hasn’t always been easy for them, but I fully expect them to embrace the pressure and to use it to their advantage in this one. This is their time, it’s where they are mean to be. They’re coming for ya Perth and they’re hurt!!!
Best Bets for the Game:
Pick Sydney to win at $2.50 (Bet365, BetEasy)
Pick Q1 to have over a total of 45.50 points at $1.79 (SportsBet)
Also pick Perth to win Q2 at $1.75 (UniBet)
And back when the odds become available, for Sydney to be the 1st to 10 points, but also for Perth to be the 1st to 20 points