Adelaide 36ers to host Melbourne United in a pre-season clash at their new home at the Entertainment Centre

Adelaide will begin life at its new home the Entertainment Centre with a pre-season clash against Melbourne United, The Advertiser can reveal.

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Adelaide 36ers will host Melbourne United in a pre-season clash at the Entertainment Centre in September in what will be their first official taste of their new home.

The night game on Friday, September 27 will feature new imports Deshon Taylor and Eric Griffin as Joey Wright’s new-look team warms up for the start of the season and another anticipated trip to Utah.

The Adelaide 36ers are heading to the Entertainment Centre and the team including Anthony Drmic and Jack McVeigh will play there in a pre-season game against Melbourne on September 27. Picture: Matt Loxton.

Adelaide plans to unveil a number of additions to its game-day experience for fans, including paying tribute to the club’s history at the pre-season game.

Wright said the game would serve as a familiarisation exercise and a chance to execute its new combinations with five new faces on the roster.

“We get a chance to get in there and have a feel of the venue before we start the season so that first game doesn’t necessarily feel like a first game,” he said.

“By then the nerves will be a little bit less, and against a quality team like Melbourne it will definitely help us do that.”

The 36ers start pre-season training on August 5 and Wright expects his entire roster to be in Adelaide by then.

The three-time NBL coach of the year is heading to the NBA’s Summer League in Las Vegas on Monday where he will link up with his new point guard Taylor at the Philadelphia 76ers. Wright is spending time inside the 76ers’ inner sanctum to observe training and game day.

Along with Kevin White, Daniel Dillon, Obi Kyei and Alex Mudronja, Wright believes his team has recruited strongly to cover the losses of Nathan Sobey, Majok Deng, Jacob Wiley and Demitrius Conger.

Adelaide coach Joey Wright says he is comfortable with his roster after signing US import Eric Griffin as a replacement for Jacob Wiley. Picture: Sarah Reed.

“We have covered our bases and our ability to shoot the ball and attack inside and off the dribble,” Wright said.

“We’ve brought in defenders in multiple spots and we have a good balance of young and old.

“I think we’ve done a good job of rounding it out but it all comes down to see if they want to give up something to get something.

“Team-first ... you put a bunch of guys in the room and they’re all great players which you need to win a championship but they can’t all get something themselves at the same time.

“Part of my job is to get that balance right.”

Adelaide 36ers’ membership goes on sale to the public on Monday after the club said it had experienced record member retention rate to date, after announcing the move from Findon to the Entertainment Centre on Port Road.

Sharp shooter Anthony Drmic, who had double foot surgery last month, is making good progress in his recovery.

“He’s back doing ball handling drills and stuff, he hasn’t starred running but he should be good to go by the start of pre-season,” Wright said.

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