Kelly believes Taipans can win; Oliver hits back
Cairns forward Cam Oliver says he has to provide consistency if he is to lead a Taipans team desperately scrapping for some wins.
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THE Cairns Taipans are one breakthrough win away from the start of a roll which could take them to the NBL post-season, according to coach Mike Kelly.
The Taipans are on the bottom of the NBL ladder with a 4-12 record and are currently five wins outside of the top four.
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Cairns have looked good in patches this campaign but haven’t been able to find the form which took them to the semi finals in NBL21.
They are scheduled to face the Wildcats in Perth this Friday and the Kings in Sydney on Sunday, a brutal double-header which will test every man on the roster.
But Kelly has the belief his group can win that next game, and if they secure that victory it could be the trigger for a change the Orange Army is desperate to see.
“Us playing with that great energy but executing and playing good basketball as a group, and continuing to get better as the season goes on,” Kelly said. “I know anything can happen then.
“You start winning games, the belief is there, the confidence Is there, things fall your way and you get a streak going.
“I’m silly enough to think that that stuff will start happening this week.”
OLIVER: ‘I TRUST IN MYSELF’
CAIRNS forward Cam Oliver says he has to provide consistency if he is to lead a Taipans team desperately scrapping for some wins.
The human highlight reel has maintained his numbers for much of the NBL21 campaign, but it’s not his production that has been questioned.
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Oliver has come under fire from sections of the media about a perceived lack of effort, especially on defence.
Australian basketball legend Shane Heal was perhaps the most vocal, taking aim after the Snakes’ recent loss to the Bullets and claiming Oliver “did not care”.
After Friday’s four-point defeat at the hands of South East Melbourne Phoenix – the sixth time the Taipans have lost by six points or less this season – Oliver revealed he had spoken to teammates and coaching staff about his “personal battles”, and an illness.
“I had reached out to the team as well during that time period and I told them of my lack of effort and lack of defence … it’s not unnoticeable,” Oliver said.
“I talked to coach as well, just told them I’m fighting my own personal battles.
“I was battling some flu symptoms during that time, I had to get over that as well.
“I still trust in myself and the team believe in me to give my full effort, and that’s what I should do every time I go out there. Everybody trusts and believes in me to do that, I have to turn it around.
“It’s the point of being a professional basketball player. You gotta be consistent and that’s what I gotta provide.”
Taipans coach Mike Kelly said the import duo of Oliver and point guard Scott Machado were the keys for Cairns in finding another win, but they had to take better care of the basketball.
The duo were Cairns’ topscorers against the Phoenix with 22 and 24 points respectively, but they combined for 12 turnovers – one shy of the Phoenix’s entire total.
“These two are leaders on our team, for them to combine for 12 turnovers. we won’t win like that,” Kelly said.
“It’s the same, we go how Cam goes, how Scott goes, and when they play with high energy, their skills are amazing.
“And they need to play great basketball as well, and take care of the ball, talk on defence, rebound the ball like Cam does, and when we’re doing that as group, with these two leading, we’ll get wins.”
Another trip to the post-season seems out of reach, with the Taipans now six wins outside the top four.
They’re bottom of the NBL ladder with a 3-12 record, have the worst points percentage in the league, and are on a three-game slide heading into a clash with the Wildcats in Perth on Friday night.
Originally published as Kelly believes Taipans can win; Oliver hits back
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