NBL News 2023: Adelaide 36ers sack coach CJ Bruton after miserable start to season

Three days after declaring they would remain “patient”, Adelaide 36ers dropped the axe on coach CJ Bruton. Here is the inside story of how the shambles unfolded.

Three days after declaring they would remain “patient”, Adelaide 36ers dropped the axe on coach CJ Bruton.

Here is the inside story of how the circus in Adelaide unfolded.

STARS SHELVED

In the fallout from Adelaide’s disastrous NZ-Tassie road trip, Bruton, on Monday, was called into a meeting with owner Grant Kelley and chief executive Nic Barbato and his coaching staff where Bruton was allegedly told to cut his rotation from 12 players to eight.

As part of discussions between the coaching staff and powerbrokers, Code Sports has been told Bruton was instructed to remove underperforming veteran trio Mitch McCarron, Jason Cadee and Sunday Dech from the line-up and bench Aussie big man Isaac Humphries for Saturday’s clash with Cairns.

But, late Wednesday, Barbato disputed the claims Bruton was told he had to make the changes.

“The assertion that CJ was instructed about players and strategy is false,” Barbato said.

“The coaching staff collectively agreed on basketball strategy going forward.”

It had been decided to shelve three players on close to $900,000 collectively — nearly half the league’s $1.82 million salary cap — in a reaction to Saturday night’s 35-point hiding at the hands of the JackJumpers, where the Sixers only just avoided an all-time franchise-low score of 59 points.

Interim coach Scott Ninnis, a legend of the club, confirmed under his stewardship the rotation would be shortened, the starting five changed and more opportunities afforded the likes of Nick Marshall and Next Star Trentyn Flowers, with some “tough conversations” to be had with his veterans.

CJ Bruton has been sacked by the Adelaide 36ers after a disastrous run this season. Picture: Getty

“We’ll shorten rotations, for sure,” Ninnis said.

“When you try to play 12 players, you probably end up pissing off 12 players, rather than just the three or four who don’t play.

“We’ll look at an eight or nine man rotation ... with an eye towards the future, getting time into those young guys.”

Following Saturday’s game, Bruton and star Dejan Vasiljevic hit out at the NBL over the horror road double that involved four flights and two games between Wednesday morning and Saturday night. On Sunday morning, Barbato doubled down, calling on the league to ensure no team had to make the arduous journey again and said the club would be patient with Bruton.

It’s understood Bruton left the meeting perplexed at the request — which was later conveyed to the affected players — but unaware he was set to be sacked less than two days later.

He returned to training on Tuesday and coached as normal but, by that evening, Bruton was out and Ninnis was in, Barbato acknowledging discussions had evolved to the point where the club felt it was time to part ways with coach.

Adelaide players were on a day off Wednesday and woke to the news that Bruton had been fired.

TOO NICE?

Bruton, a six-time NBL champion, with an MVP-smile who can light up a room is among the nicest people you’ll meet in basketball.

But, in the cut throat world of pro ball, that might be both a blessing and a curse.

Code Sports understands there were several occasions throughout his tenure in Adelaide where Bruton needed to be stronger and make it clear he was the head coach.

One source said Bruton “got walked all over”.

Multiple sources told Code Sports new assistant Craig Simpson, who had worked under Boomers coach Brian Goorjian in China and Simon Mitchell at South East Melbourne, pushed to change Adelaide’s offence four weeks into pre-season training.

The adjustment was made to ensure import guard duo Jamaal Franklin and Trey Kell were centrepieces of the offence — Kell played under Simpson at the Phoenix and Franklin at Shanxi Brave Dragons in China.

CJ Bruton’s reign at the 36ers is over. Picture: Sarah Reed/Getty Images

It was clear early on Franklin wasn’t the right fit and Adelaide parted ways with the American after just two NBL Blitz games. He wasn’t replaced until Vasiljevic — who has emerged as a passionate public and private presence, with the Sixers keen to lock him into a long-term deal — was unveiled ahead of Round 4.

He was the second import in as many seasons to be given early marching orders, following the Craig Randall II debacle, which became one of the biggest stories of NBL23.

Bruton was also forced to shelve the point guard experiment with Next Star signing Trentyn Flowers at the Blitz on the Gold Coast. Flowers hadn’t run a team since he was in junior high school and, despite Bruton’s assurances he was the answer, it was clear he wasn’t up to the task. The American youngster has had some big moments since his shift to the wing.

The 36ers didn’t have a clear offensive plan at this point – and it flowed into the regular season when they started 0-4.

It’s understood the late change in the team’s offensive structure created confusion and frustration among the playing group.

A UNIQUE SET UP

The roster construction is largely in Bruton’s image but the 36ers’ structure is set up in such a way that there is no general manager of basketball.

Instead, Kelley, Barbato and the coach are the key decision makers.

This has been mentioned to Code Sports on numerous occasions by several sources as something of an oddity in the NBL.

Barbato is highly-credentialed administrator who has helped build a thriving off-court product but has a background in the A-League with Perth Glory. Kelley is the ultimate Sixers fan who has poured millions of his own dollars — and his heart and soul — into the club.

But there is a prevailing opinion in educated basketball circles the club needs a hoops mind who can work with the coach to oversee roster construction and act as a conduit — and sometimes filter — between coach and management/ownership.

Barbato said the club, as part of its search for a new coach, would also consider adding an experienced basketball person in a general manager role.

RESULTS MATTER

Regardless of who did what, the NBL is a results-driven league.

In some ways, Illawarra taking the rare move of sacking Jacob Jackomas last month paved the way for the Sixers, given Bruton had won only 27 of 60 games in charge and finished seventh and eighth in his previous two seasons.

The patience wore thin from Sunday, but the Sixers did stick by him amid calls for his sacking at the end of last season.

“It’s really driven around results and the results are really what matters and that just didn’t meet our expectations, not only recently, but for an extended period of time,” Barbato said.

“We just felt like now was the time to make that call and to move in a different direction.

“He’s a pro and he genuinely cares about this club.”

CJ Bruton has been sacked as coach of the 36ers. Picture: Steve Bell/Getty Images

SOFTENING THE BLOW

There was a feeling Bruton was a man under pressure the moment Adelaide brought prodigal son Ninnis back into the fold.

Ninnis, who famously fell out with the club when he was sacked as head coach in 2010, had mended wounds over the past few years and, in April, was added to the Sixers coaching staff as an assistant.

The only person to be involved in all four of the 36ers’ NBL championships — two as a player and two as an assistant coach — Ninnis played 233 games for Adelaide and the idea he might soften the blow if the club pulled the trigger early on Bruton has become a reality, with the Sixers’ faithful welcoming his elevation to interim coach.

WHAT’S NEXT

The search for a new coach starts now.

Barbato said no candidate had been ruled out.

“We’re going to leave it open and talk to various candidates and just see how it fits,” Barbato said.

“It might be that they’re experienced, it might be that they’re coming in and looking for that opportunity but I don’t want to box ourselves in, I want to make sure we get the right fit and the right person to drive this club forward.”

Ninnis will use the next 15 games as an audition, with the obvious goal of lifting the Sixers off the bottom rungs of the ladder and instilling some hope in the fanbase — which is among the most loyal in the league.

“He knows what it means to be a 36er and, right at this time in this interim period, we need that heart,” Barbato said.

“We need effort day in, day out, game by game, that’s a non-negotiable and he’s lived and breathed that for a long, long time at this club.

“The goal, now, is for the team to come together — we believe we’ve got the talent to succeed in the roster. It just hasn’t come together.

“So now Scotty’s job and the rest of the coaching staff is to bring all that together so we can have an extended period of success.” Code Sports reached out to Bruton for comment.

Originally published as NBL News 2023: Adelaide 36ers sack coach CJ Bruton after miserable start to season