Inaugural Tasmania JackJumpers coach sets lofty ambitions for state’s re-entry into the NBL

It will be 25 years since Tasmania has played in the NBL when it returns to the league later in 2021, but the JackJumpers first head coach has set the bar high on his ambitions

Adam Smith

@ajsmiddy

7 min read

January 7, 2021 - 2:40PM

Sport

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JACKJUMPERS inaugural coach Scott Roth has immediately outlined lofty ambitions for the NBL’s newest club, declaring the goal from day one is to win a championship.

Central to his plans is targeting a core group of players to be the pillars when he begins assembling his first roster.

Having been involved with one of the best sporting organisations in Australia, Roth will leave his post as Perth’s lead assistant with first-hand knowledge of what’s required to build a competitive foundation in one of the toughest leagues in the world.

“This first year is about building a house, it’s about putting your foundation in and having strong values and culture and starting to build a new bloodline and, again, incorporating the past with the players that have been in Tasmania,” Roth said.

Scott Roth has set lofty ambitions for when he takes the reigns as head coach of the Tasmania JackJumpers. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

“My goal is to try to find three or four or five core players in this free agency class that we’re going to go after, that we can just start building around and then add here and there and then find out where our imports fall in.

“If anything I’ve learned over the years, I’ve been on bad teams and good teams as a player and a coach, and I’m just leaving a team here shortly that [has been] 35 straight years in the finals and the bloodline is incredible with players after players being here 10, 12, 15 years.

“That’s the way you win, high character guys, passionate guys, team first guys, and that’s what we’re going to look for foremost.

“My goal is hopefully we can find three or four foundational players right off the bat that will be in Hobart for five, six, seven, eight years.

“It’s probably a little greedy but I really think we can land some of these kind of players and build around them. Players that want to go on a journey, and really want to do something incredible in their first season there in Tasmania and build something special.

“I want to win a championship, and from day one that’s going to be our goal. In professional sports, if you’re not in to do that I don’t know why you’re actually coaching or being involved in it and so we want to have that mentality going forward.”

Roth is not oblivious to the challenges which will face the JackJumpers when they join the league in the 2021-22 season, having seen the rollercoaster debut of South East Melbourne last year.

Mitch Creek and the South East Melbourne Phoenix endured a rollercoaster ride in their first NBL season. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)

The Phoenix raced to a 5-2 record after their first six rounds in the competition, before winning just four of their last 21 games.

“It’s not easy, the league is not easy,” Roth said.

“There’s great coaches in the league, very, very good players and we got to make sure that we just build a strong foundation to start with, incorporating the right kind of players with high character, great values, work ethic.

“This is what I really love about what was in Perth with some of these guys and a generational group of guys that have just been able to build a culture and stick with it.”

STARS ALIGNED FOR SCOTT ROTH TO RETURN TO A HEAD COACHING ROLE ONCE TASMANIA REJOINED NBL

ONE season of involvement with the NBL was all Scott Roth needed to be convinced to pursue another head coaching position.

And the stars aligned with the introduction of Tasmania as the league’s 10th team for the 2021-22 season.

Roth, 57, joined Perth as its lead assistant in November 2019 following more than two decades in the NBA system in a variety of assistant coaching and scouting roles for the likes of Golden State, Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors, Detroit Pistons and Minnesota Timberwolves.

He has also coached G-League teams Bakersfield Jam (2008) and the Iowa Wolves (2017-19) as well as stints with the Turkish, Dominican Republic and Canadian National teams.

Scott Roth runs through a play with the Iowa Wolves during an NBA G-League game on March 10, 2019 at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Michelle Farsi/NBAE via Getty Images)

It was this wealth of experience — and more importantly involvement with Australian basketball — which saw him land the JackJumpers job from a field of more than 100 applicants.

“This is something I was looking forward to for the last four years when I was starting to move a little bit away from the NBA … and when I got to the NBL I knew I wanted to coach here,” said Roth, who has signed a two-year deal with an option for a third.

“Once I got here and saw the league and obviously saw how Perth operates, and was fortunate to win a championship with them, but seeing where I could be a head coach here and what the possibilities were, then Tasmania came on board.

“I followed this whole process in the middle of last year and really was kind of all in on this deal with Tasmania.

“I knew how great it would be to be the first coach there and represent the state, and rally the people there and just start to build something incredible.

Scott Roth and Trevor Gleeson of the Wildcats look on during game three of the NBL Grand Final series between the Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats at Qudos Bank Arena on March 15, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

“It was just something that attracted me immediately, to build something from the start, to get your fingerprint on it, to start a culture.”

Roth has been given a crash course on Tasmania’s at times divided nature — and the need to for the JackJumpers to unite the state despite being based in Hobart — but believes he is equipped to handle the challenge.

“This job reminds me of my days back in Utah when I was a player, where it was a state team.

“We played in Salt Lake City, but really the whole state of Utah rallied around Utah Jazz and John Stockton and Karl Malone in those days.

“At the end of the day this is a state team. We are in Hobart and the community around there is obviously hugely important, but we have to have reaching arms to go around the whole state and making sure that we’re incorporating everything.”

SCOTT ROTH COACHING FILE

Perth Wildcats Lead Assistant Coach 2019-2020

Chinese National Team Lead Assistant Coach 2019

Iowa Wolves Head Coach 2017-2019

Minnesota Timberwolves Pro Scout 2016-2017

Sevilla Basket Head Coach 2014-2015

Detroit Pistons Lead Assistant Coach 2013-2014

Toronto Raptors Assistant Coach 2010-2013

Golden State Warriors Assistant Coach 2009-2010

Dominican Republic National Team Head Coach 2007-2008

Bakersfield Jam Head Coach 2008

Milwaukee Bucks Scout and Direct Assistant to General Manager 2003-2007

Memphis Grizzlies Assistant Coach 2000-2002

Turkish National Team Assistant Coach 2001-2002

Dallas Mavericks Assistant Coach 1997-2000

Milwaukee Bucks Scout 1996-1997

Los Angeles Lakers Scout 1997

University of Wisconsin-Platteville Assistant Coach 1995-1996

EARLIER, BREAKING:

THE lead assistant of reigning NBL champions Perth has been appointed the Tasmania JackJumpers inaugural coach.

American Scott Roth, who has an extensive professional coaching resume around the world, has been entrusted with the job of leading the league’s 10th team when it joins the competition for the 2021-22 season.

Scott Roth (left) and Trevor Gleeson of the Wildcats look on during game three of the NBL Grand Final series between the Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats at Qudos Bank Arena on March 15, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

The 57-year-old was chosen from more than 100 applicants, and is understood to have edged out recently released Chicago Bulls assistant coach Dean Cooper for the position.

Roth joined the Wildcats in November 2019 as lead assistant to master coach Trevor Gleeson and had been reappointed to the role in June last year.

However he will take the reins of an NBL outfit in his own right when he takes up the position from March 1.

“I am thrilled to have been given the opportunity to be the first head coach of the Tasmania JackJumpers,” Roth said.

“It’s an exciting time for basketball in the state and I’m looking forward to getting to know the people of Tasmania and building a great club they will be proud of.

“I want to thank the entire Perth Wildcats organisation led by Jack Bendat and Troy Georgiu as well as the coaches led by Trevor Gleeson, all the players and the ‘Red Army’ that welcomed me to Perth and allowed me to be part of an NBL Championship.

“I’ve enjoyed a long journey in basketball but as soon as I moved to Australia I knew the NBL was where I wanted to be long term. This is a world class league and I can’t wait to get started and prepare for our inaugural season.”

A native of Cleveland, Roth has a wealth of previous roles in coaching and scouting with the Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, Memphis Grizzlies, Golden State Warriors, Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons.

Scott Roth talks tactics as Iowa Wolves huddle up during an NBA G-League game on March 10, 2019 at NYCB Live's Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2019 NBAE (Photo by Michelle Farsi/NBAE via Getty Images)

He has worked notably with a number of premier NBA big men, including Dirk Nowitzi, Pau Gasol, Andre Drummond and Jonas Valanciunas.

Roth also has international experience coaching the Turkish, Dominican Republic and Canadian National teams, and during a stint at Spanish giants Sevilla from 2014-15, he helped develop 2015 NBA lottery pick Kristaps Porzingis.

“We are delighted to welcome Scott as the inaugural head coach of the Tasmania JackJumpers in what is a landmark announcement for the NBL’s newest club,” JackJumpers chief executive Simon Brookhouse said.

“Scott will bring a wealth of experience from what has been a decorated playing and coaching career around the world.

Former Chicago Bulls assistant Dean Cooper was in the running for the JackJumpers head coach role. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by David Dow/NBAE via Getty Images)

“He has been part of winning cultures and has a proven track record in developing talent and getting the best out of players.

“Scott’s vast networks will be invaluable in attracting world class talent and achieving success for the JackJumpers.

“He is also committed to helping build a great club for Tasmania and achieving our goal for basketball to be the number one sport in the state.”