Hawks sign Dave Gruber

[KEVY47]

American power forward David Gruber has been signed by the Wollongong ahm Hawks for the 2009/10 NBL Season.

He joins the Wollongong ahm Hawks as the first import signing for the season. A true blue collar worker, Gruber has been making a name for himself in the SEABL competition as a hard working big man who is more than capable at delivering on both ends of the floor.


Full Story
(http://www.wollongonghawks.com.au/news-press/american-dave-gruber-joins-the-ahm-hawks.html)

[curious]

Excellent news.
A dedicated work horse and deserves an NBL gig (again).

[gangsta boo]

Great signing by the Hawks

[paul]

Future planning on a tight current budget from the Hawks. He will become an Australian citizen in the near future I believe, which, assuming the Hawks business is sustainable, gives them the chance to improve on court once he does.

I think signing someone like Blagoj Janev, Ben Knight or Daniel Egan (unlikely) is vital now though, as Gruber, Tragardh and Behrendorff is not an NBL quality frontcourt on their own. If there is enough money, another option could be signing Stephen Black at point guard and Isiah Victor as a second cheapish import.

I think they are banking on players being out of options and accepting ‘Hawk money’ once other clubs have settled their roster.

But something like the below at least has a chance to be competitive:

Tragardh, Victor/Janev, Saville, D Williamson, Black/import
Behrendorff, Gruber, Jackson, Campbell, Dillon/Carter????

[foxylady]

i'd like to see scott cook or rhys martin at the point - preferably both sharing the job. they would be a good budget option and also would offer plenty of upside for the future, as they are both relatively young guys who have proved that they can play.
still think the hawks' weakest spot will be at the two spot. the only genuine two there now is campbell and there must be some concern about his ability to play the whole season injury free. might need to look for an import combo guard

[shaker]

once again since my old razorbacks/spirit are dead and gone i have been keeping a close eye on the ex players to see where they are going to end up. great news for gruber i think he deserves another go. how does everyone see this signing as compared to the guys he is replacing in either petrie or rhycart. upgrade or downgrade or does he bring different things that they didn't. just interested to hear peoples opinion. is larry davidson signing at the hawks or not? have not heard his name mentioned. i guess i am becoming more interested in the hawks now that they are the only team left in NSW and they seem to be doing some great things off the court and i might be able to catch a few games from sydney.

[paul]

I think Behrendorff’s signing makes it tough for Davidson. Unless McLeod is unable to secure a better option at the four I think he may be out of a job.

I think Gruber is a downgrade on Petrie or Rychart, but he is an honest battler. If they are relying on Gruber to be a major producer the Hawks are in trouble, but if he can be the last option in the starting five or a boost off the bench he could be a valuable player.

[EightyEight]

Word is.....

Davidson should get a contract and Luke Martin will get a back up PG role. Starting PG wil be an import.................

[paul]

shooting guard??

[A Really Bad Bass Player]

shooting guard??

the "SAVIOUR" =-D

[paul]

Does he have a back up??

[Pointybits]

Have to agree with Paul that Gruber is a great backup and not liable to deliver a winning edge. The Hawks, I expect are no different to all the others who are all trying to finalise their rosters. Hawks are flat out in pursuit of a quality PG and are also taking close looks at a number of imports. To date they have not improved on last years chances and will need to drag a rabbit of quality out of a hat soon with a pre season college game in early August.
I dont think the money available is holding them back unless the past cheats are at it again.

[paul]

It’s going to come down to luck a little bit for the Hawks. Having a coach of good reputation like McLeod may help that luck a little.

If a quality player who is banking on going to Europe (Black, Rush, Knight, Khazzouh etc) doesn’t get the deal they want and ends up back in Aus the Hawks may be in the best position to snap them up with other teams having their rosters full.

If that doesn’t happen (and it certainly is far from a sure thing) they are going to need their import point guard to be absolutely outstanding.

I would love to see them sign Black and Williamson (I had heard earlier he was likely but no news as of yet) as a backcourt, because that enables them to spread the floor for Gruber and Tragardh inside (particularly if Saville, Campbell and Jackson can hit at a reasonable rate). Gruber’s lack of height and Cam’s lack of bulk mean they aren’t nearly as effective when the keyway is crowded as when they can go one-on-one.

But it sounds as if their team will be close to:

Tragardh, Gruber, Saville, Campbell, import
Behrendorff, Davidson, Jackson, ????, L Martin

McLeod will have to work miracles to make that team competitive on a regular basis. He’s good, but I don’t know if he’s that good.

[Barnaby]

McLeod will have to work miracles to make that team competitive on a regular basis. He’s good, but I don’t know if he’s that good.

Miracles do happen - the 2001 Champions are testament to that.

Dench (the soft big man who didnt want to mix it up inside)
M Thomas
Saville (was potentially the best swingman in the comp)
Campbell (defensive specialist)
C Thomas
Kruger (hard man off the bench)
Garrison (hard working undersized big man)
Lowery (washed up SEABL player given a chance)
Doherty (token local junior).

you would have to agree that there isnt much difference in terms of relative talent on the roster.

Tragardh (precieved to be soft big man - potentially a massive offensive threat in such an undersized league)
Gruber (Workaholic)
Saville (best swingman in the comp)
Campbell (spot up shooter)
import
Behrendorff - we will see
Davidson - Defensive precence off the bench
Jackson - Token local
????
L Martin - Got a massive point to prove

[paul]

I think there’s a huge difference between M Thomas and Gruber. I think there is a big difference between L Martin and Lowery, and Saville and Campbell were both playing better basketball in 2001. Garrison gave more than Behrendorff and Davidson will.

Another big difference in 2001 was that Joyce had the team super fit, which gave them an advantage over most teams in the league. This is an area the rest of the league has caught up on in the intervening years.

The other difference is the speed of the game now and the intensity of the defence. You cant play with 7 ½ players now like Townsville and Wollongong did on their way to the GF in 2001. Having a team with less depth, talent and athleticism than in 2001 is a recipe for a lot of losses in 2010 in my opinion.

I really do hope they can be competitive. Ben Knight, Drew Williamson and a very good import would go a decent way to achieving that, even if the playoffs will still be a long shot.

[Stumps]

There's also the fact that 2001 was pretty much the golden era of the league from a parity perspective, at least looking at the top 8-9 teams anyway (Brisbane and Canberra had shocking seasons but not completely due to lack of talent). You didn't have any obscene lineups resembling the Groves era Bullets, the McShonk Tigers or the threepeat Kings in that time, with the most stacked roster (Goorjian's Titans) actually getting knocked out of the playoffs twice ;)

[scottgcau2]

Is L. Martin as certainty for backup PG? From memory the guy is a fair bit older than last year's Martin (Rhys) and hasn't really set the league on fire. From what I can tell, there's not much between then in terms of PG ability (assists and turnovers) but Rhys is easily the better shooter. Probably even Paul Henare has better %'s than Luke and we all know how much criticism Henare cops on here as a PG who can't shoot. If I was Gordy I'd be at least trialling Rhys as well as Luke.

[curious]

There's also the fact that 2001 was pretty much the golden era of the league from a parity perspective, at least looking at the top 8-9 teams anyway (Brisbane and Canberra had shocking seasons but not completely due to lack of talent). You didn't have any obscene lineups resembling the Groves era Bullets, the McShonk Tigers or the threepeat Kings in that time, with the most stacked roster (Goorjian's Titans) actually getting knocked out of the playoffs twice ;)

Lets not forget the Canberra 3 import rule. In what ever that season was that no one remembers (including me)

[Clips]

Lets not forget the Canberra 3 import rule. In what ever that season was that no one remembers (including me)
Was it the first year after the switch to Summer?

[Melb Wildcat]

But wasnt the rule introduced as the team that finished last was allowed to have 3 imports? Kind of like a draft pick in a sense? I didnt mind that to help keep it even.

[Hoosier]

Good points re the comparison to Peachie and Dusty but they are gone so no point in dwelling on it. Can anyone confirm his skippy status (or potential) 1 year offer means no long term stability!