NBL Please Explain: How To Lose Your Fans In 8 Days

Did the NBL handle the Harrell & Davis incident correctly or was it a comedy of errors?

It is never the intention to blend politics with basketball but in this case there is no better way to relate to the Australian public than to bring in one of the most famous sayings or statements in Aussie history to express what all NBL fans are feeling right now over the spectacle that is the Montrezl Harrell & Kendric Davis saga and that is to give the league a twangy “Please Explain”.

If you want the details of the Single Man Tribunal Findings for Harrell and Davis then follow the link here because that is not what this is about.

This is about the process and how things were dealt with and how this is the perfect manus to “How to lose your fans in 8 days”!

The scenes in the match were ugly between Melbourne and Adelaide which unfortunately spilled over into the fans area, with racial allegations and striking charges the crux of why the Adelaide players had been sanctioned. These are the most serious and sensitive topics that no one wants to have in the league and should never be seen in a sporting arena. The worst possible situation, fans against players and racism involved.

This is where the brain explosion emoji begins to come into play and shows just how inexperienced the league is dealing with critical situations that can potentially have long-term affects on its growth if not dealt with in the correct manner.

From the very moment the incident occurred, profiles under the NBL umbrella did not take this seriously and understand how sensitive this subject is, but that is understandable because neither did the league itself.

Quotes of how exciting the situation is and what great entertainment the fans are receiving…. Are you serious? Two top profiles in the game have just engaged in a scuffle with fans and tempers are flaring because of a racial slur. It's time to show maturity and remember who could be watching and who could be following you on your socials. This is not time for theatre and jokes, you are not sinking beers with your mates at the pub.

Then there are the following actions from the NBL which are a real head scratcher adding to the comedy of it all. If you missed it, A player in the league is under investigation for fighting with fans and throwing punches. You then proceed to utlilize this man and this horrible situation to your advantage to market the league and promote a fan competition during this time when it is unclear to everyone what took place and what the truth is behind all of the third party media streams giving their take…. Which leads to the next debacle.

Before we get there, during this time that the above posts were put out to the world, Harrell has clearly put out on his own socials how serious he feels this situation is and has even questioned his return to the league. He has also posted that the racial attacks have not stopped with what was allegedly said to his teammate Kendric Davis on the court and now fans are sending serious hate mail that is too harsh to even post in this article.

Has the NBL checked the status of Harrell and Davis? Ah, no one knows because of the lack of transparency in how the situation is being handled and what support the players are receiving doesn’t get published, just like any real facts of the incident.

Short updates were provided by the NBL on their web page on the process and the ruling by the NBL and the Game Review Panel, however no details were disclosed.

The next stumble arrived when the Single Member Tribunal hearing which was scheduled at 2pm on Friday, November 22 was postponed to Monday, November 25 stating, “Further details will be provided.” The Tribunal hearing is over and we are still here waiting for the details of why it was shifted to the other side of the weekend. I guess they are not coming.

There is also the very well publicised fact that Montrezl Harrell was mic’s up for the game, the league posted a snippet 2 days after the incident on their Instagram, promoting a sponsor and using Harrell to do so. Something once again that has fans speculating about what was actually caught or not caught on tape or not. A perfect time for a statement from the NBL. something along the lines of “The NBL is using the sound captured to investigate the incident and the findings will be released at a later date once the tribunal hearing has taken place.

Transparency and a clear and concise update so fans do not need to get their information elsewhere or be led to believe in conspiracy theories.

D-Day comes and Harrell and Davis learn their fate. Still no word on the investigation into the fans that were involved and had allegedly used racial slurs, besides the one that Melbourne United did on their own courtside members. A third-party may have been a good option there.

The ruling delivered once again in a short and concise manner giving no details of what evidence was used to determine that the charges should be upheld, what footage was used, what audio was used or what precedent was used to determine the severity of the fines and suspension. All that was given was another open-ended statement saying that the NBL Integrity Department is not done with the incident, but no reason why or what they are investigating… At least they are consistent.

A comedy of errors by the league and the faces of the NBL and this situation needs to become a learning curve of what not to do. The ramifications and all the hard work of the NBL over the past years to even attract a player of Montrezl Harrell’s stature to the league can all be undone, not because of the incident itself, but by what followed and how it was handled.