Tough one to pick. Both teams trying to get into form. Cairns are pretty bad on the road so I'm going with Hawks at home....just.

I'm tipping A very close one. Hawks, just.

Neither team clicking, but given Cairns have only won one of their past 18 road games it's hard to tip them.

I'm going to go against the Grain and pick Cairns. Like what I saw against Melb united and hate what I saw from Hawks against Cats.

If cairns can steer clear of playing three ball and get into the paint, they'll snatch this game.

I'm tipping Hawks. Home advantage and a smidgen ahead of Taipans in terms of where their teams at.

Cairns may pull it off if they can get Harris in foul trouble, contain Clarke and Ogilvy, figure out how to use Jawai properly, oh and Trice has to be aggressive as well... not much to ask.

Hawks by 11-15

Cairns by 6

Referees have already shown there hand tonight.

They have massive CASH on the Hawks.

LOL 13 Free throws to 0 in the first qtr.

I would love to be an NBL ref...I will be betting EVERY WEEK and collect extra cash.

Who is going to catch me?

Rotnei Clarke is near invisible : (

Brad Rosen talking bout how the Hawks should cut Rotnei......we will take him at Perth :P

He's now talking about how the successful teams are the teams that are a happy bunch, and hawks aren't happy thus not successful......

Didn't Rotnei sign a 2 year deal? Can't see him going anywhere although he probably deserves to be cut.

Rosen just confirmed Clarke did sign for 2 years.

I don't know what's happened with him these past two years in Europe either he's had the gunner mode knocked out of him over there or he's playing conservatively because he knows he's got a 2 year deal.

Either way he's playing too within himself.

Yeah, Rosen is harsh on Clarke... but if you're on the big bucks you gotta deliver.

Great game Cairns. They are legit.

Bit worried about Hawks though. Rotnei doesn't look anything like 2013-14 Rotnei, and the team just isn't clicking together. It's all very un Bevo like. If not for Harris' brilliance they'd be an embarrassment so far.

Even if Rotnei finds his shot, their poor D makes top 4 seem very unlikely. They are the disappointment of the season for me. Even on Friday night I wasn't impressed. Would love to see them up there but it won't happen.

Bad result for the Hawks. Belted, at home, by the bottom team.

Bye bye Hawks. Not a top 4 teams asshole in this very deep n tough league. You don't win games when your depth chart has names like K White and other names I don't even know. Rot is showing is very very ordinary

Another mea culpa: I dint notice Harris in the pre.
But he's neat, real neat.

Cairns is a controlled team who is strong defensively.

I said before the season that Trice and Jawai were their keys. Both guys are now on the right trajectory and if they keep playing like they did tonight, Cairns is a title chance.

(Assuming Sydney falls over! ;-) )

@LV "Cairns is a title chance"

Ease up, they had one win against hawks. They are no chance to make finals. They live and die by the three and against an average outfit tonight were able to hit over 45%.

The better teams in the league won't allow this.

They just beat Melbourne United and destroyed Illawarra in Illawarra, (where the Hawks had been 2-1 so far, the only loss being a nail biter vs Sydney) and you think they're no chance of finals?

Umm, right o then.

FYI The only teams I rate as not being title contenders are Adelaide, and after their past 3 games, Illawarra. The other 6 could all conceivably win it.

Cairns then daylight.

It's funny seeing you fools change your tone multiple times each weekend.

There is every possibility that the following happens: the Hawks will bounce back; the Snakes won't win their next game, thus blowing their championship credentials right out of the water; Adelaide has multiple double-digit games, prompting the knee-jeekers to say how well-rounded they are again. Etc etc.

Things change from game to game. The way some posters react to a sports result makes me wonder how they cope with change/adversity in the real world. Like are they actually functioning human beings who deal with things and move on or...? Sad and funny at the same time

* Adelaide has multiple double-digit contributors next game

Rosen suggesting Clarke will be sent packing for his crap form

@LV - Kinda funny how much you rated the hawks 2 days ago claiming they'd smash the cats and at $1.37 against the cats they were great value....

Now you're saying they're not a title contender, then you go and give cairns props for beating them and a goulding-less united on Cairn's home court.

Right-o then.

Make up your mind mate.

Yeah I've absolutely changed my tune on the Hawks. It's called learning!

I also tipped them to beat Sydney on Monday night. I also had bets on them to make top 4 and win the title (which I subsequently cashed out for a profit).

Their perimeter D was my number one question mark coming into the season, and it's turned out to be their achilles heel. After 7 games I've become convinced that they won't overcome it. They can turn things around if Norton really gets going or if Clarke finds his shot, but even if that happens their D is so bad they'd still be unlikely to make the 4.

First major warning sign was their atrocious effort vs Utd when they kept doubling team ing the guy at the top and Blanchfield Sat in the corner popping threes all night. It's bizarre that a great coach like Bevo let them get beat on the same thing time and time again.

Their full court pressure just isn't troubling teams and forcing turnovers like they hoped it would, and without personnel changes (read: With Rotnei and Martin playing big minutes) it's hard to see them becoming the pressure menace that Bevo likes his teams to be.

So yeah- I've changed my tune. With good reason.

Utd really was a bizarre game. I wondered if Bevo was trying to hide from some matchups by playing the zone that UTD picked apart. Cos Blanchfield hit 8 threes and they were all from the corners, many under only token pressure, or a hand that was shown too late.

Other than their opening game, and an ok showing against the Kings the next week, Illawarra have disappointed in every game. 5 poor games in a row and I'm definitely saying enough is enough. Good teams might play 1, or 2 or even 3 bad games in a row but not 5.

At a big picture level though, to win a championship you typically need to be a good offensive team and a good defensive team. Another way to do it would be becoming a very very good defensive team and an ok offensive team (or slightly less likely but still possible, vice versa).

If we look at the Hawks, their best case scenario is becoming an average team on D and a above average (but not "very good") team offensively. Over the past 5 games they've had problems on both ends but I'm talking best case scenario, I no longer see them being able to win it.

SC6017:
"@LV "Cairns is a title chance"

Ease up, they had one win against hawks. They are no chance to make finals. They live and die by the three and against an average outfit tonight were able to hit over 45%.

The better teams in the league won't allow this."

Did you watch any of the game against Melbourne United? If so, you would know that the Taipans don't live and die by the three. That match was won in the paint. Good coaches (like Fearne) can plan to play against the strengths and weaknesses of various teams, and as LV pointed out, Illawarra's great weakness has been perceived to be their perimeter defence, hence the Taipans making lots of threes against them.

If Cairns had have shot the ball as well against Sydney as they did against Illawarra, they'd have won that match, too.

The Hawks have traded a fair bit of experience (Penney, Lisch, Davidson) for youth (imports, Norton, Kay). If they did make a move, I wonder if it would include a veteran? For Holyfield if Clarke has a two year deal?

Seems like they're in a tough position.

I think they moved too much of their old core to the bench, including both co-captains. Should Martin be starting, perhaps?

I expect Norton will become the permanent starter alongside Clarke.

I thought most of the moves the Hawks made in the off-season were positive. Losing Lisch & Penney would've been a huge blow to their plans but I think they messed up a bit signing both Clarke & Harris. Clarke is a gunner and I think Harris was his college's all-time leading scorer so not sure how they expected the two to mesh although it did work with Lisch & Penney but Lisch has a lot of PG inclinations neither of which Clarke or Harris has.

I think Rhys Martin has shown with his play this season he certainly belongs on the bench these days. If Clarke's 2 year deal is fully guaranteed which I would assume it is otherwise why would he come back they might need to make a move on Harris.

Clarke probably deserves to be cut with his tentative play but he's proven league MVP two years ago as an out and out scorer where as Harris has been impressive for only 7 games now.

Too many cooks in the kitchen.

They could also do with telling AJ to HTFU they need more out of him and Holyfield too.

Harris is an MVP candidate. Why would they cut him?

If Martin is bench material, maybe use Clarke as a bench spark and start Norton with Harris and the best SF option out of Ellis or Coenraad, just to try and find a winning combination.

Agreed Isaac. It's worth a try. Shift Harris to the 2, start Norton and Coenraad.

Coming off the bench and trying to get in rhythm against a 2nd unit d is much easier than against the starting lineup.

Clarke just needs to get up some reps to get his mojo back.