How was this not a post about the officiating???

Yes it's not ideal that he owns a team, however neither was what the competition was before he took over, i'll take former. If they win one, i would suspect there may then be more transparency moving forward.

If Ware, Goulding, Prather and Boone are only on the figures quoted above then huge credit to whoever is doing the recruiting because they are master negotiators.

Andersen is rumoured to be on $500-$600K and Goulding is on $400K. I would think they would be spending close to $2.5M on that roster. Has to be around $1M more than any other team.

I think LK has done a lot of great things for the league but there is a distinct South Dragons whiff about Melb Utd this season and I just hope after he buys that championship and then content with having climbed that mountain doesn't turn around and pull all his money out like the Dragons owners did.

Pretty sure the Lightning are now owned by the entity that also owns the Sixers, Adelaide Basketball or whatever it's called.

This is so disrespectful and ungrateful to LK.

The LK era has brought in major sponsors including HJ's as a naming right sponsor this year.

He has negotiated deals seeing EVERY game live on Foxtel and 3 games on FTA TV.

He has resurrected the Brisbane Bullets, organised NBL x NBA games and single handedly save the NBL from a very near collapse.

A snake?....Cancer and an unprofessional twat? Show a bit of respect and give the guy a break.

The seasonal "LK is a New World Order reptilian on a pursuit to destroy the NBL from the inside-out" thread. Never fails to deliver.

A few geese on here. Maybe the critics like seeing teams comprised of lacklustre talent playing in tin-sheds? The NBL hasn't been this great since the 90's, and still it has a long way to go to get back there.

If you guys want to put your pocket-money together to buy out United and run it how you see fit, then please do so!

Saw topic, thought for sure this thread would be about Homicide. Disappointed.

The same group that owned the Tigers owns the United licence for the NBL. LK doesn't own United

It's funny how these threads pop up after someones team gets belted by 20+

AFL own GWS and Gold coast (I think)

NBA took control of the Hornets (pre Pelicans).

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne_United

Check who the owners are.

Someone a bit late to bed and a bit grumpy... school tomorrow, kiddo, off you go...

Salty form from the OP.
It's only October.... Melbourne spent heaps last year it didn't get them far

I agree with very little of what the OP is saying. However there is a valid point, where is the luxury tax and the equalisation payments? I am OK with not having it provided the league says they have scrapped the terrible idea.

An owner who owns a team in the league, or no league.

I know what my choice is.

Whatever the corporate structures in place, we know that LK was/is very much involved in ownership of Melbourne. So yes, its a massive conflict of interest.
But what's the alternative?
If you're lucky enough to have a squillionaire willing to splash their cash, they generally want a bit of control.

I don't necessarily buy into the whole "he's done so many wonderful things for the league," but at least we HAVE a league. At a bare mimimum he's injected financial stability into the league itself.

There is now a lack of transparency over the whole salary cap issue, and that's a problem, but it is by no means restricted to MU.

I'm with anon #964. League is great, and we're going on 3 seasons in a row where, if I'm home, odds are I'm watching any game that's broadcast no matter who's playing.

you over estimate the actual control over day to day ops that LK and his partner michael slepoy have in running united. LK has taken a back step to the running of united. He is not involed. Yes he is courtside at all the games but he isnt running the team.

Also... you all act like LK is the only person running things in NBL HQ. Dont forget about Jeremly Loeinger and everyone else involved. You act like every move is based for united's advantage. We wouldnt have NBL without LK, so stop moaning and just enjoy the product.

Those three sides are still spending big, it's just that Melbourne has won two games that now the haters are sooking again.

LK's option on thecleague runs out at the end of this year. What happens then? The level of professionalism shown by his team is a lot higher than that of previous concerns, yet still leaves a lot to be desired.

I agree with D2's concerns about lack of transparency, and I'm very concerned about what decisions the League, or any small part of it not owned/run by LK, will make in terms of future ownership and direction of the league. There are serious questions that require answers.

"With all the complaining about the salary cap people seem to forget when we had a hard salary cap and premierships were won solely by blatantly spending triple that."

AMEN.

LK's option on thecleague runs out at the end of this year. What happens then?

The promises that were made:
1) Salaries to be independently reviewed.
2) Results to be made public.
3) Overspending clubs to be taxed.
4) Tax collected to be distributed to clubs under the cap.
5) Bench-stacking curtailed by bench-cap.

Has any of that happened??

Some people just can't be pleased.

The NBL is going better than it has in 15+ years. On multiple levels - talent, public interest, TV coverage.

But yeah let's whinge about LK. SMH.

I'd like more clubs in the league for sure, that's my biggest gripe but I think LK has done amazing and if you're an NBA player like a Bogut or Mills or Ingles and you wanted to buy an NBL team then it looks a lot better investment than several years ago.

Also with the adventure into the NBA, we may come to see an owner like Mark Cuban for example buy a team down here and invest in his draft picks playing down here, with the way the league is dealing with sponsors, it's certainly a lot more feasible and say AU$10m is bugger all to Cuban so he could see it as being worth it if his 2nd rounders come back the NBA the next season much more advanced than when they left then that is great for all involved.

Thank you Larry and Jeremy

So if you don't have Foxtel you only see 3 games live.

Small clubs getting belted by teams that over spend by shitloads wont survive.

The comments around declaring players salaries seems a bit of a cop out. It's gone from publishing them to only publishing a player's details if it was deemed necessary. my guess is that the players union pushed the privacy issue and had the NBL concede.

Hello

Hello,

I think having Larry here for the NBL is one of the greatest things ever.

Him owning United isn't ideal, but without him there would be no Melbourne team.

Having no Larry at all would mean no NBL as we know it. With him it looks that the NBL is much more popular than the A-League.

I don't mind him owning United, and if their was some sort of corruption I am sure United would win the championship over and over and over, but they are yet to win once since he took over. Plus, no matter who is on your team, they still have to perform. A team of champions doesn't compare to a champion team.

Good luck to him and I wish him every success for him personally and for the league.

I don't have a major problem with the public salaries backtracking. If clubs are doing the right thing then I agree it's unnecessary.
The luxury tax / equalisation situation is the one that concerns me.
Last season we were blessed with a very even competition, but unless the promised system is put in place to help maintain that balance things could get ugly in a hurry.

The ownership conflict of interest factor is obviously not ideal either, but I think it's a necessary evil for now.

"Having no Larry at all would mean no NBL as we know it. With him it looks that the NBL is much more popular than the A-League."

Well TV numbers and attendance says no to that assertion.

Either way I think people just like to complain. The NBL is doing better than it has since the 90s and seems to be getting more sponsors and partnerships and announcing new things every day that benefit the whole league, not just Melbourne United. If you're salty that Melbourne have something of a super team, that's your problem. Games have never been won on paper and Melbourne has never so much as got to a Grand Final series with any of their "super teams".

This whole thing just reeks of an angry Perth fan's drivel tbh. Those same Perth fans weren't complaining when Perth was the only team with cash behind it and when Nick Marvin was throwing his weight around more than needed in the decisions made for the league til that point.

As for LK suddenly leaving, I think you're deluded. The guy hasn't built his portfolio by suddenly leaving projects. There are projects he has seen to fruition that are less of a passion for him than the NBL, and the deal to give back ownership of the league was only if the teams wanted that, and I can guarantee they do not.

Basically, get over yourself. If Melbourne win it all in the end with their super team, it just means the other teams with cash will have to match them next year. And the budget teams have always competed anyway. They will still win games, make play offs. I am sure everything LK does is in the interest of the league. And he has done more for the league in a single day than people like OP have done for it over an entire lifetime.

Anderson 200K
Ware 200K
Goulding 200K
Prather 200K
Boone 170K
Moller 50K
Adnam 50K
Majok 50K
Wesley 70K
Hooley 40K
Barlow 70K
My predictions on what Melb are spending.

Haha Tiger

LOL!

Keller, you should be proud that your lack of understanding of professional sport has actually resulted in an interesting discussion about the current state of the NBL.

The NBL is in a great place right now. There is an obvious risk associated with LK's backing, however it's a risk well worth taking and things are on the right track at the moment.

Interesting comparison with the A-League/FFA situation as it stands right now. If FIFA come in and turf out Steven Lowy (son of Frank) as the Chairman, it'll be interesting to see how this impacts on the future funding of that sport in this country. The governance structure for soccer seems more fragile than basketball right now, notwithstanding the popularity..

Must be a Perth complainer .... because for once in the last 100 years, then may not win the championship.

Ware is on 600k plus which is why Randle wanted the same money as they have the same agent.

So does anyone have ACTUAL figures other than "supposedly" this and that? Yeah that what i thought. Armchair experts are best at being keyboard warriors and not much else.

How about we applaud the guy for not only rescuing the league, but turning a total basketcase in to something worth whatching?!

If you have genuine issues wth the guy, they go watch your state or local league, I'm sure they would welcome the support

No one knows and can prove the player salaries unless they are in the front offices.

Talk of Cotton on 20k / week, Ware $600k a season etc are all speculation as there is no substance behind it.

For the record, NBL TV have re-implemented their free accounts. So streaming is free again.

Or just create 8 separate accounts and login as whichever team is playing on a free account? Then all games on nbl TV are still free...

I'm loving the "you know nothing, Jon Snow" rubbish directed toward me.

so quick to jump behind a Millionaire and defend them even if they blatantly change the rules to suit the club they own and the other bigger market clubs. (maybe you enjoy inequality in society? Or love being under the thumb of your "betters"?)

Here is why the ball was placed firmly in LK's court:

Owns the league, decides to change the cap to a soft cap knowing MU and other big market teams would benefit and would be free to spend as much as possible; hoped this would attract large crowd numbers to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane - has so far failed in attracting crowd's to Brisbane and Sydney to the point it's embarrassing. Has stated clubs would pay tax for overspending and made it a rule - has since swept this under the rug because his team have spend 1-2 million more than other teams and he's a grubby sleuth who is used of working around the rules to make money.

I created 7.

I miss the days when MVP's were announced at 11:45pm.... Thanks for nothing LK.......

The medium for FTA must always be air, and preferably air at normal atmospheric pressure.

Anything else and the shot is affected and the FTM suffers.

Anderson 200K
Ware 200K
Goulding 200K
Prather 200K
Boone 170K
Moller 50K
Adnam 50K
Majok 50K
Wesley 70K
Hooley 40K
Barlow 70K
My predictions on what Melb are spending.

Why speculate on salaries its just embarrassing.

Melbourne outbid both Brisbane and Sydney for Moller. I imagine he's on a lot more than most folks seem to think.

"Owns the league, decides to change the cap to a soft cap knowing MU and other big market teams would benefit and would be free to spend as much as possible; "

Yeah, because the league in general hasn't benefited from the talent that money has brought here.


"hoped this would attract large crowd numbers to Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane - has so far failed in attracting crowd's to Brisbane and Sydney to the point it's embarrassing. "


And Sydney's weird managing style, poor coaching and strange player selections have nothing to do with that I suppose? meanwhile the last few games in Sydney last year were nearing 10K and it's improved exponentially from before new ownership when they average 2-3K.

:
Has stated clubs would pay tax for overspending and made it a rule - has since swept this under the rug because his team have spend 1-2 million more than other teams and he's a grubby sleuth who is used of working around the rules to make money. "

Ah yes, all rich people are devious. Do you have any other evidence of him being a "grubby sleuth" or just your half baked conspiracy theories?