25 September 2002 13:03
NBL: Maher expects to stay with Sixers
ADELAIDE, Sept 25 AAP - Adelaide 36ers skipper Brett Maher is set to stay with the reigning National Basketball
League champion after the apparent collapse of a rich offer from Russian club Ural Great Perm. Maher was offered
$600,000 several weeks ago to spend a season with Perm, who are also chasing Perth Wildcats and Boomers forward Tony
Ronaldson. Perm had initially favoured Maher, as he had an out-clause in his contract with the Sixers, while Ronaldson
had been bound to the Wildcats. But the Wildcats have since agreed to release Ronaldson from his contract if he signed a
deal with the Russian club. Maher said Ural Great could not afford to sign both himself and Ronaldson without attracting
extra sponsorship - which he believed they had so far failed to do - and now favoured Ronaldson. "We haven't
really heard much in the last week-and-a-half," Maher told AAP. "They wanted to secure Tony first, I
haven't heard from Tony within the last few days but I believe he's going. "To get me as well they needed
to secure a new sponsor, I'm not sure how that's proceeding. "I presume that they are not going to sign
me, that's the way I'm looking at it." But Maher said he would still look at playing with the Russian
club if an offer eventuated, even if it came during the NBL season, which starts next week. "If people are going to
put a large amount of money in front of you, I'm always going to consider it," he said. "But I'm not
doing anything until they put a contract in front of me." Maher said he held strong hopes for Adelaide this season,
after the club signed Boomers centre Paul Rogers, its own former championship forward Martin Cattalini, who spent last
season in Europe and Wollongong guard Charles Thomas. "It's a great group of guys, we have got some good young
talent and recruited some big-name players," he said. But Maher said the Sixers could experience a slow start to
the season, as the players attempted to gel after a pre-season disrupted by the collapse of a planned tour to China,
which was to form a large part of Adelaide's preparation for its title defence. AAP scl/es
[AIW [Asia Africa Intelligence Wire]] |
RUSSIA IN FACTS
