Basketball On The Internet.

WHAT a week it has been for basketball in Australia, with stories daily to keep our sport fresh in the minds of the masses.

Let's recap, with Jonny Flynn jumping into the Tigers' gear and helping Melbourne to a rout of Adelaide. OK.

Then Sydney beats Wollongong by 14 to end the only remaining unbeaten streak in the iiNet NBL Championship.

New Zealand smacks around the Crocs and Taipans, Cedric Jackson wins PotW honors and in the aftermath of Townsville's eighth straight loss, club CEO Ian Smythe resigns.

Meanwhile, over in the WNBL, Sydney ends its six-game losing start by beating Adelaide, the Flames' WNBA recruit April Sykes having her way with Lightning, scoring 26 points.

April picks up the PotW gong and no sooner has Sydney ended its run as the only team without a win, as Bendigo starts its numerals in the "L" column, dropping its first game to Canberra.

Former Brisbane Broncos CEO, Bruno Cullen, jumps in to chair the new bid for an NBL team based in Brisbane, adding further credibility to the bid.

And to round it all out, the Wildcats boldly declare they will enjoy hanging up the "Sold Out" sign tomorrow at Perth Arena for the historic first NBL match at the 12,500-capacity venue. (Here's the latest adelaidenow version of that upcoming event at http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/well-put-jungle-book-in-the-library-say-sixers/story-fndekpx4-1226516919300 )

Don't you just love it when people outside basketball, talk it down?

Clearly they have no clue how the sport is travelling. 

ROUND Seven sees the NBL team up with State Emergency Services across Australia and New Zealand for "community round".

Introduced last year by the league to recognise, support and promote its charity partners, this season's round coincides with National SES Week so the NBL will honor the selfless hard work, dedication and commitment of thousands of SES workers across the country.

More than 40,000 SES volunteers will be welcomed at NBL games.

"Our SES workers do a terrific job in times of crisis, selflessly giving up their time and energy to help others in need,” Basketball Oz CEO Kristina Keneally said.

“Our NBL clubs are delighted to join forces with National SES Week for Community Round this year, to thank our SES volunteers and promote the courageous work they do for their local communities when emergencies hit.”

Dunno why but the image I have most often now when I think of those incredible people in the SES is not of their bravery and heart, but my mind's eye pictures an SES worker on his/her haunches, feeding water to a dazed, helpless and grateful koala. Always an amazing image where the picture truly is worth a zillion words.

THE annual Pete's Bar Lunch is coming up on November 23, the event rapidly becoming THE social function of the year for past and present basketball alumni.

This being an Olympic year, the theme for the lunch at the Powerhouse Function Centre (Lakeside Drive, Albert Park) is “Memorable Green and Gold Moments.”

Organisers have been fortunate enough to secure Lauren Jackson and Phil Smyth to be part of the day and to recount some of their memorable moments.

But really it’s all about maintaining contacts with the old basketball fraternity.

As their flyer says: "Famous wins, unexpected losses, incredible shots, extraordinary incidents. In 2012, Pete's Bar Lunch celebrates everyone who has pulled on a green and gold singlet, tight shorts or lycra bodysuit."

The day will be hosted by the quick-witted and dulcet-toned Nigel Purchase, tickets are $90 and organisers have even caught up with technology. See some of the lunch’s previous stuff here http://www.youtube.com/petesbarbasketball and there is even a Facebook page at www.facebook.com/PetesBarBasketball ... plus there's an after-party to boot.

HOUSE-keeping done, that previous item got me thinking about great green and gold moments which have stuck for me over the years.

On the Opals side of the ledger, the first and maybe greatest moment of all is the siren on the 2006 World Championship final and the reaction of our women's team at being Gold Medallists, World Champs, undisputed No.1. ("Everyone else is No.2, or lower" - thank you to "Mystery Men").

The second biggest is an individual one and occurred in London where Liz Cambage threw down the first dunk in Olympic women's basketball history. Noice one Lizbeth.

LJ yanking out Lisa Leslie's hair extension in the Gold Medal game at the Sydney 2000 Olympics jumps out a bit, as does Belinda Snell's three to force overtime against France in London.

Robyn Maher leaving on a stretcher at the 1994 World Championship as the Opals battled for a Bronze also left a mark, as did Michele Timms' heroics in the victory over France or Italy - can't rightly recall now - which Australia had to win to make it through to the quarter-finals.

The Opals beating the Soviets in Seoul, then their heart-breaking loss to Yugoslavia are easy to recall.

Off the top of my head, Boomers moments which stick out start with Tony Ronaldson's three-pointer and bonus free throw which helped sink Croatia at the Atlanta Olympics. That one has its own place atop the ladder.

Shane Heal chesting up Charles Barkley leading into those Games was memorable, Eddie Palubinskas, Ian Davies, Andrew Gaze and Patrick Mills topscoring various Olympic Games also are memorable.

Eddie going off for 48 in an overtime win over Mexico in Montreal was special and watching the "new breed" Boomers of Bradtke-Vlahov-Longley battling the might of the USSR teams in 1987 and 1988 tours of Australia were epic.

Phil Smyth guarding Sarunas Marciulionis in those games was something. Drewey hitting a squillion points against the Soviets in an overtime game in Melbourne (Glasshouse?) too was up there.

Earlier, watching Larry Sengstock matching it up with Eastern bloc seven-footers really exemplified the Aussie spirit.

And of course, Vlahov handcuffing Brazilian megastar Oscar Schmidt in a Boomers' must-win World Championship game also was among my favorite recollections.

There's more, of course there's more. But why spoil you? Get along to Pete's Bar Lunch and relive it with the men and women who actually did it.

KINGS guard Ben Madgen and Wollongong Hawks mentor Gordie McLeod respectively are NBL Player and Coach of the Month of October, and rightly so.

Madgen delivered 18.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists in five games for the Kings while McLeod masterminded a 4-0 month which had road wins in Cairns and Adelaide.

I've got some more detail here in my weekly adelaidenow.com.au online Around the NBL column at http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/around-the-nbl-welcome-to-the-jungle/story-fndekpx4-1226516953978

HERE they are, this week's rankings after Round 6, and yes, the fluctuations have begun in earnest after so many wonderful results last weekend.

NBL Rankings

This Wk ... Prev

8 (8) CROCS - CEO quits as club lurches from bad, to worse, to confused. Now NZ in NZ. Ugh.
7 (7) TAIPANS - Yet to find sparkle of recent years but a Hawks win would be a feather in cap.
6 (5) KINGS - Beat top side and dropped a ranking! Only because of Tigers' big move.
5 (6) TIGERS - Looking for a win hat-trick hosting Sydney and definitely on the move.
4 (2) WILDCATS - Two big losses in succession, now it's time to get home and ferocious.
3 (4) 36ERS - Great bounce back against Wildcats but winning at Perth Arena a huge challenge.
2 (1) HAWKS - WTF? 51 points after 100 against Perth? Must carve Cairns this week.
1 (3) BREAKERS - Under the radar? Really? Well, so it would seem but here they are.

WNBL Rankings

This Wk ... Prev

9 (9) WAVES - Nice road win at Logan but Dandenong is vastly more challenging.
8 (6) THUNDER - Did their hopes a major disservice last round. Now face Bulleen.
7 (7) FIRE - Still not setting the world on, um, fire and Bulleen is hardly a pushover.
6 (8) FLAMES - Broke the ice dramatically and can continue upward at home to Bendigo.

5 (5) BOOMERS - Season on the brink, on the road this week it's now or over.
4 (1) SPIRIT - Took a big hit with home loss to weakened Caps and now on the road.
3 (4) CAPITALS - Won without LJ and CG last round so no reason to doubt their elevation.
2 (3) LIGHTNING - Coming off a loss but close to full strength for Dandenong's visit.
1 (2) RANGERS - Doing it easy but will find going tougher in Adelaide if Lightning healthy.

THIS WEEK'S TIPS

YOU have to believe the Wildcats will break out of their under-70s scoring funk for the opening of Perth Arena against the 36ers. In front of 12,000-plus? If Adelaide can win there, now, it is legit. Imagine quietening 12,000 wild westerners? I just cannot see it happening though.

After all the turmoil in Townsville, getting back to Auckland might be just the thing to halt the Crocs' losing run at eight. Think Kings v Hawks last round. So am I tipping Townsville to beat NZ? You bet your glass-bottom boat I am not.

Cairns and Wollongong have a funny recent relationship, tending to win at each others' gym for the past little while. But I am rapidly losing faith in the Taipans and think the Hawks will want to quickly erase the memory of last week's 51-point junior score. (Of course, 51 against Cairns can almost be a winning score...)

Wait, is that Al Green's voice or Cal Bruton's I hear saying: "Hell man, I used to score 51 on a bad night mo-fo." Ah for the good old days...

But back to work. I have Melbourne above Sydney on my rankings and this game should show why. I expect the Tigers' "streak" to blow out to three!

TOUGH round in the WNBL but Sydney has it going now and can extend its winning streak to a massive two by claiming the big scalp of Bendigo. I think the Spirit bubble may have been burst by Canberra last week. It's just a theory.

If Bulleen is going to make a run, it has to start this round so I am expecting it to beat both Logan and Townsville. But I am not betting the house-and-land package on it. 

Adelaide beating Dandenong would be the match of the round and with Lightning at home (and barring any new injuries) they should sneak in.

Dandenong will beat West Coast and Canberra should repeat its win over Bendigo in an emotional match at Lauren Jackson Stadium in Albury/Wodonga. 

A PIG, a guinea pig and a pygmy walk into a bar. The barman looks up from where he is cleaning glasses, stares at them and says: "What is this? Some kind of joke?"