Basketball On The Internet.

DAMN! We learnt plenty this round and not only that this so-called "unprecedented" series of blow-outs is just the usual blowhard BS exposed again for what it is, four of the eight games won by a point. But what we also learnt, without equivocation, is that our NBL officials have no accountability - zero, zip, nada. 

Cast your minds back to Round 5 where repeat offender referee James Grigoul calls a technical foul on the NBL's most experienced and successful coach, Brian Goorjian, for jumping on the spot after an erroneous offensive foul (in every sense of the words) call against Tim Soares.

Grigoul then instructs Goorjian to control his emotions, giving him a second technical foul to disqualify him from the game.

Some saw that as "fair enough", others wondered why a ref hangs around a deteriorating situation if not to deal out further admonishments. Whatever, most people with no dog in the fight felt if the ref's actions were not an abuse of authority, it was an over-reaction at the very least.

So what is the upshot by NBL referees boss Scott Butler or the league itself? Nothing.

And not only is Grigoul not suspended for a week or at the very least cautioned - if he was it should be on public record - but at Sydney's very next game, guess who is in the crew to call it?

A ref that perhaps should be on the sidelines rethinking or contemplating what it is he wants to get from this profession, instead is back to officiate the next Kings match and the very coach he threw out the week before.

Provocative much? Insightful rostering?

How do you think the Kings felt when they saw him?

We also learnt that Perth coach John Rillie's frustrations with the officiating have reached a point where he felt compelled in his press conference after the heart-breaking loss to Illawarra to reaffirm fans - the paying customers - come to watch the superstars and the only superstars are the players, no-one else.

Discretionary travel calls, blatant missed calls, unwarranted tech fouls that unnecessarily but inevitably lead to the benching or expulsion of the very players fans come to see should be anathema to the NBL management.

Clearly, it is not. Last season when the officiating was at what many considered an all-time low - little did we know! - the league responded by saying the officials had been instructed to institute a "zero tolerance" policy toward the accelerating rate of discontent.

Great. So now they could not just continue to be inconsistent but harsh in any reaction to it. How has that worked out?

Hawks veteran Todd Blanchfield seemed intent on creating a turnover twice late in Perth, at right the pic showing the upshot of his pass backwards to Javale McGee who was half out of court, half in.

Ref Michael Aylen appears to have a pretty reasonable view of it but no, that one wasn't a violation.

Last time I looked, last time I reffed actually, I was instructed it was the officials' role to make sure the game was played inside the court and within the rules. That was the job spec, policing the rules.

What we learnt in Round 5 and only had further reinforced in Round 6 is that those former job specifications appear to have changed. But with the stardom of "lights, camera, action", the scrutiny also escalates. 

So what else did we glean from Round 6?

Breakers: Even a 24-point lead is not necessarily enough if you're going to now allow your players to start taking stats-padding early shots, thinking the result is in the bag. One gets away with it, then another will have his go. Then another. And suddenly you're fighting to save the game, which you blow. Petteri Koponen did not succeed in stopping the rot and all that great work Sam Mennenga did in the first half was worth nought. Once again, the three Kiwi returnees were not worth much, Izayah Le'Afa unable to convert a simple bank shot to save the win.

Bullets: It makes no sense to leave Lamar Patterson anchored to the bench against the Phoenix after he not only started against NZ but scored the two huge baskets that turned a likely 80-83 defeat into an 84-83 win. On a positive note, Tyrell Harrison's two big swats off the ring when NZ blew its chances to win - first knocking off Parker Jackson-Cartwright's driving shot, then Le'Afa's easy putback - were game-saving plays. Perhaps new import Dakota Mathias can change this bunch's (mis)fortunes, although that isn't something we've yet learnt.

Hawks: It appears Illawarra may have turned the corner. We can't be sure until after Round 7 this week but what we did learn is Justin Tatum is prepared to gamble, throwing in 17-year-old Jackson Ball into a starting role to ease some of the pressure on Tyler Harvey. It worked for a time too, though for the last plays of the game, Tatum was wise to go with more experience. Winning in Perth is always a challenge but in Javale McGee he has the finest NBA player we have seen in our league. An aggressive Wani Swaka Lo Buluk is also a major plus.

JackJumpers: Finding ways to win and grinding that out is what this club has been all about since Scott Roth's arrival. Coming from 16 down in the last quarter in Sydney, then rattling off the game's last 12 points after still trailing 78-89 was a lesson in dogged persistence. It was not a run made of momentum but a stop-start battle in which Josh Bannan, Nick Marshall, Will Magnay and Ben Ayre never lost the poise Roth insists upon. What we learnt AGAIN, is Tasmania plays with the heart and will of a state and will only improve as the key pieces continue to return.  

Kings: In much the same way NZ believed it had its match with Brisbane won and went heroballing until it was too late, Sydney fell into the same trap against Tassie, ultimately losing the unlosable.  Made to look second-rate by South East, the Kings really needed this but simply got ahead of themselves when they hit that 84-68 lead in the last quarter. Now it was time for some poor shot selection, and sorry, but there are just too many Kings playing for themselves and not for Sydney. Rarely seen Xavier Cooks consistently look this unhappy. Sydney is failing to live up to the hype, but much of it was unwarranted.

Phoenix: Plugging along steadily, taking care of business with a game built on tenacious and relentless defence and offence which shares the ball. Nathan Sobey is enjoying a career year, Owen Foxwell is the feelgood story of 2025-26, and Hunter Maldonado has done enough lately to finally unpack his suitcase. John Brown serves this team well, Jordan Hunter making his threeball a more consistent weapon and Malique Lewis finding his way, gives Josh King the type of aggression he covets. If you didn't have South East pencilled into your top six, rub someone else out now.

Taipans: Having a horrific start from which they will never recover, bad habits fully entrenched before they have a line-up capable of doing any damage. If Admiral Schofield is more interested in picking fights after his team has been flogged then, frankly, he is a flog. Andrew Andrews is too much a shoot-first PG and Marcus Lee having to do much more than why he was recruited. As Sam Waardenburg's backup, he was a solid recruit but it hasn't panned out that way. Adam Forde saying his team had the theory down for a win, but didn't execute basically is saying this is a very undisciplined group.

United: Don't be too concerned that Melbourne needed a match-winning shot against Adelaide to stay undefeated. Truth is, United had a game in Cairns - albeit little more than a training run - then had to fly home to host an Adelaide team which had all week to prepare. To still win and still be down Shea Ili is testament to how finely Dean Vickerman has his team tuned. Jesse Edwards was a monster and both Milton Doyle and Tyson Walker showed you can have a less-than-great game, but still come up big in the clutch.

Wildcats: What a superb play John Rillie drew up for Elijah Pepper to hit a wide open 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds remaining, tying the home thriller with Illawarra. But what a bunch of heroball antics Ben Henshall produced in the endgame to keep the door ajar for the Hawks. In those hallowed words of The Rock, "know your role". He was costly for a team already down Dylan Windler but drawing what Rillie has been wanting from Jaron, Dontae Russo-Nance and Noa Kouakou-Heugue. What we learnt is some players cannot set aside their egos in the crunch.

36ers: What we learnt is Zylan Cheatham can score if he chooses to, Bryce Cotton is the heart-and-soul of this team, Isaac Humphries is loving this environment but ultimately when push-comes-to-shove, Mike Wells remains the question mark. No offence to Michael Harris but what was he doing in the main rotation for one rebound and a foul? Players need to know where they fit into the grand scheme, oh, and can someone explain to Matt Kenyon why it is he finds himself so wide open in the corners? Cheatham's 21 points at 78 per cent, 12 rebounds and 9 assists - so close! - was a performance which deserved to underpin a win. We also learnt Nick Rakocevic is getting a raw deal from the refs. 

Officials: The early tech foul by another of these imported American refs, let's call him Captain CrewCut, against Casey Prather in NZ was appalling. For starters, Prather was hammered going to the hoop, had every reason to feel hard done by, so what does Cap Crewie do? Compounds his error of omission by giving Prather a tech. Weak as urine. But techs issued to Jo Lual-Acuil, Bryce Hamilton et al just served to further reveal how the umpires have lost their way. Hate seeing every player bitching about every call - what happened to the notion of the captain talking to the ref? - or guys finger twirling but the communication lines now between officials and anyone else are non-existent.

TV: When you take a camera and a microphone into a time-out, there's always the chance of hearing colourful language. Instread of apologising to viewers, it's high time commentators said something along the lines of: "Well folks, we're afraid that's the risk we run to have such incredible access." Either that or don't broadcast it live. Simple. Note to Damon "Pesticide" Lowery. Mate, you don't get to pontificate on "what's his personal scoring record?" You tell us, the viewers. FFS go in prepared. Do some research beyond the superficial. If you don't know how, give John Casey a call. And Mr DRuck - WTF is DHO or TO supposed to mean to first-time viewers? Who is your viewing audience? Crazy. On a plus note, great to see John Casey calling the Kings-JJs game in Sydney with Brad Rosen and Jason Cadee. Jase looked as nervous as a young groom ahead of the bridal dance but the call was compelling.

Rumours: With two of its three wins in Auckland this season, Brisbane has requested all further Bullets home games be transferred across the Tasman.