While it was a frustrating and difficult night for the Tasmania JackJumpers, Scott Roth was nothing but class following the 105-94 defeat, delivering some of the strongest praise of Brian Goorjian’s coaching career.
“He’s Coach of the Year by far. Not close for me,” Roth said.
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It has been a remarkable season for Goorjian – one that has included adversity, scrutiny and periods where his position was publicly questioned earlier in the campaign. Roth reflected on the first time he truly understood Goorjian’s standing within Australian basketball.
“Brian Goorjian – I didn’t know much about him when I first got here,” Roth said.
“I crossed paths with him in China, and then when I got here and started to coach here I understood the impact that he’s had in Australian basketball and where he sits here.”
Roth’s comments carried extra weight given a moment earlier this season that has stayed with him.
In Round Six, the JackJumpers and Kings faced off in a game that ended in a way no one expected. The JackJumpers outscored the Kings 26-10 in the final term, with a Nick Marshall layup with 12 seconds on the clock ultimately seeing Tasmania escape with one of the all-time wins.
Following the loss, Roth reflected on what he saw from his opposing coach that night – a moment that still sits uneasily with him.
“We won a game that we shouldn’t probably have won, but we fought hard enough to get the perfect storm across the line, and when I was done with this press conference I walked right out here in this next room next door.”
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“I saw Brian Goorjian with his hands in his head on the couch, slumped over and quite distraught,” Roth said.
What followed was a flurry of media coverage questioning whether Goorjian was the right fit for the Kings.
“For about two months all I heard about was what a bad coach he is, the game’s passing by, he’s too old, the roster’s not good, you need another American, on and on and on about this guy who’s basically done everything he possibly could for this country,” Roth said.
Even for a coach who has endured his own share of heartbreak, disappointment and adversity, the moment struck deeply.
“It really shook me to take me back and say, I hope I’m not the guy ever coaching when I’m 72 years old because he’s a master of his craft.”
“And what he’s been doing here for the last five, six weeks should be appreciated by everyone in Australia, not just by the Kings, but basketball in general,” Roth said.
Roth’s praise didn’t stop there.
“His name’s up in the rafters, and he’s a master at his craft, and to go against him is a privilege, and to watch him do his job at 72 years old. I can’t be one fourth of what he is, not one fourth of what he is.”
“He loves this game, and to see him in that mode that I saw him three months ago really shook me about what we do,” Roth said.
Roth understands pressure. The JackJumpers have been dealt an unfair run of injuries this season, losing key players at critical moments. Competing under those circumstances is difficult enough – winning is harder still.
That’s why what he’s seen from Sydney has left him in awe.
“When you have a decimated roster, and you’re still winning games, and people are still bitching and moaning because it’s just not good enough, and you keep ticking over and ticking over and winning games, that’s a craft.”
“That’s a GOAT, and he’s at that level, and he should be respected at that level,” Roth said.
“So I get quite upset when I hear things about this guy who has a stellar career and gone through everything he’s gone through.”
Roth delivered his comments in raw circumstances – following a loss, after injuries to two of his players in the same game, and less than a week after losing his captain. It was an emotional moment, delivered with honesty and conviction.
When Goorjian was asked to respond to the testimony Roth had just delivered, the respect was immediate.
“I feel the same way, and I think when we got pantsed, which we have three times by him, just the respect of what he’s done down there, and we go back a long way.”
“Shanghai with Yao Ming, he was in, I came in, he was at the national team, I came in, I left, he came back in. So we’ve had a long period of time, and again, it’s not a kiss and cuddle thing, it’s just an absolute respect,” Goorjian said.
Goorjian also pointed to the culture and resilience Roth has built in Tasmania, highlighted by the mantra “defend the island”.
“Even tonight, all that they went through tonight with the injuries and missing those bodies and 20 down, and you’re walking the sideline going, they’re coming, they’re coming, they’re not letting this thing go.”
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“He’s just built that kind of thing down there. So again, nothing but respect,” Goorjian said.
In a sport where giving flowers often comes only after victory, this was something rarer: respect delivered in defeat.
It was a powerful reminder that greatness recognises greatness – and a moment two of the NBL’s finest coaches will carry with them for years to come.
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