Brian Goorjian is back.
The Sydney Kings confirmed the major coaching signing coup on Wednesday, announcing Goorjian will return as their new head coach for the next three seasons.
It follows the news last week that the NBL’s defending champions had parted ways with now former head coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah after a play-in loss to the New Zealand Breakers.
That defeat put an end to what had already been a disappointing season for the Kings, who finished with a 13-15 record and struggled for consistency as they went for three-straight titles.
Instead, Sydney came up well short of the three-peat goal, struggling on the defensive end in particular and decided after just one season in charge Abdelfattah was not the coach to lead the team forward.
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It turned out to be a relatively straight-forward decision when you consider the man who will replace him, with Goorjian boasting six NBL championships in his coaching career.
Goorjian has also coached more games (803) than anyone in NBL history and holds a winning percentage of 68.87 in the Australian competition, having already claimed three championships previously with the Kings.
The Boomers coach, who took Sydney to five grand finals in his six years with the club, walked out in 2008 after a season marred by financial dramas.
In spite of that, Goorjian was still able to guide the Kings to another grand final appearance.
Now, almost 16 years later, Goorjian admits he is surprised to be returning as he prepares for a “full circle” moment.
“I’m pumped to be back in Sydney,” said Goorjian.
“Honestly, I never thought I’d leave Sydney the first time after we built everything from the ground up and were winning consistently – it felt like home to me and I thought I’d finish my coaching career there, as we’d built something really special.
“But when I left, I never looked over my shoulder as I didn’t think I’d ever get a chance to coach the Kings again – it’s amazing how life works like this sometimes.
“I’ve had a lot of great opportunities come to me in my career, so to be able to come full circle and come back where I’ve made so many special memories and my photo is hanging from the rafters, is going to be incredible.
“… While this season didn’t live up to the club’s expectations of achieving a threepeat, I took on the job as I feel I can offer something to the club with my strengths and abilities and can assist with winning more championships for the program.
“It just feels like a really good fit to be back in Sydney, and I can’t wait to get to work.”
Hoops Capital co-owner and chairman Paul Smith said Goorjian’s pre-existing connection to the organisation makes him the ideal choice to lead the Kings forward.
“Brian has an unmatched ability to coach in the NBL, understand the dynamics of imports to extract the best out of a squad, but most importantly, he has knowledge of and a genuine connection with the city of Sydney,” Smith said.
“Those particular ingredients are not easy to find in a coach.
“Beyond the X’s and O’s, to know the Sydney dynamic and community like he does – to be connected from day one of his tenure is a real positive for us.
“Adding to that, to be able to appoint someone so early into the off-season, allowing us to shape this roster collectively – giving us both time to both retain players but to recruit players who are aligned with our vision as a club.”
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