It was of great concern to me yesterday when I read basketball player agent Daniel Moldovan’s comments on social media with regards to his three players he had playing at the Supercity Rangers during 2019.
For all the positives we have promoted and talked about this season in the Sal’s NBL, I can only hope all of our fans, coaches, players, commercial partners and the media have also seen the league as being open, transparent and more than happy to also hit any negatives head-on.
Having dealt with this simmering situation at the Rangers for the best part of the last month or more, I can say with enormous confidence that Daniel and his three players have been excellent to work with.
The professionalism shown by Daniel and Venky Jois in particular, who I have had the most to do with, has been outstanding.
Venky is an impressive leader, a very articulate young man and I value the professional conversations we had through this period of time.
I cannot speak highly enough of the way in which they have all communicated with me and in turn treated me professionally and with the utmost respect for my role.
While I won’t get into the claims being made by both parties in this unfortunate situation, what I will say is we have been following it extremely closely and conducting ongoing dialogue with all parties, including the Rangers.
It is of utmost importance to myself and the NBL Board that every player is looked after according to the agreement they sign, I cannot be any clearer or stronger in my words on this.
This is a view I share with every team and one that every player in the league should have confidence in. How we treat people forms the backbone of every organisation and we are judged accordingly.
At the same time, we should always expect the same level of commitment in return from players and I’m yet to see or hear of a player not stepping on court and playing with pride, passion, commitment and with a desire to always deliver their best. Our players also continue to do amazing things in the community, all of which I'm delighted to see and actively promote.
We will follow a process in reviewing this matter and will speak with the Rangers owners to gain more clarity on the claims being made.
It is not my job to take sides, but it is my job to deal in fact and ensure we improve should holes be found in our operations.
This is a great league and it is heading in an incredibly positive direction. While I will always deal with the bad just as openly as the good, I won’t allow poor standards to shadow a great competition.
Next season in the Sal’s NBL we will be introducing Standard Player Contracts that will be mandatory for all players, and every contract will be lodged with the NBL.
No longer will we be flying blind when it comes to any agreements made between teams and players. It is vital everyone involved in our league is treated professionally and ethically.
Everyone.
Every player is highly valued by the league, they are the stars of the show and I will always ensure they are supported for the job they do and the role they play in showcasing the Sal’s NBL to a quickly expanding fan base.
The international players who come to New Zealand and enjoy this fantastic country while applying themselves in their career should always feel supported and confident they will be treated well.
A thorough review of this situation, amongst others at the Supercity Rangers, is currently taking place and as stated above I will be sure to be transparent in any updates that come to hand.
The NBL Board is across all dialogue and is joining me in this review.
I must stress that it is not uncommon for annual reviews of NBL franchises to be conducted, especially at this time of the year. Such reviews are a normal process of the Participation Agreement each team has with the league.
Finally, I just want express my sincere apologies to Daniel and his three players for the way that they feel and the level that they have had to go to express those feelings.
While I nor the league are supporting Daniel’s comments, or those comments subsequently made by the Supercity Rangers, it is without doubt against everything this great league stands for when we see this sort of situation play out publicly.
Our review will continue swiftly yet professionally and we will make further comments at the appropriate time.
Regards
Justin Nelson
NZNBL General Manager
