It’s safe to say that this NBL season hasn’t started the way that Melbourne United had hoped it would, especially considering the red-hot way they ended last season.
This frustration is beginning to show for United, no more so than after their loss to the Sydney Kings, where coach Dean Vickerman delivered a blistering critique of import Jordan Caroline.
Throughout the post-game press conference, Vickerman lambasted Caroline, claiming that he only remained on the roster because they were yet to find a replacement for the 26-year-old American, and lamented the loss of current Denver Nugget Jack White, who Vickerman claimed would have played much better for United given the same looks as Caroline.
"As I've been open about, we're searching for a guy, we haven't found the right guy yet," Vickerman said after the game.
"I thought the shots [Jordan Caroline] had tonight, we were talking in the locker room and it was like 'wow, if Jack White had every one of those catches where he caught it, and those takes at the rim, and just were able to finish it, there were 11 kind of good shots, but he just hasn't been able to finish some of those over the length of people in this league."
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In some ways, it was not an unfair critique of Caroline, who has struggled mightily to integrate into United’s team thus far. In his six games for Melbourne, he has averaged 5.5 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, while the team has scraped together a 2-4 record, good for eighth in the league.
Still, Vickerman’s somewhat abrasive way of calling out the import has left many with a bad taste in their mouth, including current Sydney Kings player Dejan Vasiljevic, who tweeted after the game that he felt bad for Caroline.
Honestly bro I feel bad for Caroline. He understands he’s under pressure but for a coach to come out publicly and throw him under the bus is not it. I’d comment more but I’ll leave it at that ...
— Dejan Vasiljevic (@3jvasiljevic) October 23, 2022
Melbourne United have embarrassed themselves today & I’m not talking about the L. The throwing under the bus of a member of your team to cover up broader failures is totally pathetic. Caroline hasn’t been good, but their problems run far deeper, he’s just their scapegoat #NBL23
— Karl Beston (@karlbeston) October 23, 2022
Agree with those that have found this unprofessional, especially as Vickerman continues to ask Caroline to go out and play for the team. https://t.co/eHYsgiDuQA
— Michael Houben (@michaelhoub) October 23, 2022
Jordan Caroline is getting scapegoated bad! Unbecoming from one of the NBL's bigger clubs.
— NBLpocketpodcast (@NBLpocketpod) October 23, 2022
Caroline is one of three imports signed by Melbourne United, joining Xavier Rathan-Mayes and Rajon Tucker, the latter of which has copped his fair share of criticism for his slow start, after labeling himself the best import in the NBL in the preseason.
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It is not uncommon for NBL teams to move on from imports early, and with 20 per cent of the season complete, the pressure is now on United to right the ship if they want any hope of contending for the championship.
But in saying this, until they are able to replace Caroline, they will be relying on him lacing them up and giving it his all for the team, a prospect that now seems difficult given his coach's very public dismissal of his efforts.
Melbourne United’s next game is against the Illawarra Hawks, one of only two teams below them in the standings, and could prove to be a must-win if they want to stay in the hunt for a finals spot.
