Illawarra Hawks great Damon Lowery has erupted at his former club on NBL Overtime, taking aim at the players and declaring their season is already ‘in the toilet’.
“They’re terrible. They’ve got all kinds of problems, and they know it themselves,” Lowery said.
The NBL25 champions struggled through their title defence last season, and this fresh campaign was supposed to be another chance for the Hawks to rise again.
Watch every NBL game LIVE with ESPN, available on Kayo | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.
They brought in Milton Doyle, Kelan Martin and Lamar Patterson, while keeping largely the same core from their previous two seasons.
But the results haven’t changed.
The Hawks have started the season 1-6, sitting at the bottom of the ladder with their only win coming against the Adelaide 36ers in round three.
And for Lowery, the blame shouldn’t be falling on championship-winning coach Justin Tatum.
“I mean, they look at each other, and I feel for Justin Tatum because I don’t like the narrative,” Lowery said.
“So people start to say, ‘Oh, you know, maybe they’ve got the wrong coach, or maybe he’s lost the locker room.’
“People don’t put the emphasis on where it should be placed.”
And that emphasis, according to Lowery, should be on the players themselves.
“They’re the ones who are playing soft,” Lowery said.
“They won a championship three years ago. Just three years ago, they won the chip.
“Justin Tatum brought the glory back to the Gong after 25 long desert years. He brings them back to the glory land.
Hawks crush 36ers for first win | 02:27
“And now all of a sudden, guys have gotten comfortable.”
And while there haven’t been many players standing out for the Hawks, two of their biggest names in particular have Lowery questioning where it has all gone wrong.
“Tyler Harvey is playing the worst basketball of his career,” Lowery said.
“Hell, who knows what’s going on with Milton Doyle?”
Harvey is averaging just 11.4 points and 3.1 assists per game, while Doyle is putting up 11.7 points and 5.6 assists.
But with their season sinking, no genuine point guard on the roster and their biggest names failing to live up to expectations, the question remains as to how Illawarra can turn things around.
And for Lowery, it might already be too late.
“So look, there’s some major issues going on right there in the Hawks, and right now this season is effectively in the toilet,” Lowery said.
“It can still be resurrected, but something monumental is going to have to change.”
Leave a Reply