Forde a “Great Australian Coaching Story”

Wednesday, February 8, 2023

NBL analyst Liam Santamaria has applauded Adam Forde’s Coach of the Year win, hailing it as “a great Australian coaching story”.

The Cairns Taipans coach was recognised for his efforts this year by winning the Lindsay Gaze Trophy, as he led the Snakes to the Finals after finishing ninth last season.

Forde’s coaching ability saw him scout a young group of talented and persistent players who mirrored his confidence on and off the court.

Santamaria believes Forde was a worthy winner of the award, as he edged out New Zealand’s Mody Maor and Sydney’s Chase Buford.

“He’s a great Australian coaching story, Adam Forde,” Santamaria said on NBL Today.

“The players that play under Adam Forde love him.

“He was my pick for Coach of the Year and it was cool to see him get it.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Xavier Cooks takes home the MVP ?<br>All the chatter from last night's Gazeys ?‍??<br>The latest on TaShawn Thomas' knee ?<br><br>All that and more on NBL Today - releasing daily during the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> Finals ?<a href="https://t.co/oEK4iwhdgG">https://t.co/oEK4iwhdgG</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1623107093271285760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Forde’s history in the NBL has moulded him into a Coach of the Year winner, as he rode a long path before finding a home in Cairns.

Santamaria celebrated the journey of Forde’s career and his hard work that has paid off in him coaching a championship contending team this season.

Forde was appointed head coach for the Snakes in 2021, coming from the Sydney Kings where he made his head coaching debut in the 2020-21 season.

“He starts from the very bottom and then he gets an opportunity at the Wildcats as a volunteer assistant coach and works his way up the ladder and gets an opportunity in Sydney. It didn’t work for him in the glitz and glamour of the harbour city necessarily, they moved in a different direction,” Santamaria said.

“But then he landed in a perfect spot in Cairns, he’s a punch above his weight kind of character and that’s what that small market team is. They’ve been terrific.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Adam Forde's passion and leadership turned the <a href="https://twitter.com/CairnsTaipans?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CairnsTaipans</a> around in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> as they stormed into the NBL Finals ?<br><br>Congratulations to Adam Forde, the winner of the Lindsay Gaze Trophy for Coach of the Year.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TheGazeys?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TheGazeys</a> live on <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> and the NBL socials ? <a href="https://t.co/EH20N6ZfcJ">pic.twitter.com/EH20N6ZfcJ</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1622901280292339715?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Taipans host the Tasmania JackJumpers in the Seeding Qualifier on Thursday at 8:30pm AEDT live on ESPN via Kayo Freebies.

The winner of the Seeding Qualifier will advance to Series 1 of the Playoffs and face the New Zealand Breakers, while the loser gets a second chance in the Play-In game.