‘Biggest choke in history?’ Copeland turns up Game 5 heat

04 Apr 2026

finals

Lanard Copeland warns all the pressure is on Sydney in Game 5, raising the stakes for the Kings in a high-stakes Championship decider.

There’s no question the Sydney Kings return home as favourites for Game 5.

They’ve controlled large stretches of the Series and carry a combined 57-point margin from their two wins at Qudos Bank Arena.

But deciders have a way of ignoring form, and with a player of Bryce Cotton’s calibre in the mix, nothing is guaranteed.

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According to two-time NBL champion Lanard Copeland, all the pressure is on Sydney.

“That game is going to be harder for Sydney than it will be for Adelaide,” Copeland said on NBL Now’s Roundtable.

“Adelaide, it’s against us the world, Sydney, you’re at home, your family’s there, everyone’s putting the pressure on you … if you don’t get the job done, could this be the biggest choke in NBL [history]?

“After the first game … 44 points … it should be over.”

While Copeland still backed the Kings to take the title, alongside NBL champion Pete Hooley, both made it clear this decider could go either way.

“Even though it’s a Game 5, are Sydney the better team than Adelaide? Yes. We all still say that. And Sydney have shown that … we talk about the dominance in the Series,” Hooley said.

“If they didn’t get it done, it would be outrageous, because they’ve been not just better throughout this whole season, but this Series where you’ve seen that little bit of dominance.

“You saw time led, the way they’ve done it, they’ve got up by double-digits twice on the road and just not got it done.

“If we fast-forward to Sunday and they win by double-digits convincingly at home, would we be surprised? No, because they’re very hard to beat at home. But there’s a whole lot of pressure on this … Game 5 is anything.”