Done and Dusted? Roth Reveals Tassie Roster Strategy

The Tasmania JackJumpers roster is all but set, and it has been now for some time.

Scott Roth joined a whole host of NBL coaches and executives at NBA Summer League last week, but neither he nor Illawarra coach Jacob Jackomas were there to sign players. Both the JackJumpers’ and Hawks’ import trios are set for the upcoming season.

Star All-NBL First Team guard Milton Doyle will be returning to Tasmania after signing an extension on his initial one-year deal, while Jordon Crawford and Marcus Lee have come in to replace NBL23 pair Josh Magette and Rashard Kelly.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">? Cool.Crafty.Composed.Crawford ?<br>Get a glimpse of new signing Jordon Crawford and what’s to come at the Nest!<a href="https://twitter.com/IAM_JCraw?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IAM_JCraw</a> <a href="https://t.co/NeQ54zh3oh">pic.twitter.com/NeQ54zh3oh</a></p>&mdash; Tasmania JackJumpers ? (@JackJumpers) <a href="https://twitter.com/JackJumpers/status/1672083225362169859?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 23, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The departure of Tre Armstrong means the side has one more development player position to potentially fill, and Roth is happy with how the club’s roster build has panned out.

“I believe you try and get your roster done way before you get to Summer League – that’s just my philosophy – at the Summer League there’s a lot of factors that come into play and it’s very hard, in my opinion, to get fair deals over there,” Roth said.

“All the agents and all the players are all looking for the same thing. I’m a big proponent of trying to get things done quickly – especially if you know what you want, and it allows our players to have some peace of mind in knowing who’s going to be around them.

“I think it’s always good to have some turnover in general, to be honest. There was a core group we were trying to keep together here for the next few years. We’ll keep trying to add to that group and it’s always good to have some fresh bodies in and fresh faces.

“I just try to think of incremental improvements we could make and ultimately it will come down to how we defend and how quickly we build chemistry again. We have four or five guys we have to re-integrate, you have to have some luck with injuries and that type of thing.

“I’m happy with some of the things we were trying to address, and I know the guys are excited to be back next week.”

After a Championship Series appearance in its first season, and a Playoff run in its second, it’s likely the expectations on Tasmania will be elevated in NBL24 – despite their consistent desire to lean into their underdog status.

Sydney Kings ownership pair Paul Smith and Andrew Bogut recently lashed out at comments Roth made on SEN in regards to player recruitment at other clubs, stating there’s more behind the “Cinderella Story” of the club than meets the eye.

Roth believes the competition this season will be tougher than ever, and isn’t setting any long-term goals.

“I think it’s going to be another great year for fans in this league. You’re going to have your hands full to play every night in this league,” he continued. “It’s been tough since I’ve been here a few years ago when I got to Perth, and the league’s just been on an unbelievable trajectory.

“We have really limited our focus on doing our process and going through it.

“It’s just trying to get better from week to week, how we can make improvements, not get sidetracked by other teams and what they’re doing, I feel like our roster is going to be very competitive.

“I guarantee you we’re going to finish first through tenth – I just don’t know where it’s going to be.”

The JackJumpers will return for pre-season imminently, but they’re likely to be without former New Orleans centre Will Magnay for at least the start of their NBL24 preparation.

Magnay returned from a severe knee injury to play 22 games last season – including all four of the JackJumpers’ post-season games.

He played part of the NBL off-season with Spanish side Obradoiro CAB and returned to Australia with a foot injury.

“I talked to Will two or three days ago and he sounds quite positive about it,” Roth said of the injury.

“We’re all kind of waiting to see him in person.

“I think he’s a few weeks out at least.”

Tasmania will open its NBL24 campaign against Perth on Friday, September 29.