Australian basketball coaching great Brendan Joyce is returning to Ballarat to take charge of the Miners for the next three years.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
He will also be Basketball Ballarat director of coaching.
This will be his second stint as Miners head coach.
Joyce earned legendary status in Ballarat when he led the Miners – then playing in the Continental Basketball Association – to the 1995 and 1996 ABA national championships in a three-year stay at the Minerdome before taking on the top job with Wollongong Hawks in the NBL.
His 400-game NBL coaching career, which also included time with new franchise Gold Goast Blaze, paved the way to being Australian Boomers assistant coach and Australian Opals head coach – making him one of the best credentialled basketball coaches in the nation.
He led the Opals to a bronze medal at the 2014 world championships.
Joyce last lived in Ballarat as Basketball Victoria Country high performance manager, a role he left in 2013 to coach the Opals.
Joyce said he was looking forward to working with Ballarat’s men and women’s teams, junior representative squads and domestic clubs.
“I love the Ballarat community and l will be proud to represent once again this great regional community.
“I strongly believe that nothing is more satisfying than assisting athletes, coaches, teams and organisations to achieve their goals and dreams,” Joyce said.
Joyce fill a vacancy left by Nathan Cooper-Brown, who coached the Miners for one season before relocating to Melbourne. He will coach the Sandringham Sabres’ women’s team next season.
Basketball Ballarat director Cameron Moore said this was a significant appointment.
“We are delighted to welcome Brendan back to our community.
“His proven ability to educate and develop which convinced us he was the right man for the job.”
He said Joyce would provide an enormous range of leadership qualities, which players and coaches would greatly benefit from.
Joyce has been working at Chisolm Sports Academy where he has been involved with the planning, development and curriculum implementation.
FACT FILE
CBA (now SEABL)
Coached Ballarat Miners 1994-1996
Coached Miners to CBA/national championships 1995-96
NBL
289 games in 13 seasons (Nunawading Spectres, Westside Melbourne Saints, Brisbane Bullets)
All-star game player 1988 and 1989
Coach of the year 1999 and 2001
All-Star game coach 2005
NBL championship title with Wollongong 2001
NATIONAL
Under-20 team 1978–79
Under-23 captain 1981
BOOMERS
Squad member 1981, 1982, 1988
Assistant coach 2001–2009
OPALS
Head coach 2013–2016
Coached to Oceania championships titles 2013 and 2015
Coached to world championships bronze medal 2014
Coached to fifth at 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics