NICKNAME/S: Mahervellous

BIO: Brett Maher was born in Adelaide (SA) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Sturt basketball program where was spotted playing for the Sturt Sabres in the Australian Basketball Association. His outstanding form soon saw him earn a contract with the Adelaide 36ers. Maher received a scholarship to attend the Australian Institute of Sport (Canberra) in 1989. He spent three years year there and played for the program’s state league team (1989, 1990, 1991).

NBL EXPERIENCE

Brett Maher made his NBL debut with the Adelaide 36ers at 18 years of age. He scored 11 points in his first game.

Adelaide had played at the Apollo Stadium since the team’s inception in 1982, but by the early 1990s, ticket demand was far too great to remain there, and the team moved into the 8,000 seat Clipsal Powerhouse prior to the 1992 season. During the off-season, the team was able to retain import point guard Butch Hays and captain Mark Davis but saw local favourite and former captain Darryl Pearce sign with the North Melbourne Giants.

The venue quickly became a fortress for the 36ers, with every game played in front of a sell-out crowd. The increased fan support saw Adelaide open the year with a 106-84 victory over the North Melbourne Giants. After this initial success, however, the team failed to win again across their next seven games, including losses to perennial easy beats like Hobart and Newcastle.

The 36ers would then face a major hurdle after the league’s mid-season break to accommodate the Barcelona Olympics. After the Boomers finished the tournament in fourth place, Bradtke returned with the announcement that he had accepted a lucrative deal (reportedly worth $200,000) to finish the season playing for Spanish team Juver Murcia. In his 17 games prior to the break, Bradtke had clearly become the best local big man in the competition. In his last game wearing a 36ers jersey, he scored a career-high 43 points, grabbed 25 boards against Geelong at home and averaged 20.1 points, 14.8 rebounds, and 1.9 assists for the season.

The 36ers, although never looking like a playoff team, were never able to fill the gap left by Bradtke and limped home to a 11-13 record, finishing in the ninth spot.

Davis again led the team with his spectacular all-around game, averaging 23.5 points, 14.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks per game.

Despite the disappointing season, two positives in 1992 were the rookie debuts of local teenagers Maher, who averaged 2.2 points in 8 minutes per game and Paul Rogers, who appeared in five games and Davis becoming a Australian citizen and able to play as a local thereafter.

1993
After two losing seasons under coach Don Shipway, Adelaide hired American Don Monson to replace him and steer the team back to its winning ways of the past decade. With the 36ers still regrouping from the huge loss of Boomers big man Mark Bradtke (who left for Melbourne) they added young talent in Chris Blakemore (AIS) and Scott Ninnis (South East Melbourne) and veterans Phil Smyth (captain of the Australian Boomers at the time) and Willie Simmons from the Canberra Cannons.

Maher averaged 8.3 points, 3 rebounds, and 2.7 assists while the team improved to a 14–12 record under Monson and made the playoffs by finishing in 7th place.

At the end of the season Blakemore claimed Rookie of the Year honours and while Ninnis was named the NBL’s Most Improved Player, scoring a career best 20.1 points and 4.4 assists per game after returning to the club after two seasons playing in Melbourne. The 36ers were then eliminated in the Quarterfinals by Ninnis former team, the defending NBL champions, South East Melbourne Magic.

1994
In 1994, Maher averaged 13.3 points and 4.4 rebounds, and helped guide the 36ers to a second place finish in the regular season with a 18-8 record.

1995
The 1995 season saw Maher average 14.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.7 assists and play a key role in helping the 36ers to a sixth-place finish during the regular season with a 17-9 record.

1996
After losing to Perth in the semifinals in 1995, a series which included a vicious elbow from Chris Blakemore to the head of Wildcats forward Martin Cattalini, head coach Mike Dunlap had lost favour with Blakemore and 36ers MVP Robert Rose, who both left the team and signed with the Canberra Cannons. Long distance specialist Mike McKay also found Dunlap hard to play for a he left to play with the Brisbane Bullets.

Despite this the 36ers recruited well going into the 1996 NBL season, signing slam dunking forward Leon Trimmingham from the Sydney Kings and, funnily enough, Martin Cattalini from the championship winning Perth Wildcats. John Rillie, who was coming off a Rookie of the Year winning season with Brisbane also signed to play alongside Maher and new import Rick Brunson (who had just narrowly missed out on being drafted to the NBA) in the backcourt.

Maher averaged 15.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 3 assists alongside stars Trimmingham (22 points per game), Brunson (19 points and 7 assists per game), John Rillie (14 points per game) and Davis (13 points and 8 rebounds per game).

Maher also be selected in the Australian Boomers Olympic squad which ffinished fourth at the 1996 Olympics, held during miiddle of the NBL season.

Following the sudden death of his father after the 1996 season, coach Dunlap return home to the United States and decided to stay there to be closer to his family. The team finished in sixth place with a record of 16-10.

The 36ers defeated the the arch rivals Perth Wildcats in the Quarterfinals before being eliminated in the semifinals by eventual champs the South East Melbourne Magic in two straight games.

This season would also be Dunlap’s last with the team after he requested the team release 36ers legend Mark Davis and focus on the team’s younger players. Since joining the 36ers, Dunlap had been systematically removing the older players from the squad, but the club board instead retained Davis (who went on to play another four seasons) and agreed that Dunlap would not return as coach.

1997
Having just shown head coach Mike Dunlap the door, the 36ers hired his assistant and former Gold Coast Rollers coach Dave Claxton as his replacement for the 1997 NBL season. While Adelaide was able to retain the majority of its roster this season, the only changes being the addition of Rupert Sapwell (Geelong) and replacing import guard Rick Brunson, who returned to the US, with ibig man Jeff Brown. Perhaps the biggest change to the roster wasn’t during free agency, but when Brett Maher was handed the team captaincy from club legend Mark Davis (something he would hold until his retirement in 2009).

Brett Maher, who early in his career was stuck at the end of a very stacked 36ers bench behind legendary guards like Butch Hays, Mick McKay and Phil Smyth had a breakout season in 1997. Maher delivered 18.8 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 5 assists per game while being ranked in the top five players in the league for three point percentage and free throw percentage. While Brown had been signed to pair with 36ers leading scorer Leon Trimmingham and Mark Davis it became apparent six games that he wasn’t the player the 36ers needed and he was quickly replaced with 35 year old, former 36ers big man Willie Simmons who hadn’t played in the NBL since 1994. Needless to say Adelaide struggled through the remaining games and finished in 7th place (with a 14–16 record) and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1992.

1998
At the end of 1997 the 36ers replaced head coach Dave Claxton, who was only signed by the club at the last moment due to unexpectedly losing Mike Dunlap, was only signed for one season and following the 1997 season was replaced by rookie coach and former player Phil Smyth. Smyth had been hired without any head coaching experience, in fact, his only previous coaching experience being a specialist coach at the Australian Institute of Sport during his playing days in Canberra.

During the off-season local product Brett Maher engaged in serious talks with the Sydney Kings and almost moved to the nation’s capital to form a all-Australian backcourt with Aaron Trahair. Ultimately, he decided to re-sign with the Adelaide 36ers, who then recruited 205 cm centre Paul Rees (via North Melbourne). After former Denver Nuggets Darnell Mee (who previously played with Canberra) signed on to play for the team, he recommended his former teammate Kevin Brooks to the 36ers and they signed the former NBA forward to a two-year deal. After his first training session with the team, Brooks’ teammates thought he wouldn’t last a week in the NBL with a shooting style that saw him release the ball almost from behind his head. However, they soon found Brooks (19.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists) was for real as he went on to lead the team in points per game with Brett Maher (17.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.7 assists) and Mee (14.8 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 4 assists) providing the additional scoring punch.

The 36ers gamble on Smyth’s playing experience translating into coaching success also paid off, with Adelaide recording the most wins since 1988 and finished in second place (19–11).

Brett Maher’s first game as Adelaide’s captain in a playoff series concluded with the 36ers delivering a emphatic 114-97 punch to Perth’s play-off chin, setting up a 2-0 semifinal knock-out. The 36ers seized a 1-0 lead in their best-of-three Semi Final series behind a sensational 36-point career-high game by Maher, who also led the Sixers with six assists (shooting 74 percent, including 7-of-11 three-pointers). Darnell Mee was his usual effective self, adding a game-high 14 rebounds to his 16 points as he terrorised Perth’s backcourt and set a aggressive defensive tone from the outset. Adelaide would defeat Perth just as easily as it had in game one, winning 117–110 to set up a Grand Final matchup against the South East Melbourne Magic.

Adelaide was not expected to defeat the Brian Goorjian led Magic, who had compiled a 26-4 record during the regular season and then swept the Brisbane Bullets in the semifinals. In game one, Brooks finished game high scorer with 24 points (10/18 shooting) and 8 rebounds as the 36ers stunned all, delivering a 100-93 defeat to the defending champs on their home court. Amazingly, game one of the Grand Final was only the second time the 36ers had defeated the Magic since the Eastside Melbourne Spectres and Southern Melbourne Saints had merged to form the Magic in 1992.

The 36ers, who had started the season off slowly, had really found their form by the time of the Grand Final series and come game two, obliterated the Magic at home (90-62). Adelaide held the Magic to less than 15 points in three of the game’s quarters. Brooks (21 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks) and Martin Cattalini (20 points and 6 rebounds) were brilliant for the 36ers in a game decided by turnovers and free throws, with South East Melbourne finishing with 26 turnovers and 6 of 8 from the free throw line to Adelaide’s 14 turnovers and 25 of 33 from the stripe.

Adelaide collected their first NBL championship since 1986 and Kevin Brooks was named Grand Final MVP in what was the last winter season for the National Basketball League.

”

1998/99
The NBL’s move to summer didn’t stop the defending champions, Adelaide, as they finished the 1998-99 regular season with their first minor premiership since 1988 with a 18–8 record. Adelaide was able to return with almost their entire championship team from 1998, the only key change being John Rillie, who left for more playing opportunities in West Sydney. The team replaced Rillie with David Stiff, who was able to pair with Mark Davis as the team’s ‘two-headed’ centre.

Captain Brett Maher (19.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.7 steals) led the team in most categories, alongside high scoring forward Martin Cattalini (14.9 points and 7.0 rebounds) and import duo Kevin Brooks (17.3 points and 6.1 rebounds) and Darnell Mee (14.8 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.0 steals), who both elevated their games in the second season.

The 36ers made their way into the grand final undefeated in the postseason, eliminating Perth in the Qualifying Finals and Wollongong in the semifinals, both in two straight games. Once into the Grand Final, Adelaide faced off against the Victoria Titans, a team comprised mostly from the roster of the South East Melbourne Magic roster whom they defeated in the previous year’s grand final.

The opening matchup delivered a battle of the point guards with McDonald (23 points, 6 rebounds, 9 assists and 2 steals) and 36ers import Darnell Mee (25 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks) led both team’s in scoring. Mee was able to come out on top in this one, with Adelaide winning the game (104-94) and Mee also forcing McDonald into making 8 turnovers.

The Titans would even the series in game two, winning 88-82. Brett Maher led Adelaide with 25 points, but the Titans’ defence saw the remainder of the 36ers struggle, with no one else able to score more than 12 points and the team shooting 39% from the field. Tony Ronaldson (22 points), Brett Wheeler (18 points, 9 rebounds) and McDonald (12 points, 6 rebounds and 7 assists) doing most of the damage for the Titans.

With the 36ers finishing in first place during the regular season the deciding game would be held in Adelaide where more than 7,000 Sixers fans willed the team over the line to become back-to-back NBL champions. Martin Cattalini (19 points and 9 rebounds) led the 36ers in scoring while Brett Maher (15 points and 7 rebounds) was named Grand Final MVP. Ben Pepper (15 points) top scored for the Titans who shot a woeful 26/78 from the field (38%) in the deciding game.

Adelaide became three-time NBL champions and the first team to win back-to-back titles since Perth in 1990 and 1991. Captain Brett Maher was voted the Grand Final MVP, and coach Phil Smyth claimed his second championship win in just two years of coaching in the NBL.

1999/00
Coming off winning back-to-back championships, Adelaide seemed primed for a NBL dynasty and bolstered their roster by signing Paul Maley. Maley, who had contemplated retiring after his experience with the Victoria Titans, was thought to be everything the team needed to achieve a three-peat, but then, economic factors impacted the 36ers’ season in a way no one could have predicted.

The NBL wasn’t in as good a financial shape as the 36ers, and in a cost-cutting move aimed at assisting struggling NBL clubs, the league reduced the league salary cup from $70,000 to $625,000. This reduction in cap resulted in the team being unable to re-sign star Kevin Brooks for the same money without breaching the cap, considering it also had added Maley only a few weeks earlier. Although the league applied for consideration on this, it was denied, and Brooks was forced to make a move to Sydney to play with the Kings.

Days later, high-scoring forward Martin Cattalini agreed to play in France for ASVEL Villeranne, which would have been ‘double whammy’, but prior to the season tipping off, he backflipped and re-signed with Adelaide in the hopes that a big year would result in being selected for the 2000 Olympics to be held in Sydney.

The season kicked off the season with a 109–89 win over Perth at home, with the 36ers fielding a starting lineup of leading scorer Martin Cattalini (20.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists), team captain Brett Maher (20.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists), Darnell Mee (13.6 points, 7.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists, 2.2 steals and 1.2 blocks) who filled almost every category on the stat sheet and veterans Paul Rees (7.8 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists) and Paul Maley (12.3 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.2 assists).

As a result of winning the 1999 NBL championship, the 36ers were again invited to participate in the McDonald’s Cup, held at the 12,000 seat Fila Forum in Milan, Italy which was scheduled during the first month of the regular season. After losing their first game 90–79 to Brazilian side CR Vasco da Gama (who went all the way to meet the San Antonio Spurs in the final), the team won the 5–6 place playoff 91–84 over Lebanese team Hekmeh BC.

After returning to Australia, Adelaide never skipped a beat. They won three straight games before heading to Townsville, a game where Maher nailed five from five threes, scored 15 points in the first quarter, and finished with a career-high 40 points as Adelaide lost its first game of the season in overtime.

Maley missed a number of games due to a recurring back injury which saw David Stiff enter the starting lineup, where he responded with a career-high 35-point game (70% from the field) in a 111-103 win over Wollongong.

On 6 February 2000, the 36ers participated in the league’s first ‘open air’ game where 10,318 fans gathered to see the Titans deliver a rare loss (83-75) at Melbourne Park.

Adelaide again finished in first place during the regular season (22–6). Due to finishing in the top two, both Adelaide and Townsville were given first-round byes. The elimination finals saw Perth defeat West Sydney on one side of the bracket, and Victoria knock out Melbourne on the other, resulting in the 36ers facing off against a Brian Goorjian led team for the third year in a row.

The Titans, who had discarded Paul Maley (12.3 points and 6.1 rebounds per game) to see him become a valuable bench contributor for Adelaide, entered the series as favourites. The Titans would win game one 101-86 in Melbourne, with Ronaldson leading the team with 26 points and 5 rebounds and MacDonald filling the box score with 24 points, 6 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks before the series moved to Adelaide for game two and three.

Game two saw the 36ers return to their high-scoring offence, which had proven unstoppable over the past two seasons. Martin Cattalini’s 24 points and 7 rebounds, combined with Darnell Mee’s all-around brilliance, collecting 22 points,7 rebounds, 6 assists and 4 steals, the 36ers evened the series with a 95-72 win.

With many pencilling in another Titans elimination from the 36ers, the team rallied behind MacDonald, who again impacted the game from every angle, finishing with 24 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals. His counterpart Darnell Mee seemed equally up to the task and finished with 22 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 2 steals, but the remaining 36ers squad struggled to score through the impenetrable Titans defence, and with Victoria winning the decider 89-93 the Titans celebrated as though they’d shaken King Kong off their back.

It was a year of upsets with Townsville being eliminated by Perth in the other semi final bracket in three games. Not surprisingly, Victoria had nothing left for Perth in the Grand Final and lost in two straight games

Following the 1999/00 season, Brett Maher and Martin Cattalini were both selected to represent the Australian Boomers at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

2000/01
In 2000/01, Maher averaged 20.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 4.5 assists as the 36ers finished with a record of 16-12 and in sixth place during the regular season.

2001/02
In 2001/02, Maher averaged 21.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.8 assists as the 36ers finished with a record of 17-13 and in third place during the regular season.

2002/03
In 2002/03, Maher averaged 5.8 points and 5.1 rebounds, and helped guide the 36ers to a fifth place finish in the regular season with a 16-14 record.

2003/04
The 2003/04 season saw Maher average 17.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.5 assists and play a key role in helping the 36ers to a eighth place finish in the regular season with a 14-19 record.

2004/05
During the 2004/05 season, Maher averaged 19.2 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 7 assists and helped the 36ers finish with a record of 19-13 and end the regular season in fourth place.

2005/06
During the 2005/06 season, Maher averaged 18.6 points, 5 rebounds, and 6.8 assists and was a part of the 36ers squad which finished in a fourth place with a record of 19-13.

2006/07
In 2006/07 Maher averaged 18.9 points and 4.8 rebounds, and helped guide the 36ers to a first place finish in the regular season with a 11-22 record.

2007/08
In 2007/08, Maher averaged 16.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.2 assists as the 36ers finished with a record of 14-16 and in ninth place during the regular season.

2008/09
In 2008/09, Maher averaged 12.5 points and 3 rebounds, and helped guide the 36ers to a fifth place finish in the regular season with a 15-15 record.

Maher played a integral role in three of the four Adelaide 36ers NBL championships (1998, 1998/99 and 2001/02) and has also been the 36ers club MVP on six occasions.

He went on to be selected in 4 NBL All-Star Games (1996, 1997, 2005 and 2006) and he has been named in the All-NBL First Team in 2000 and 2003, All-NBL Second Team in 1997, 1998 and All-NBL Third Team in 1999, 2002. He also won the Larry Sengstock Medal for being the Grand Final MVP in 1999 and 2002. Maher is one of only two players to ever win the NBL Grand Final MVP twice, the other being Ricky Grace of the Perth Wildcats who won the award in 1990 and 1993.

On 7 February 2009 in front of a sellout crowd in excess of 8,000, the main court of The Dome was renamed The Brett Maher Court in honor of Maher who was playing his last home game before retiring from the NBL at the end of the 2008-09 season. The court that now bears his name is the only home court that Maher ever played on during his NBL career as the 36ers had moved to then named Clipsal Powerhouse from their former home at the Apollo Stadium the same year that Maher started with the club. Maher has also been honored as one of only four players to have their number retired by the Adelaide 36ers.

Brett Maher retired as the Adelaide 36ers all-time leader in: games played (525), points (8,941), field goals (3,140), field goals attempted (7,072), three points made (1,162), three-point attempts (2,835), assists (2,267) and steals (703). He is one of only four players to have won 3 or more NBL championships with the 36ers alongside Mark Davis, Paul Rees and Rupert Sapwell, and one of only two 36ers championship winning captains along with American import Bill Jones who captained the club to its first title in 1986.

Brett Maher played eighteen seasons the Adelaide 36ers. He averaged 16 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 4.3 assists in 525 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:
– 7th in total games played.
– 14th in total points
– 42nd in total rebounds
– 7th in total assists
– 11th in total steals

Dan Boyce (815 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.