Hoops Capital trio receive Basketball NSW honour
Hoops Capital trio Robyn Maher Bob Turner and Glen Saville are all being recognised for their commitment and dedication to the sport by being inducted into the 2023 Basketball NSW Hall of Fame.
Those three will be joined by Paralympian Brendan Dowler and referee Matthew Townsend as this year’s prestigious inductees – with existing Hall of Famer, Liesl Tesch being elevated to legend status.
All six of those individuals will be acknowledged at November 25’s 2023 Hall of Fame dinner at Novotel Wollongong Northbeach.
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Below are Basketball NSW’s bios on and Maher (who played for the Flames from 1993-2000), Turner (who coached the Kings from 1989 to 1995 before being appointed general manager when Sydney was readmitted in 2010-11 season) and Saville (who played with the Kings from 2007-08):
Robyn Maher: The resume of Robyn Maher AM, OLY makes for extraordinary reading. An Olympic medallist with the Opals in 1996 who appeared in three Olympic Games and captained her country at six World Championships, she set the standard internationally for all others to follow. Domestically, she was a genuine superstar, but more than anything else an absolute winner, leading her teams to an incredible 10 WNBL Championships. Such was her impact on women’s basketball, her name now adorns the Basketball Australia International Player of the Year award, and to this day she is regarded as the best defensive player of her generation.
Bob Turner: When you hear the name Bob Turner, particularly in Sydney, your mind travels back to the halcyon days of the Kings at the Sydney Entertainment Centre in the early 1990s where he helped shape the iconic franchise and transformed basketball in the Harbour City. But the genius promoter/coach was so much more than that, starting a remarkable NBL coaching career in Newcastle with the Falcons before establishing a mini-dynasty in the 1980s with back-to-back NBL champions the Canberra Cannons. He also made a significant impact off the court, being part of the group in 2010 that brought the Sydney Kings back from extinction after two years in the NBL wilderness.
Glen Saville: It is impossible to talk about basketball in the Illawarra region and not include the name Glen Saville OLY. The all-time leader in games played for the Illawarra Hawks in the NBL, ‘Sav’ means as much to that area as other luminaries like Gordie McLeod, Mathew Campbell, and Chuck Harmison. He played an astounding 563 NBL games, 527 with the Hawks, and was the 2001 NBL Grand Final Series Most Valuable Player in helping to guide his team to their maiden National Basketball League championship; the Hawks becoming the first team from New South Wales to secure an NBL crown. Saville also distinguished himself in service to his country, representing Australia in both the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games.