Griffiths deal opens door for Bulleen
By STEPHEN HOWELL
Wednesday 27 October 1999

The clearance dispute between champion player Michelle Griffiths and the Women's National Basketball League's Sydney Flames has been settled.

Griffiths, who had a son nearly four weeks ago, can resume with another club in the new year.

Bulleen Melbourne Boomers appear certain to be that club, although no negotiations can take place until the WNBL receives clearance details.

Sydney chairman Mike Wrublewski verbally agreed this week with Griffiths and her agent, Hugh Sandie, to release the player from the final season of her contract.

She had not played for Sydney since she left to join Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA in 1998, moving instead to an Italian team before pregnancy halted her career.

Sydney, supported by the league, maintained that Griffiths remained contracted to it if she played in Australia.

Griffiths, who has bought a house with her husband in East Doncaster, claimed the contract was void.

Both parties would not comment on details of the settlement, other than to say it was mutually beneficial. It is believed Griffiths paid a small fee for the release.

She is back in light training, having had sessions with Bulleen coach Lori Chizik and player Jenny Whittle - Chizik as an Opals coach and Whittle as a friend.

Griffiths emphasised that no deal had been done, but it seems certain she will join Bulleen for the second half of the season and make it championship favorite.

Eight or nine games in the WNBL and a season back with Phoenix should prepare her to resume as a key player with the Opals for the Olympic Games.

WNBL chief executive Leeanne Grantham said she was delighted Griffiths would be back, but Grantham warned that team rosters were full and that "Michelle may have to play for love rather than money this season".

While the Griffiths clearance appears good news for Bulleen, the team has concerns over Michele Timms.

The Opals captain bruised her knee in Bulleen's win over the AIS on Sunday, cannot train this week and is a doubtful starter at the weekend when the Boomers go to Canberra to play the AIS and the Capitals.

WHEN a coach is unavailable for two important games it is big news. Not so with the National Basketball League's Melbourne Tigers, whose coach Lindsay Gaze left on Monday for a FIBA rules committee meeting in Munich despite his team being scheduled to play tonight and on Friday.

Gaze has left the running of the team for the games against Canberra Cannons in Bendigo and Sydney Kings at Melbourne Park to assistant coach Alan Westover.

"He mentioned it after we lost to the Titans," Westover said yesterday of notice given. "He trusts me to carry on."

The fill-in is not fazed, having taken over for the same reason on a Townsville-Brisbane road trip last year. Westover had a 1-1 record then, as he did in 1993, the one other time Gaze put international responsibilities ahead of his NBL coaching.

Westover said the Tigers, smarting from a thrashing from Victoria Titans in their last game on 16October, expected a tough game from Canberra in the "take it to the streets" match in Bendigo.