Cheshire Phoenix general manager James Brice insists the goals for the club have not changed despite a disappointing campaign on the court so far.
The Nix, who had hopes of challenging for silverware at the start of the season, are currently second bottom in the British Basketball League (BBL) having won just two of their opening 10 games.
But Brice says that if a good run can be put together then they still have plenty to play for, with a spot in the end-of-season play-offs and the BBL Trophy both on the agenda.
“It has been a tough start for us and some things haven’t turned out as we hoped, but we haven’t changed our goals at all,” said Brice.
“We aren’t that far into the season and there is plenty of time for us to turn it around and make a run for the play-offs, and there is also the BBL Trophy to look forward to in the New Year.
“But we know we have to put a decent run together pretty soon. This is a strong league and the games are really tough every week. We’re confident we can put turn it around, though.”
Cheshire were without a game at the weekend but are back in action against North West rivals Manchester Giants on Sunday (5.30pm) at the Cheshire Oaks Arena, Ellesmere Port.
The Giants are one place and two points above head coach Colin O’Reilly’s Cheshire side in the league and have shown good form on the hard wood in recent weeks.
But Brice believes that such a game represents a perfect opportunity for the Nix to arrest their slide and start to haul themselves back up the table in order to provide a brighter outlook for 2017.
“This weekend is a perfect chance for us to try and get a much-needed win,” he said.
“Manchester are a decent side and there should be a good crowd in given that they are our rivals. We have to be on out game, though, and we have to start getting some more wins on the board.”
New American signing Frank Eaves looks set to make his debut for the Nix this weekend following a successful NCAA Division One career with Appalachian State.
It has been another season of upheaval in regard to playing staff with a number of personnel changes being made already, with players such as Kaj-Bjorn Sherman, Josh Fox and Marcel Mosley being replaced with Raheem May-Thompson, Maurice Lewis-Briggs and Jawad Adekoya.
But Brice is hopeful that the current unit will be in place to the end of the season and that they will start to deliver the goods when it matters.
“We never like making changes to the roster but we felt like we had little option and felt like we needed to do something,” said Brice.
“This should be it now in terms of the squad for the rest of the season and we have to move forward with what we have and we’re confident that they can get us to where we need to be.”
The Nix, meanwhile, will be stars of the small screen later this month when they travel to Glasgow Rocks on Friday, December 30 (7.45pm), with their BBL clash in Scotland being shown live on the BBC Sport website.
The first of the scheduled live games was shown last Friday when Worcester Wolves defeated visiting Bristol Flyers.
And Brice believes the increased exposure can only be a good thing for the club and for the league.
“It’s great for us as a club to be a part of this and it is great for our fans and sponsors too,” he said.
“The league is growing and having games shown live is a massive step forward.
“Hopefully it will help us attract even more sponsors.”
