Basketball On The Internet.

JESSE Sanders deserved better.

No, he wasn't setting the NBL alight and no-one disputes the Sydney Kings' right to make a change they felt could improve their team.

Pretty sure even Jesse understands that and appreciates life as a professional athlete, especially playing as an import, can have its ruthless downside.

Not blaming the Kings for even a millisecond that word leaked from the US yesterday that former Indiana Pacers forward and four-year NBA vet Sam Young is heading for Sydney.

He has a James Ennis-like deal with Sydney - that is, if the NBA calls he has to be released - which makes his signature a risk. But it's a great gamble and brings another guy to Australia who will star in our environment.

Having him in Sydney too can only be good for the general health of our game and our league.

It's exciting news, albeit news the Kings would like to have released on their own terms AFTER informing Jesse they would be moving on.

That most likely was going to happen AFTER tonight's game against Townsville.

But Young's agent Joel Bell spilt the beans yesterday his client had the gig in Sydney and all hell broke loose for the Kings.

Talk about being in an awkward situation.

Everyone understands, or understood.

But it's almost 24 hours later.

Young is coming.

Sanders is going.

And the best Sydney Kings have mustered so far today is that it's Game Day, as if by not acknowledging something we ALL now know, it can quietly go away?

You know darn well Matt McQuade isn't in the Kings' media operations room anymore because he would have had a club-issued statement - which he would have insisted was a matter of prudence and urgency - out to the media, and therefore the public, long ago.

Official media, social media - we'd all know the story by now.

Even an "it is regrettable about the circumstances...blah blah. We want to thank Jesse for his professionalism...blah blah."

Of course you can't quite thank someone for their professionalism when you are acting so incredibly unprofessionally yourselves, hoping the matter might just slink away.

How can it?

Get on the front foot Sydney Kings.

We know the leak wasn't your fault, the predicament not of your making.

But "hey folks, it's game day" is BS to serve up today.

Here's how we reported it yesterday: http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/basketball/kings-new-import-from-nba-jumps-gun-and-sydney-left-with-egg-on-its-face/story-fnii0att-1226759994688