Farewell to The Icon

Written by Matt McQuade for Kings Media

He’s never been a guy in the spotlight.

He’s not a superstar player like Andrew Bogut, Josh Childress and Dwayne McClain.

Nor is he a famous coach like Brian Goorjian, Brett Brown and Bob Turner.

He hasn’t shot a single basket. Made a spectacular play. Drawn up a strategy to help the team win that key ballgame.

You’d hardly notice him from the stands. Yet there he was, game after game, helping his team in any way he could.

And as far as the history of the Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings is concerned, he’s been an integral and vitally important part of the life of this franchise ever since it was created in October 1987.

His name is Laurie Watterson, and his nickname is ‘The Icon’, given to him to acknowledge his remarkable work with the Kings since the purple and gold was born 34 years ago, a period of service broken only when the team was out of the National Basketball League for a pair of excruciating seasons.

On Sunday March 28, 2021, that amazing service ended after the team’s loss to the Perth Wildcats, when Sydney’s veteran team manager worked his final game for the purple and gold.

To say it was a sad day is an understatement, because he has meant so much to this great club. In many ways, Laurie Watterson has been as important to the success of the Kings as have Sydney Kings Legends Mike Wrublewski, Lorraine Landon and Bob Turner.

“I think Sydney has been very fortunate to have Laurie Watterson,” Lorraine Landon said.

“He’s devoted his life to looking after the Sydney Kings athletes over multiple decades. He’s also survived the many owners and coaches, and I think it’s the athletes who have never forgotten Laurie’s care for each of them.”

“He’s truly one of basketball’s unsung heroes; he’s been fun to work with over the years and our friendship is truly special.”

“I think Laurie’s dedication each season never reflected sometimes how difficult it was when you had injuries and losses and tough times. He was always there for his team.”

“So, from me, a huge thank you Laurie, for everything you’ve done for the Sydney Kings.”

Laurie has been the team manager of the Kings since the beginning of the 1998 season, when incoming Sydney coach Billy Tomlinson asked him to join his staff. As far as longevity goes, that’s unparalleled in the NBL.

Indeed, the numbers are mind-boggling. Laurie managed a total of 671 regular season and playoff games for the franchise. He worked for no less than 11 Kings’ head coaches and was involved with more than 200 players, plus multiple ownership groups. And yes, he’s been a part of three championships and six Grand Final appearances.

He even has a Kings’ award named in his honour – the Laurie Watterson Clubman of the Year – given at the end of each season to an individual who shows great passion for the club, displays self-sacrifice, and is someone who always places the needs of the club above his or her own.

That’s what ‘Lozza’ has been all about. He’s a humble, generous man who has been unbelievably dedicated to the Sydney Kings; someone who has shown tremendous care and love to all who he has come in contact with through the years and a guy with unmatched passion for the sport. Anyone who’s had anything to do with him knows what an outstanding human being he is.

As a team manager, his duties have been many and varied. It’s not just about handing a drink or towel to players on the bench. Sometimes, it was just to lend a sympathetic ear. Or help someone find their way in a new city.

“With different coaches it’s been different things,” Laurie said.

“In the beginning, I was putting together the entire schedule for the year and working out what flights the coach wants. You’re responsible for booking flights, organising accommodation, car hire and the team’s meals.”

“Before you go on the road, you have to wash the uniforms. And I was lucky to have my wife Pat, who ironed the uniforms before they got put in the bag. I got in trouble if they weren’t ironed!”

“You have to wash the water bottles so they don’t get mould in them. Then you have to make sure you pack enough sports tape for the players and the physios.”

“And then it’s just being there for someone who wants something or forgot something. I used to carry things like shoelaces, bobby pins, sewing needles, you name it.”

“I was there to help. That was it. All anyone had to do was ask.”

Remarkably, that’s just a small part of what Laurie Watterson has done over his incredible career with the Kings, which started with being part of the club’s board of directors, a position he held from 1988 to 2000.

And he has an even longer history with Sydney basketball, starting with his involvement in 1972 with the City of Sydney Association. In 1986 he began his career as a team manager with City of Sydney, leading them into the SEABL competition, where they went to the Grand Final in their debut season.

Then in 1992, he managed a team that included stars like Marc Ridlen and Jerry Everett and Sydney juniors Graham Davis and Robbie Croker – the Sydney Comets – that won the CBA national championship.

When the Comets found themselves in financial difficulty a couple of years later, he convinced Mike Wrublewski, with help from Bob Turner and Lorraine Landon, to fund a team that would become a feeder club to the Kings – the Sydney SKY (Sydney Kings Youth). That program was responsible for starting the NBL careers of players like Ben Knight, Brad Rosen, Stephen Black, and Gary Boodnikoff, not to mention the greatest King of them all, Matthew Nielsen.

That was all before Laurie got into the business of being the best NBL team manager ever – a job he held for no less than 22 seasons.

And if the measure of an individual is sometimes about what others think of him, then the measure of Laurie Watterson is that of the highest calibre, given the outpouring of support from Sydney Kings players and coaches, past and present, once they learned of his retirement.

Take the greatest of them all, Brian Goorjian for example.

The mighty ‘Goorj’ won three championships and took the Kings to five Grand Finals during his six seasons with the purple and gold. And as far as he is concerned, Laurie Watterson was as important to his team’s success as any player he ever coached, but more significantly, became a friend for life.

“There’s two sides to this. First, he was so good at his job,” Brian said.

“Everything that revolved around the team – everything being prepared, everything being set up for you, where to eat and where to stay on the road – all that side of it ran like clockwork.”

“But the side for me is the friendship and the relationship I have with Laurie, his wife Pat and the family.”

“You meet people in the sport and as you get older when you look back at it, people you meet along the way become friends, but then you meet those ones who become more than friends, like soulmates.”

“It’s lifelong for me with Laurie and Pat. Wherever I go, whatever happens to me when I retire – they’ll always be a part of my life.”

“He looked after me in Sydney. I was on my own in the beginning and didn’t know the city that well, so he got me where I needed to go. Whenever I was sick or had any problem, he helped me find a doctor or a dentist or whatever I needed.”

“There was a family atmosphere around that team, and he was a centrepiece of that. We had a real care for each other that’s hard to duplicate, and that brewed a lot of success for us over those years. Laurie was a big part of all that.”

“I hope someday he goes up on the Kings Wall of Legends, because he deserves to be up there.”

Goorj’s words have been echoed by many in recent days, such is the love and respect so many people have for Laurie.

“Laurie has been a part of the fabric of this club and he’s beloved everywhere,” said Brydens Lawyers Sydney Kings CEO Chris Pongrass.

“You hear it from people who have worked alongside him – he’s just been one of the best if not the best team manager in the business for a number of years.”

“It’s tough to see him hanging it up. He’s made a lot of friends in basketball and is clearly one of the best.”

One of the most important individuals in the history of the Sydney Kings, Laurie Watterson is also one of the club’s most humble, hardworking servants. To him, it’s always been about the love of the team, its players, coaches and staff.

As much as he has done over the past five decades for Sydney basketball, he remains thankful just to have been involved with the sport and the Kings.

“I’ve been fortunate all along the way to have friendships with great people,” he said.

“Like the late Charlie Ammit, who was one of the most passionate basketball people I ever met. Billy Tomlinson, who gave me my first job as a team manager in the NBL. Brett Brown, who kept me on as manager when he came in as coach in 1999. Andrew Lazaris, Brian Goorjian and Lorraine Landon.”

“There’s so many good people at the Kings, and they have been part of my family. I’ve been lucky to know them and be a part of the club.”

Lozza, that’s where you’re wrong. It’s the Sydney Kings that have been lucky to have you. You’re the greatest team manager ever, you’re loved throughout the world of basketball, and, bottom line, you’re just a bloody good bloke.

You’ll always be the Icon.

You’ll always be a huge part of the Sydney Kings family.

And you’ve made a tremendous impact on the lives of so many people, let alone this basketball franchise that you’ve loved so much.

Thanks for everything, Laurie Watterson.