"100 per-cent different"

As the Adelaide 36ers regrouped for the start of pre-season training on Monday, Mike Wells looked a composed figure.

While it was something of a soft launch at the St Clair Recreation Centre given the absence of several key players, Wells was happy to be back on the court watching his side build for NBL26.

The feeling is different this year for the American Head Coach who was given the role at late notice just before last season.

This time he has had an off-season to plan, to build a roster of players that suit the way he wants to play and the culture he wants at the club.

“It’s probably 100% different,” Wells told Adelaide media on Monday before the players hit the court.

“I mean, I know where I'm going, I kind of know the city of Adelaide, I kind of know how things work.

“Last year it was kind of a whirlwind to hit the ground. It was the first time I'd been to Adelaide and you're trying to figure out the team and how things are going and then, obviously, becoming the head coach had its challenges.”

While he has just returned to Adelaide after some time at home in Utah, Wells knew as soon as the side finished NBL25 with a finals loss to South East Melbourne what needed to improve.

The side had made the post-season for the first time in seven years, but Wells came away with a vision for what NBL26 should look like.

“Since our last game that we played, we systematically, (GM Basketball Operations) Matt Weston, myself, (Chairman) Grant (Kelley), and (CEO) Nic Barbato set out with a plan to really try to change the entire team and the culture and everything that the Sixers had going,” Wells explained.

“I think we've been, right now, pretty successful and with what that looks like and where we're at at this point, and now it's time to get on the court and play basketball and really see how it looks.

“One of the fundamentals of that, well I think number one, was just trying to change the group of players and you know, we had some really good pieces that we brought back and DJ (Vasiljevic) and Ice (Humphries) and obviously Trez (Harrell) is back and then, you know, there was a bunch of guys that we wanted to try to go after.

“Things change a little bit when Bryce (Cotton) says yes, and that speeds up the process of where we want to go and how we want to change things, but, you know, all the other guys that we brought in starting with Flynn Cameron and bringing back some local guys in Isaac White and Michael Harris, and Matt Kenyon joining us, and then adding in Zylan (Cheatham) - it was all part of the plan.”

He also realised the gaps in his knowledge of the competition.

While a season in the NBL helped, bringing in other coaches like Luke Cann from Brisbane and Kerry Williams from Cairns was another important consideration.

“I think for me personally, knowing the NBL, knowing what the other teams do, what the standard is in this league, how hard everybody plays, and then bringing in guys from other teams, even on my coaching staff with Luke Cann and Kerry Williams that had been with two other organisations.

“As much knowledge as I can gather from other organisations, how they did it, and now we've got players, and what we want to try to do and what we want to build - we'll use every resource we can.”

While imports Bryce Cotton, Montrezl Harrell and Zylan Cheatham and new signings Isaac White and Flynn Cameron missed Monday’s session due to commitments overseas and interstate, and the imports in particular won’t join the group for at least another fortnight, it was still a solid session.

Wells was impressed with the intensity.

Asked whether he thinks his side has what it takes to win the club’s first NBL Championship since 2002, Wells was both firm and confident.

“I think that we have to put it on the board,” he said.

“I can't imagine a team starting the pre-season without the goal of becoming a champion or being the best version of themselves.

“I mean that seems like it would be the goal, if that's not the goal, that would be kind of weird, but I think that has to be the standard and the goal, and we're going to try to do everything we can to get there.”

36ers supporters will get their first look at the side when it takes on reigning champion Illawarra and then Tasmania in the NBL Blitz pre-season tournament from August 27.