KEY POINTS:
Former Tall Blacks coach Tab Baldwin insists his experiences at Greek club PAOK Thessaloniki have not soured his opinion of coaching in Europe.
Reports several weeks ago suggested Baldwin, who took the New Zealand team to the semifinals of world championships in 2002, had been axed from the
Greek club after a dismal 1-6 start to the season.
But the reports of his demise were premature. Baldwin is still at the helm of PAOK, though he describes his position there as precarious.
"It's an unbelievable situation. To say that it's been the worst coaching situation of my life by far is probably an understatement."
The trouble began a few weeks ago when the owner of the Greek squad walked away, leaving behind a team with virtually no administration and staff that have not been paid for more than two months.
Despite playing in one of the most professional leagues in the world, the PAOK club have a volunteer general manager and no front office staff to speak of.
"I signed a contract to come over here with one guy who owned the team and it's turned out that he's essentially run the organisation into the ground over the past five years," Baldwin said.
When a team folds in Greece, the administration reverts from a private set-up to the hands of the sports club.
The amateur club takes on the administrative duties until new owners are nominated, who then have to go through the Greek courts and pick up the previous owner's debt.
"The amateur club don't want to run the team, they don't have the funds to run the team," Baldwin said.
"That process took a couple of weeks and in the meantime I was announced as fired and nobody really knew who fired me."
Baldwin was told by the volunteer general manager that he was fired but he had no idea who the order had come from and it was issued with no formal document.
"I asked who had fired me as that's the person who obviously I would negotiate the exit from the club, based on my contract, and he said 'well, there basically isn't anybody'."
Baldwin was told the former owner of the club wanted to meet him to discuss his contract.
The problem was that legally the former owner was no longer responsible for his contract.
Meanwhile, Baldwin's dismissal was reported in local and international media and a new coach named. But Baldwin insisted unless he was officially fired he would continue to do the job and is backed by the new administration.
"This whole process took about two weeks and that entire time myself and my assistant coaches and the players were all in limbo, we didn't know what was going on.
"So the new administration has come on board and had a meeting with me and the team and said we support you in the role, but we need to get results."
Baldwin has been assured he will not be coaching the team's next game on Monday with a gun to his head but he knows the pressure is on.
"I know that if we don't start winning games I'll be fired and there are probably people in the new administration that are hopeful of that."
Given his poor experience with the Greek club, you would wonder why he wants to stay on.
Baldwin said he was offered another job but turned it down - it seems he is determined to finish the job he was brought over there to do.
"I'm not in a mind to quit when it's tough and I'm not in a mind to quit on my players, who are going through the same difficulties that I am."
Although the situation has not turned him off coaching in Europe, he will be a lot more cautious before signing up with another club.
"I've been really blessed in my life, I've been very fortunate.
"I realise now, probably more by chance than good planning, that I have avoided these types of situations."
In the meantime Baldwin remains optimistic the new administration will get the club back on track.
"They are here to make a positive change and to make a difference.
"Of course they're saying all the right things but it's an incredibly difficult situation for them and how quickly they will be effective remains to be seen.
"But I'm sure if we can get some results on the court things will get a lot better quickly."
