STEVE Blake’s shock departure was supposed to unsettle Sydney’s backcourt.

As a veteran of 14 NBA seasons, players of Blake’s calibre are rarely seen in the NBL.

Sometimes, though, family comes before basketball and it’s why the experienced guard has left the Kings.

Blake’s absence has placed Sydney down a player, but the men in purple and gold responded in style on Monday with a season-defining victory over the in-form Illawarra Hawks in Wollongong.

Coach Andrew Gaze couldn’t be happier with the win, crediting his players for taking ownership after back-to-back losses.

“It was pleasing that the players got together throughout the week not under the direction of the coaching staff,” Gaze said.

Kings guard Steve Blake won’t be back this season. Source: News Corp Australia

“Steve Blake was heading towards his best and when you don’t have that on the back of a couple of losses, you get challenged.

“But the playing group had some heart-to-heart conversations and we saw a change in intensity and the way in which they approached the game against the Hawks.

“It was really pleasing to see, especially coming off our last two performances.

“We weren’t terrible against Adelaide or Melbourne United, but there were parts of our game that weren’t up to our standards.

“Apart from the things we saw on the court (against Illawarra) there was also an attitude change that contributed to the win.”

Gaze’s praise for his players comes as Blake has penned an emotion farewell letter to Sydney supporters, explaining why he had to leave the Kings.

News Corp Australia has obtained the guard’s message to the members, which outlines the personal reasons for his shock departure.

“I have made the difficult call that I will not return to the Kings to complete the season,” Blake said.

“This decision has been a hard one because I have enjoyed getting to know my teammates, coaches, staff, and most importantly, you the fans that support the Kings and were so welcoming of me to the club.

“One of the reasons I initially signed with the Sydney Kings was their commitment to being a family club.

“My belief is that family comes first and the Kings strong support of myself and my family shows the club believes this also.

“I’m sorry that I cannot continue with the Kings during this exciting time and I’d like to thank everyone at the club for their support in particular the members and supporters.”

Gaze is disappointed to lose a player of Blake’s experience, but he fully understands his personal situation.

Andrew Gaze was delighted with the way the Kings reacted. Source: Getty Images

“We are 100 per cent supportive of Steve,” Gaze said.

“We always tell our players it’s very important what we do.

“We provide a lot of joy to people and as far as our goals you’ve got to make an enormous commitment and tremendous sacrifice, but family always comes first.

“We would have loved to have had Steve continue on the journey that we are on, but he has family issues to take care of.

“We care about the people more than the wins and losses.”

Sydney may be down a player but Gaze confirmed big man Julian Khazzouh was edging closer to returning from a torn quadriceps tendon.

“We were hoping that Julian would be coming with us to Cairns on Friday with the prospect of potentially playing some minutes against Melbourne on Sunday,” he said.

“But he pulled up a little bit sore after a few things he did last week, so I think realistically it might be another week before we get to a point where we actually suit him up.”