Back for more: NBL25's returning stars

Free agency has not disappointed in 2024.

We have seen stars like Parker Jackson-Cartwright, Will Magnay and Tyler Harvey re-sign with their NBL24 teams.

We have also seen some big-name players depart their incumbent teams for a fresh start elsewhere, like Nathan Sobey signing with the Phoenix, Jonah Bolden jetting across the ditch to link up with the Breakers and Trey Kell III leaving the 36ers to ink a deal with the Hawks.

Perhaps most excitingly, however, is the return of former NBL players to the league.

From former MVPs and Larry Sengstock Medal-winners, to ex-Next Stars, we take a look at the list of returnees and what they have accomplished in their time away from the NBL.

Xavier Cooks
Sydney Kings

Arguably the biggest signing of this free agency has been that of Xavier Cooks. Chris Pongrass and co. at the Sydney Kings have lured the NBL23 MVP back from Japan in what is reportedly the richest deal in NBL history, helping make the Kings serious title contenders in NBL25.

His 2023/24 season in the B League with the Chiba Jets was largely successful, helping his team make the semi-finals after averaging 14.2 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 46 regular season games. His points and rebounds averages took a slight dip in the playoffs, averaging 11.5 points and 7.2 boards, as Chiba were eliminated by Ryukyu in the semis.

As we saw in the Boomers’ trial games against China, Cooks is still as athletic and explosive as ever. While his free-throw percentage has remained below-par, Cooks didn’t miss a beat in his sole season in Japan and will return to the Kings — and the NBL — as a star and an MVP contender.

Cam Oliver
Sydney Kings

Joining Cooks in Sydney will be the human highlight reel that is Cam Oliver. The man affectionately known as ‘Space Cam’ was last seen Down Under from 2019-21, when he lit up the league for two seasons in the orange of the Cairns Taipans, earning All-NBL Second Team honours in NBL20.

Since his time in Far North Queensland, the big man has racked up the air miles, having plied his trade in the NBA with the Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks, alongside stints in Spain, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, China and in the G League.

Focusing on his past two seasons, Oliver has proven that he is still the explosive force that NBL fans know him to be. In 17 games with the South Bay Lakers in the 2022/23 G League season, Space Cam averaged 10.2 points on 61.2 per cent shooting, 5.8 rebounds and 1.1 blocks.

He was then off to Puerto Rico to suit up for Leones de Ponce. Across 19 games, Oliver averaged 26.1 minutes per game, posting stats of 15.2 points, 8.1 boards, 2.6 assists and 1.2 blocks, rounding out an impressive campaign in the BSN.

His 2022/23 season wasn’t over, jetting to the Philippines to join the Talk N Text Tropang Texters. Although dominant in his time there, averaging 28.9 points, 13.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.8 blocks, Oliver went down with a knee injury after nine games, cruelly cutting his season short.

Across the 2023/24 season, the Oakland-born big played in the CBA with the Zhejiang Lions, helping them to a 17-7 record in his 24 games. Oliver’s season in China came to an end midway through the regular season, finishing with per-game averages of 12.7 points on 51.7 per cent shooting, 7.7 boards, 1.7 dimes and 1 block.

Derrick Walton Jr
South East Melbourne Phoenix

Another former King will be returning to the NBL in 2024, although this time Derrick Walton Jr will be changing his allegiances and suiting up in South East Melbourne Phoenix colours. The NBL23 champion and Larry Sengstock Medal-winner left his mark on the NBL in his only season in Australia and now returns to help form an impressive Phoenix lineup.

Walton Jr. had just the one stop-off since leaving the Kings, joining Cam Oliver at the CBA’s Zhejiang Lions. Across 42 games for the Lions, the 29-year-old point guard averaged just 19.5 minutes, but still managed to put up impressive numbers of 12.3 points, 3 rebounds and 5 assists, with his team going 27-15 in the games that saw minutes in.

Walton Jr. proved just how dominant he can be in a January game against the Beikong Royal Fighters, finishing the night with 35 points, 5 rebounds and 13 assists, indicating that the dynamic guard is going to be at his best when he takes to the floor with his new teammates.

Jack White
Melbourne United

An NBA champion and an NBL champion, Jack White brings quite the résumé as he returns to Melbourne United in NBL25. The Traralgon-born forward spent two seasons with United, winning a title in 2021, before putting together an impressive campaign in NBL22 to earn a two-way contract with the Denver Nuggets.

White featured heavily for Denver’s G League affiliate, Grand Rapids Gold, in the 2022/23 campaign, finishing the season averaging 19.6 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game. This strong play saw him taken as the #1 pick in the 2023 G League draft, before getting traded to the South Bay Lakers for the 2023/24 season.

In 28 games with the South Bay Lakers, the Duke alum averaged 9.4 points, 6.3 points and 1.7 assists in a reduced role, before signing a 10-day contract with the Memphis Grizzlies at the tail-end of the NBA regular season.

In his time with the Grizz, White played four games, averaging 1.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.0 steals in 16 minutes per game. Now returning to a Melbourne team where he will have big defensive responsibilities and a stable role on the offensive end, expect a strong NBL25 from the 26-year-old.

Mojave King
New Zealand Breakers

Another player with ties to the Lakers returning to the NBL in 2024 is Mojave King.

A former Next Star with the Cairns Taipans and then the Adelaide 36ers, King will make his NBL comeback with the New Zealand Breakers in NBL25.

After finishing up with the 36ers at the end of NBL22, King headed to the US for a season with the G League Ignite, leading to him being selected by the Lakers in the 2023 NBA draft. King’s draft rights were then traded to the Indiana Pacers, who assigned him to their G League affiliate, the Indiana Mad Ants for the 2023/24 season.

The 6’5” wing didn’t see the game time he would have been hoping for with the Mad Ants, missing the start of the season with a foot injury, before getting an average of only 8.9 minutes per game. The Mad Ants had a solid 9-6 record in the 15 games that King played in, with the Breaker-to-be averaging 3.9 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists.

The change of scenery in NBL25 is set to help King get closer to realising his goal of playing in the NBA, and if he can show off his athleticism and his shooting that helped him get drafted, he will go a long way to achieving that. 

Deng Adel
Brisbane Bullets

At 27 years old, Deng Adel has covered plenty of ground in his basketball career. 

After starting his professional career with the Illawarra Hawks in NBL21, Adel has played professionally in Canada, Bulgaria, Denmark and France, as well as enjoying stints in the NBA and G League. Now the rangy forward returns to the NBL to suit up for the Brisbane Bullets in NBL25. 

A capable three-point shooter and rebounder, Adel proved his worth for Boulazac Basket Dordogne in the 2023/24 season. Across his 40 regular season games at the club, the 27-year-old averaged 22.7 minutes of game time for 7.7 points, 3.0 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.8 steals.