Changing of the Guard: Tasmania's Dynamite DP

Every cloud has a silver lining, and through injury comes opportunity.

When Clint Steindl went down clutching his leg while representing Australia in the NBL off-season, the hearts of JackJumpers fans were in their throats. Their captain, their leader, their benchmark was down and out for an extended period before the season even started.

Steindl’s injury meant even further shake-up to a Tasmania guard rotation that had already been rocked by the departure of Josh Adams. Of course, import Milton Doyle was signed as a direct replacement for Adams – but the opportunity was still there for somebody to step up for the team. Enter Sean Macdonald.

If you’d have asked fans around the competition about Sean Macdonald in NBL22, it’s likely few would be able to even tell you what he looked like. In his first season at the professional level, the development player averaged barely over four minutes and half a point per game when he stepped on the floor.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Young Macdonald had a half ?<a href="https://twitter.com/JackJumpers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JackJumpers</a> DP Sean Macdonald stepped up in their first half of <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> with 11 points off the bench.<br><br>Watch <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> live on ESPN via Kayo &amp; Foxtel <a href="https://t.co/jZSgI0VRGD">pic.twitter.com/jZSgI0VRGD</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1576135616206491648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 1, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

That’s surely not the case now.

Macdonald has turned himself into an indispensable part of Tasmania’s rotation, first covering for the absence of Steindl, and now specialist three-and-d star Matt Kenyon.

With that opportunity to play though comes the further opportunity to impress. Down the stretch in games this season Macdonald has often been preferred to the fit again Steindl, and even incumbent icon Josh Magette.

With the alterations in role on a game-to-game basis comes a variation and fluctuation in minutes, but Macdonald has his eyes firmly fixed on team success.

“I tend not to think of how many minutes I expect to play or how many I think I might get,” Macdonald told NBL Media. “It’s more whatever minutes I am on ‘this is my job, this is what I’m going to do and this is what I have to come out and provide’.

“If that’s seven minutes, or if that’s 20-something minutes, it doesn’t really matter to me.

“My mindset stays the same. It allows me to not get caught up in how much I might to might not play, and that allows me to be confident whenever I am out there.

“Being confident in what you can do helps give you that role clarity and having the ability to do what I do on the court is far more important to me than how long I’m on the court.”

Macdonald defends Melbourne United import Xavier Rathan-Mayes.

There’s something about the way Macdonald plays that ages him.

It could be his unshakable calmness in the heat of a tight and high-stress game. It could be the way he’s seamlessly slotted into the rotation. It could even be his beard. Either way, the way he plays often leaves spectators pinching themselves to remember the fact he’s only 22. 

Macdonald isn’t the only development player to have had some time in the sun this season. Lachie Dent stepped up in a big way for Illawarra early in the season after Justin Robinson went down injured. Nick Marshall did the same for Adelaide after Craig Randall II departed the side. Michael Harris recently had an epic 15-point game for Perth, and even Macdonald’s teammate Isaac White has been exceptional at times this season.

Macdonald’s performances have been so far elevated though that there have been calls to change the eligibility rules for the NBL’s Most Improved Player and Rookie of the Year awards to include development players.

“It’s nice to hear your name in those talks, but I don’t tend to listen too much to what is being said externally,” he said.

“It doesn’t change my focus. If anything, it narrows the focus internally to what we do at the JackJumpers and what I can do to keep getting that little bit better every day. I try not to get caught up in any of that, I just keep my eye on what I can control.

“There’s some serious talent coming through at the moment, and the mindset on being a DP is that it’s just a title. It doesn’t mean anything; it doesn’t affect the way I play and I assume that’s what all the other guys who are killing it think as well.

“The talent is exciting, and hopefully it excites fans and clubs. We’re all just part of the team and doing whatever we can to help our sides win.”

If it were any other season in the NBL, Macdonald’s rise would easily be the best heart-warming story out of his side. This isn’t just any other season in the NBL for the JackJumpers though. This season is the return of Will Magnay.

After suffering a serious knee injury in NBL22 Magnay has since returned to the court, but not before being forced to endure setback after setback in his journey back to the hardwood.

He’s back now though doing what he does best. He’s swatting shots, pulling in boards, and he’s even hitting threes.

As a member of the JackJumpers’ organisation Macdonald saw firsthand the work Magnay was putting in to getting back into the game he loves.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A Magnay-ficent finish from Will ??<br><br>Thursday night hoops has started with a bang - tune in live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel. <a href="https://t.co/amYBGCewTk">pic.twitter.com/amYBGCewTk</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1605845976505151489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 22, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“It’s so special to watch him (Magnay) play after seeing him go through so much in the last 12 or so months,” Macdonald said of his teammate.

“From spending time away from the game he loves, just seeing him do the rehab and stick to it despite probably not progressing as quickly as he’d have liked – it’s amazing to see him back and enjoying it, and playing really good basketball too.

“It makes me happy, and it makes our whole squad and our whole club happy to see him do that, and I can tell he’s happy as well. That’s the most important thing."