Preview: Adelaide vs Sydney - Round 18, NBL24

Wednesday, January 31, 2024

The Adelaide 36ers need to all but win out the rest of the regular season to earn a spot in the Finals.

Friday, February 2 at 7:30pm AEDT | Adelaide Entertainment Centre

Watch: Live on ESPN via Kayo - International viewership details
Box scores: Download the free NBL App

DJ Vasiljevic has signed a three-year contract extension with Adelaide, following the initial season-long deal he agreed to upon his return to the NBL earlier this season.

The sharpshooter has called the decision to commit to the club as a “no-brainer”. In an interview with SEN he also pushed interim head coach Scott Ninnis’ credentials to be given the reigns of the side in NBL25.

Sydney’s Angus Glover has likened every game remaining in the Kings’ season as a “Playoff game” as the side looks to secure a place in the top six to keep its hopes of a three-peat alive.

DJ Hogg trained with the side this week. A shoulder injury has kept the former All-NBL Second Team nominee sidelined since December. He has managed to play in just 12 of Sydney’s 25 games so far this season.

Adelaide
88-71 win over Cairns
96-89 win over Illawarra
110-85 win over South East Melbourne

Sydney
98-86 win over Melbourne
98-104 loss to South East Melbourne
98-104 loss to Perth

DJ Vasiljevic
The relationship between DJ Vasiljevic and the Adelaide 36ers has powered onto new height after new height during his stint with the club, so much so that he inked a three-year extension on the initial one-year deal he signed upon his arrival in the early stages of NBL24.

Vasiljevic’s negative tweets about the club while he was still at the Kings and the conjecture surrounding his fit on the current roster seem a world away from where we are now. The sharpshooter clearly genuinely enjoys being a part of the organisation, and the fans have showered him with admiration for the entirety of his tenure to date.

If you’d have said Vasiljevic would be leading Adelaide’s charge for a Play-In place when he signed after his debut 17-point loss for the club, you’d have been laughed out of the room, but here we are – and a 36ers win against the Kings would not only help boost their hopes of establishing a position in the top six, it could ring the opening death knell on his former side’s season – and wouldn’t that taste sweet?

“This decision was a no-brainer for me, I am somewhere where I am wanted. I could have tested the free agency market, but I’m where I want to be. This season has been great in front of sellout crowds, and I’m looking forward to building on that for the next three years.” – DJ Vasiljevic after signing a new contract.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">SIGNED ??<br><br>The <a href="https://twitter.com/Adelaide36ers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Adelaide36ers</a> have put pen to paper with DJ Vasiljevic for three additional seasons ?<br><br>Read more: <a href="https://t.co/UFK8P8N8kH">https://t.co/UFK8P8N8kH</a> <a href="https://t.co/yiGdbWGphz">pic.twitter.com/yiGdbWGphz</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1751727484780085670?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Makuach Maluach
What an incredible past two weeks Makuach Maluach has had. For most of the season he’s been stuck at the end of the bench in a heavy wing/forward rotation for the Kings, but he’s proven to be a match-winning presence in the continued absences of DJ Hogg and Jaylin Galloway.

Maluach matched his career-high 18 points from the week prior against Melbourne in Round 17, and he earned the Foot Locker Player of the Game Award for the sharpshooting performance he put in against his old side.

Dean Vickerman praised the performance of his former player in the immediate aftermath of Melbourne’s defeat, and given the influence he had on proceedings, it’s easy to see why.

How Maluach remains integrated in Sydney’s rotation when Galloway and Hogg return to active duty is suddenly an interesting conundrum for Mahmoud Abdelfattah, who also has the likes of Alex Toohey, Angus Glover and Kouat Noi available to play in those wing spots.

Between his two 18-point outbursts though, Maluach scored just two points in the Kings’ defeat to South East Melbourne to open Round 17. Can he back up his stellar game against United with another strong performance to continue Abdelfattah’s rotation headache?

“I watched him last off-season in the NBL1 North with Darwin and I really liked what he brought. I thought he was going to be given more opportunities early in the season, it didn’t really eventuate, but now they’ve shown confidence in him and he responded. I always thought he was going to have an impact this season and now he gets his chance and he’s rewarding them for the opportunity.” – Derek Rucker on Moments That Mattered.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Makuach Maluach stepped up big time in the <a href="https://twitter.com/SydneyKings?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SydneyKings</a>' win over Melbourne United ?<br><br>Download the NBL App for news, highlights and stats ? <a href="https://t.co/Via36CmnaJ">pic.twitter.com/Via36CmnaJ</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1751824437190803794?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 29, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Trey Kell III vs Jaylen Adams
It’s a battle of offensive import linchpin versus offensive import linchpin when Trey Kell and Jaylen Adams do battle in the backcourt when Adelaide clashes with Sydney, and it’s easy to argue that both players are the barometers for how their teams play in NBL24.

Although there are some exceptions to the rule, Kell has tended to play his best in games Adelaide has won. He’s scored 20 points or more in five of the sides 10 victories this season, while he’s scored 10 points or less in six losses.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Trey Kell III throws it DOWN ?<br><br>Catch the action live on ESPN via Kayo ? <a href="https://t.co/KZ5t7WKyHe">pic.twitter.com/KZ5t7WKyHe</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1751139310965751961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 27, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The import guard seems to have either lit the scoreboard up this season, or scarcely featured too. He has scored between 10 and 20 points in just three of his 22 appearances for the campaign.

With Jaylen Adams it’s a slightly different story, however the Kings have registered defeats in three of his top four games for field goal attempts this season, so while the former MVP is a veritable star of this competition, Sydney plays best when he gets his teammates more involved on offence.

In his three season-high assist games this season, the Kings have registered two wins, and the only defeat in that batch was the shock loss to the Phoenix last week.

Kell and Adams both have the ability to take a game by the scruff of its neck and put massive individual scores on the board, but which player can do that while simultaneously getting their teammates involved?

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This game is must-see TV?<br><br>Jaylen Adams and the Kings are looking the best they have all season!<br><br>Watch this battle of two top sides LIVE on ESPN ?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL</a> <a href="https://t.co/m78cIxHD8f">pic.twitter.com/m78cIxHD8f</a></p>— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ/status/1751489538441220412?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 28, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>