United finds superpower

Star power like Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, Luke Travers and Ariel Hukporti is always going to be hard to replace, but Melbourne United coach Dean Vickerman says his team’s chemistry is unrivalled, and they’ll be in the mix again in NBL25.

United has welcome back Jack White after an extended stint in the NBA and the G-League, while Marcus Lee returns following a season in Tasmania.

Despite the loss of some key personnel, Melbourne still boasts arguably one of the best rosters in the competition. And perhaps more importantly, they’ve had proven success as a group in the past.

“It’s a team we’ve talked about that our superpower is our chemistry,” Vickerman told the media on Tuesday. 

“Our synergy with each other ... Marcus Lee coming back to the team, it’s just a lot of guys that are returning who understand how to play together and if we’re able to share the basketball and be super-connected defensively, we feel like we’ll be really tough to guard.”

Melbourne finished as the runner-up to Tasmania last season, but only just. The championship literally came down to the final second, and could have gone either way. 

Vickerman says he's been delighted with the team’s preparations so far in the pre-season, and the addition of White would only help their chances of winning their first championship since 2021.  

“We had an intra-club last week and have another one this week and then step into a couple of games,” he said. 

“We’ll have different pieces in and out of those two games and be able to assess where we are, but the intensity we’re training with and the uptake of the IQ, I feel like we’re in a good place.

“Once he gets his (White’s) body perfect, we’ll start to see the aggression.

“The way he attacks the paint, the three ball I’m a great believer in and he’s really trusting himself … when he gets set and is able to knock those in. The defensive versatility and his ability to continue to switch and stay in our coverage as well. There’s a lot of things I like at the moment.”

Experienced players Shea Ili, Chris Goulding and Matthew Dellavedova will go around again in NBL25, with Melbourne maintaining the vast majority of its NBL24 roster. 

Vickerman still has one spot to fill, and hinted the club’s upcoming pre-season games against Brisbane and local rivals, South East Melbourne, could be the deciding factor to who gets the call-up.  

“There’s potentially some opportunity for guys to play in pre-season games that can help that decision,” he added. 

“We won’t be rushed by it and we think we’ve got some really quality candidates.”