No shortcuts: Bullets' "bucket-getter" ready for battle

Incoming Brisbane Bullet Javon Freeman-Liberty arrives in Australia with a clear understanding of what the NBL demands and the level he needs to reach to thrive.

“It’s not just some league that you’re going to go out there and just kill,” he told Code Sports. “It’s a hardworking league that has great talent, and I’m just ready to compete.”

Freeman-Liberty impressed during the 2024 NBA G League season, averaging 24 points, seven rebounds and five assists per game. That performance earned him a promotion from a two-way deal to a standard NBA contract by season's end.

The 25-year-old recently played for the Chicago Bulls in the NBA Summer League, where he joined forces with Illawarra Hawks champions Will Hickey and Lachlan Olbrich.

It’s been a very busy off-season for the Bullets, initially announcing Stu Lash as the team’s new head coach, before preaching patience to fans regarding upcoming player signings.

“He was the exact kind of player we really needed, in a perfect world, already having Tyrell (Harrison), Casey (Prather), Smack (Sam McDaniel) and Norto (Mitch Norton) in place, and then getting Jaylen and Alex (Ducas)” Lash said.

The Bullets could be one of the surprise packets of NBL26, quietly building one of the most talented rosters in the League. 

“Yes, JaVale McGee is the most high profile (NBL signing). He is the one that will be spoken about the most,” ESPN's Olgun Uluc said earlier this week. “But Javon Freeman-Liberty is probably going to be the most productive.

“When you look at that backcourt in Brisbane now that Stu Lash has Jaylen Adams and Javon Freeman-Liberty, two guys who can give you 30 points on any given night … he's (Freeman-Liberty) just an absolute bucket getter.”

Read full story here >> Bullets’ gamble on rookie head coach Stu Lash already paying off with major recruitment spree