NBL23 Season Review: Melbourne United

Wednesday, March 29, 2023

With the NBL23 season in the books and Free Agency just around the corner, the time to review the season is now.

From bottom to top, NBL Media will be running through each side’s most recent campaign and assess the good, the bad, the ugly, and the upcoming off-season.

An immense run of form in the second half of the season saw Melbourne United enter the final day of the NBL23 regular season with hopes of scraping into the Play-In Qualifier, however a Perth Wildcats victory over the Sydney Kings put pay to any hopes of a post-season berth.

Be it through injury, recruitment, or lack of chemistry, United took a while to get their wheels well and truly turning in NBL23, and a number of shock losses throughout the course of the season prevented the side from ever getting any real momentum going.

Had Melbourne made the Play-In though, they could have caused some serious ripples in the post-season. Instead, United was left to lament what might have been.

The Good – The late season run

Once Melbourne United managed to get their roster fit, healthy, and thriving, they emerged as one of the danger teams in the NBL. In fact, after their disappointing start to the season they ended the campaign on an 11-3 run following their shock defeat to the Illawarra Hawks.

That run spanned from the 16-point win over Brisbane on December 10 to United’s final day win over the Adelaide 36ers.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here's how it ended! <a href="https://twitter.com/th3flighttuck?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@th3flighttuck</a> <a href="https://t.co/HuaBr7kjGI">pic.twitter.com/HuaBr7kjGI</a></p>— Melbourne United (@MelbUnited) <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited/status/1622101458467590144?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Marcus Lee’s addition to the side was a major catalyst for this swing – with the import centre joining the side in mid-November – but Shea Ili’s return from concussion symptoms and the ability for Rayjon Tucker to begin to assert himself on the game also helped lead to United’s rise.

NBL23 marked the first time in the history of Dean Vickerman’s time in charge of the team that United finished the season outside the top five in the competition in defensive rating.

Up to and including that key loss to Illawarra, United conceded eight scores of 90 points or more and won just two of those games. United gave up scores of over 90 just four times in their final 13 games of the season and won two of those.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Chris Goulding's hit two ??????? threes so far today - and he only needs four more to move into the NBL's top-ten for all-time three pointers made? ?<br><br>Can he do it tonight? ?<br><br>Watch live and free on 10 Peach and 10 play | Live on ESPN via Kayo Sports + Foxtel ? <a href="https://t.co/8NczQGRPm6">pic.twitter.com/8NczQGRPm6</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1622074452073914370?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 5, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

One of the two losses was the last second loss to the Perth Wildcats.

Everything seemed to click into place for United at the back end of the season, but unfortunately for them it was too little, too late.

The Bad – The early-season centre crisis

When Next Star Ariel Hukporti went down clutching his lower leg in the NBL Blitz in Darwin, United hearts went into mouths.

The worst possible news was quickly confirmed as the German big was set for an entire season on the sidelines, leaving Isaac Humphries as the only recognised centre on the roster – and he himself was coming back from a serious bout of knee problems suffered while playing for the Adelaide 36ers.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> injury update ?<a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MelbUnited</a> Next Star Ariel Hukporti left tonight's game in the 3rd quarter with a lower leg injury.<br><br>More info will be provided as it comes to hand. <a href="https://t.co/FIfj76eScm">pic.twitter.com/FIfj76eScm</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1572556246435368961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 21, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

This forced veterans David Barlow and Brad Newly into the centre spot, along with import Jordan Caroline.

Caroline, who came into United’s program as a high-effort, bustling power forward failed to establish himself as an undersized centre and was quickly moved on from the program.

By the time Marcus Lee came into the side it was almost too little, too late in regards to Melbourne’s season. His addition came when the side was languishing in the lower reaches of the ladder with a disappointing 5-6 record.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Dean Vickerman on if <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MelbUnited</a> are looking to make changes to their roster ??<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> <a href="https://t.co/dGY6Nks7KM">pic.twitter.com/dGY6Nks7KM</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1584089231084789762?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 23, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

While Humphries and company battled hard before the addition of Lee to the roster, Hukporti’s early injury put the side behind the eight-ball before a ball was even tipped in the season proper.

The Ugly – Hukporti and Ili injuries

Injuries are, unfortunately, an almost assured part of sport. Melbourne United’s Ariel Hukporti and Shea Ili endured two of the most disheartening and difficult injuries to come back from over the course of the season.

A ruptured Achilles tendon is a notoriously difficult injury to return to 100 per cent ability and fitness from. NBA stars Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant managed to successfully return to their top level from the same injury – but even for people like that, athletes with the absolute world’s best facilities and medical personnel, it’s a crapshoot.

Hukporti remained a strong presence around the group over the course of the season, but his absence was sorely felt on the court. Here’s hoping he can return to the level that had him so highly touted among NBA scouts after NBL22.

Ili, on the other hand, experienced dramatic frustration with the stop/start nature of returning from concussion.

It wasn’t just Lee’s addition to the roster that helped kickstart United’s season. It was Ili’s inclusion to the side.

The New Zealand born guard played just 14 games across the season – his lowest tally since the 2016 season.

His numbers were still strong, and so promising was his return that he was nominated for the league’s Defensive Player of the Year over the likes of Kings import Justin Simon and Cairns duo Tahjere McCall and DJ Hogg.

His time on the sidelines also meant Rayjon Tucker had to spend some time running the floor from the point guard position.

Both Melbourne United and the NBL as a whole are stronger for Shea Ili being at his best, so here is hoping he can put a tough season behind him.

The Off-Season – Getting the band back together

At the time of writing Melbourne United only have four contracted players heading into NBL24. Fully rostered players Shea Ili and Chris Goulding, and development players Josh Duach and Zac Triplett.

Mason Peatling and David Okwera are set to test their value in free agency while there is set to be a tough decision made at the centre spot due to the unlikelihood that all of Isaac Humphries, Marcus Lee and Ariel Hukporti are retained.

Aside from the aforementioned talent though, Dean Vickerman and Melbourne United will surely be keen to keep as much of the group from last season that helped steer their late season run.

Rayjon Tucker looms as the crucial off-season piece after putting together a run of form in the second half of the campaign that catapulted him back into All-NBL selection discussions, while Brad Newley and David Barlow both proved themselves to be key bench options despite their advancing age.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Prior to Chris Goulding & Brad Newley's milestone game on Sunday afternoon some special moments took place inside the locker room.<br><br>In this video we take you behind the scenes of that moment.<a href="https://twitter.com/BradNewley?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BradNewley</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/ChrisGoulding43?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ChrisGoulding43</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/IanStacker?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@IanStacker</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/DavidBarlow?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DavidBarlow</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/shili___?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@shili___</a> <a href="https://t.co/LEztIcxOuf">pic.twitter.com/LEztIcxOuf</a></p>— Melbourne United (@MelbUnited) <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited/status/1605065456775110658?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 20, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Barlow’s retirement ahead of an eventual comeback for United indicates that if either of the veteran pair are to continue playing, it will likely be Newley.

Reuniting Ili, Goulding, Tucker and Marcus Lee as a starting contingent could give United a burst at the beginning of next season, and getting the right potential pieces around them will prove crucial.