Phoenix DP stars in NBL1 National Championship win

Monday, August 21, 2023

Austin Rapp has played a crucial role in Knox's NBL1 National Championships victory over Rockingham.

Photo: Halim Mellick

The Knox Raiders have completed an unlikely NBL1 championship double, following their Grand Final victory over Rockingham at the NBL1 National Finals.

Following their NBL1 South Grand Final victory over Sandringham, the Raiders travelled to NBL1’s flagship event in Joondalup with just seven players, with Illawarra’s Mason Peatling and former Adelaide centre Deng Acuoth unavailable.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Austin Rapp sent that BACK! ?<br><br>Watch the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL1NationalFinals?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL1NationalFinals</a> men's Championship Game Live & Free via Kayo Freebies ? <a href="https://t.co/DjwRnkv2tD">pic.twitter.com/DjwRnkv2tD</a></p>— NBL1 (@NBL1) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL1/status/1693150480031977776?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 20, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Acuoth is currently preparing for the FIBA World Cup with South Sudan.

South East Melbourne development player Austin Rapp produced a starring role in Knox’s five-point title win over West Australian side Rockingham, and registered 14 points and 12 rebounds in the victory.

His best performance in the tournament came in the Raiders’ win over Sutherland, where he was one of four Knox players to score over 20 points in the high-scoring victory.

Former Brisbane import and current NBL1 West MVP Devondrick Walker almost dragged his team to victory, with an impressive 37-point performance for the Flames.

Rapp’s Knox teammates Ke’Jhan Fegin and Wayne Stuart Jr were named to the tournament’s All-Star Five, with Fagan also taking home the Championship Game MVP for his 27-points and nine assists.