As interest and excitement around basketball in Australia continues to grow, the 2017-18 NBL season looks set to be one of the best yet. High profile moves, plenty of Australian grown talent, and full seasons for key imports will ensure that the 2017-18 season, which kicks off on Thursday the 5th of October will gift NBL fans the most star-studded and competitive season to date. Here we will preview the contenders for the title and player award markets.
2017-18 NBL Season Betting Tips
The Contenders
The Perth Wildcats will obviously start the season as one of the favourites as they look to join the Kings and the Breakers as the only teams to achieve a 3peat in the leagues history. However, this will be no easy task as star player and former team MVP Casey Prather has departed to join league rivals Melbourne United, in what was the biggest move in the off-season. However, all is not lost for the Wildcats with last season’s scoring champion Bryce Cotton signing on again, and this time he will be playing the full season. Teaming up with Cotton in the back court once again will be 5x defensive player of the year Damian Martin. The star back court alone would have them as title contenders, but after retaining most of last season’s roster and throw in recruits Derek Cooke Jr and JP Tokoto, it seems coach Trevor Gleeson has a genuine chance of going back-to-back-to-back.
Head Coach: Trevor Gleeson
Roster: Angus Brandt, Derek Cooke Jr, Bryce Cotton, Greg Hire, Jarrod Kenny, Dexter Kernich-Drew, Matt Knight, Damian Martin, JP Tokoto, Jesse Wagstaff, Lucas Walker
Arrivals: Derek Cooke Jr, JP Tokoto, Lucas Walker
Departures: Jameel McKay, Casey Prather, Shawn Redhage
Predicted finish: Runners-Up
The Illawarra Hawks enter the season with fire in their belly after the pain of losing last season’s grand final will no doubt fuel their motivation for the upcoming season. Coach Rob Beveridge will look to go one better this year and he is joined by returning star import Rotnei Clarke. Beveridge knows what he will get from Clarke and will be looking for this season’s improvement to come from fellow imports Demitrius Conger and Delvon Johnson, as departing imports Marvel Harris and Michael Holyfield failed to have the impact that Hawks fans had hoped. In otherwise an unchanged roster, continuity should be no problem as the Hawks look set to have another successful campaign where they should be around the mark when the playoffs arrive.
Coach: Rob Beveridge
Roster: Rotnei Clarke, Tim Coenraad, Demitrius Conger, Cody Ellis, Oscar Forman, Delvon Johnson, Nick Kay, Rhys Martin, Mitch Norton, AJ Ogilvy, Kevin White
Arrivals: Demitrius Conger, Delvon Johnson
Departures: Marvel Harris, Michael Holyfield
Predicted finish: Fourth
The Adelaide 36ers will be looking to improve on last season, where they endured a disappointing semi-final exit after looking the side to beat for much of the season. 3x coach of the year Joey Wright is once again at the helm of a talented roster, although this season will be without the 2016-17 MVP Jerome Randle, as he departs to pursue opportunities overseas. Immediately this seems like a massive loss for the 36ers, but coach Wright will be confident that he has the roster to fill the void Randle has left. Last season’s Most Improved Player Nathan Sobey is one who will enjoy a larger offensive load, as will Mitch Creek. Big men Daniel Johnson and Matt Hodgson provide plenty of fire power in the front court of a squad that boasts the best Australian-grown contingent in the league. Despite the loss of Randle, we still see Adelaide as a genuine contender this season.
Coach: Joey Wright
Roster: Mitch Creek, Majok Deng, Adam Doyle, Anthony Drmic, Matt Hodgson, Daniel Johnson, Ramone Moore, Ronald Roberts Jr, Shannon Shorter, Nathan Sobey, Brendan Teys
Arrivals: Ramone Moore, Ronald Roberts Jr, Shannon Shorter
Departures: Terrance Ferguson, Eric Jacobsen, Jerome Randle
Predicted finish: Third
Melbourne United come into the season boasting what has been labelled by many as the most talented roster ever assembled on an NBL team. Star import point-guard and fancied MVP Casper Ware is set to play the full season after impressing in the back half of last season. He will be joined once again in the back court by sniper Chris Goulding, and with the addition of Casey Prather on the wing, United will have no shortage of fire power on the offensive end. Proven talents David Anderson and Josh Boone starting in the front court and rounding out the starting 5 are just icing on the cake. After underwhelming fans with a 6th placed finish last season, United’s roster alone should allow them to make a deep run in the playoffs this season. This should be aided by the arrival of new head coach Dean Vickerman, who has plenty of NBL experience and success, having had a hand in 4 championships with the Breakers, with one as the head coach in 2015.
Coach: Dean Vickerman
Roster: Kyle Adnan, David Andersen, David Barlow, Josh Boone, Chris Goulding, Peter Hooley, Majok Majok, Craig Moller, Casey Prather, Casper Ware Jr, Tai Wesley
Arrivals: Peter Hooley, Craig Moller, Casey Prather
Departures: Todd Blanchfield, Igor Hadziomerovic, Owen Odigie, Nate Tomlinson
Predicted finish: Champions
We agree with the bookies on this one as Melbourne United look the team to beat. The addition of new head coach Dean Vickerman and star player Casey Prather make it hard to bet against them. Their shaky form over previous seasons means they still have a bit of value in the market.
TIP: Melbourne United to win the championship - $3.50 at Ladbrokes
The MVP Race
The most valuable player award is often given to the best player on the best team during the regular season. Melbourne United and the Perth Wildcats look most likely to be sitting atop of the ladder come the end of the season. The addition of Casey Prather to united means the offensive load will have to be shared with fellow MVP fancies Casper Ware and Chris Goulding. However, when looking at the Wildcats, they have a really solid team with only 1 or 2 main standouts. The best of these standouts is Bryce Cotton. Cotton really impressed in his maiden campaign in the NBL, albeit only playing for the back half of the season. With the departure of Prather, and now playing from the start, Cotton will be required to carry a large load of the offense for the Wildcats, which should consistently show up in the box score. It may come down to the success of his team to whether he can win the award, but at this stage Bryce Cotton looks to be a real chance at winning the 2017-18 NBL MVP.
TIP: Bryce Cotton to win the MVP - $7 at Sportsbet
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