The fixture schedule for the 2023-24 NBL season is out and we simply can’t keep it to ourselves! Being the 46th season since the inaugural tournament in 1979, Basketball fans in Australia are thrilled with the prospects of yet another compelling competition going by new signings and free agency transactions characterizing the countdown to the epic start of the season. 

However, before the stakes get higher let’s have a quick overview of important dates you should mark on your calendar. 

• Opening date of the season: Thursday, 28th September 2023. 
• The regular Season concludes on Sunday, 18th February 2024.
• Besides, following the impressively successful Christmas Day showdown in the 2022-23 season, NBL organizers have fixtured two games on the same date this year. 

As expected, the season will feature 140 regular games, with each team playing a maximum of 28 matches. Nevertheless, unlike the 2022-23 season where games were spread in 18 rounds, this season will have 20 rounds. 

As is the norm following the announcement of season-defining fixtures, teams’ managements are in a race to rope in new talent as they look forward to an even tighter and more competitive tournament. 

Luckily, if you’re an avid NBL follower we got your back with round-the-clock updates, including new signings, and management/coach re-organizations. Besides, we give you a broad range of news within professional Australian basketball circles. 

Let’s consider these new signees. 

Rocco Zikarsky Set To Begin His Professional Career With Brisbane Bullets 

Rocco Zikarsy, a graduate of the Next Stars Program will join Brisbane Bullets in the 2023-24 season. A trusted and consistent pathway to an illustrious basketball career, Next Stars has produced some of the biggest stars in Australia and beyond. 

For Zirkarsky, undoubtedly, this will be a rare chance at such a tender age (16), to showcase his talent. Unheralded in the Aussie’s top-tier league, the young athlete has, however,  proved his worth with spectacular stats and awards. 

Currently, he’s under the prestigious scholarship of NBA Global Academy based in Canberra. During the Australian Junior Championships tournaments he has shown great potential. For instance, in the 2022 FIBA U17 World Cup, he averaged 13.6 points, 3.1 blocks, and 9.3 rebounds. Overall, he finished 5th in scoring and 6th in rebounds. 

In the just concluded 2023 U18 National Championships, Zirkarsky had 19.8 points, 12.6 rebounds, and 4.2 blocks per game. 

Excited about the new arrival, Brisbane’s coach Justin Schueller said Zikarsky has the potential of becoming the next big star in the NBL. Having coached Rocco at the World Championships last year, Schueller expressed optimism that the club was ready to welcome and support him as he progresses to the next career level. 

Jacob Willey Returns to Familiar Grounds_Adelaide 36ers

The 2023-24 season is back with a bang! Unsurprisingly, participating teams, including Adelaide 36ers are improving their squads with an eye for the epic prize come February 2024 when the regular season concludes. 

Jacob Willey, for instance, has been announced as the club’s new player for the next two seasons. Recently playing in Puerto Rico, Willey has been globe-trotting in the past 4 years since he left the Adelaide 36ers. He has been to Europe and Japan and is now excited to be back home. 

Adelaide 36ers chairman and owner Grant Kelley was all praises for the 28-year player and welcomed him back home. In the 2019 season when he lastly played for the club, he averaged 12.3 points and 4.9 rebounds per. Thus, fans can expect a more mature, and more experienced player per Willey’s arguments. 

Sydney Kings In the Market for Dejan Vasiljevic’s Replacement 

After an impressively successful stint at Sydney Kings, Dejan Vasiljevic is finally leaving the club and won’t be available for the NBL24. 

Speaking of his departure, the Kings CEO Chris Pongrass was prospecting life post Dejan’s era at the club and that a replacement that would fit the wildly successful sharpshooter was in the offing. 

While playing for the club, Dejan Vasiljevic has been part of the regular team helping them win two titles. He is set to join the Summer League side, Washington Wizards, and he leaves with the club’s blessings to take his winning spirit to the newfound home. 

Korean Sharpshooter Hyunjung Lee Is the Newest Illawarra Hawks Player In The NBL24

After showcasing his prodigious talent at the renowned NBA Global Academy, Canberra, Hyunjung Lee will be joining Illawarra Hawks in the 2023-24 season. The 6-7 forward has a rich profile with matchless long-range marksmanship that Hawks management perceives as a priceless asset. 

He will be joining previous Global Academy graduates, including the talented Wani Swaka Lo Buluk, Dan Grida, and Sam Froling and the management is hopeful this lethal combo of players will produce stellar performances and possibly help the Hawks lift the cup. 

Prior to the Hawks signing, Lee made his name while playing College Basketball with Davidson Wildcats in the Atlantic 10 Conference. Besides, he was instrumental in the NBA G-league where he played for Santa Cruz Warriors. 

Currently, he is taking part in the 2023 NBA Summer League, in Las Vegas implying his fitness levels will be superbly high when the season starts in September. 

Surprisingly, Lee will be the first player with Asian origin to don the Hawks jersey and the entire fraternity is simmering with the hopes of a foreign marquee player set to help their club clinch the title after years of waiting. 

The Hawks Basketball General Manager, Mat Campbell said the club is excited to add an elite shooter and emerging talent in Hyunjung Lee.

 He continued “As a club, we have followed Lee’s progress with real interest; we think he will be a great fit with our current group.” He further posits that Elite perimeter shooting is a real difference maker in today’s game and that adding a player of Lee’s skill set provides Jacob and his coaching staff another likely option at the wing position.

Well, this is just the tip of the iceberg in the NBL transfer market. Literally, teams are in a race to upgrade their skills and players. Fortunately, we are keenly following every development to break news to you. If you keep it here, we guarantee you mind-blogging transfer news and the latest comments from NBL coaches as they gear up for yet another season, the NBL24.