Brisbane Bullets Preview

Finally something to get excited about in BrisVegas! Will Weaver returns to the NBL and has assembled a solid squad. The team, surprisingly, doesn't have the feeling of dysfunction that has hung over it across the James Duncan, Justin Schueller, D-Mac, Sam Mackinnon, Greg Vanderjagt, Stu Lash, era. Wow, just typing that makes me wonder how this team survived such instability. Anyway, Weaver is here now and it's all looking up. A lot to do with that is a really nice starting 5 with clearly defined roles and a chemistry that looks to boost everyone's SuperCoach production. How';s the old saying go? A rising tide lifts all ships? Something like that is going on here.....

1/ Lithuanian White Chocolate is here. Arnas Velicka at the new import price of $277k is the real deal. You don't just fumble your way to a Euro League MVP without knowing ball and on the back of this impressive resume he's now put it together in back to back preseason games. I'm calling it now, he's a supercoach stud. 6'6' point guards don't grow on trees and his combination of size and skill helps him get those extra rebounds and blocks that other guards outside of Tran Armstrong just can't get. He's a triple double threat every night and what's more he makes everyone else look better. More on this later but Tyrell Harrison is ready for a career year. The only downside for the Bullets is the weak early schedule but the Henshall Rule is your friend allowing you to use your boosts and capture some much needed cash in round 3.

2/ Tyrell Harrison. He's been solid when we've needed him to be spectacular over the past seasons. Shows us glimpses and teases us with potential to take that next step but doesn't quite do it. I think this is the year and much of this is going to be at the hand of Velicka. Tyrell, I guarantee will not work anywhere near as hard for his buckets as he has had to in the past. Velicka has already shown the ability to serve it to him on a platter. This connection will only grow and with capable bodies around him I feel there's just enough to avoid any serious double teams. He's a top 3 super coach centre easily and the argument can be made he's the best. Price is reasonable. Would look to bring in round 3 onwards and try for a perfect pairing with another Centre. Forward Centre eligible players may also help to massage this.

3/ Max Mackinnon - There was so much hope here until he came in at 200k. He was everyone's golden cash cow prior to the game opening and then....well... the price is awkward. He's priced the same or higher than more established players like Reyne Smith, Elijah Pepper and even Chris Goulding. Yet....the door isn't completely shut. After the first game of the Blitz, little Maxi Pad game out of the gates hot and dropped a game high 26 points on his way to 32 SuperCoach points. Looking like he belonged from the tip off. Weaver treated the game as I would imagine he would a regular season fixture and the role and minutes should be reflective of whats to come. So the question is....Is he still going to generate cash and is he playable? and the answer to both is yes. What I would say now is that you need to look at him through the lens of not being an overpriced rookie, but instead as an underpriced import. Ask yourself, will Max outproduce the likes of JJJ, Bediako, Kelan Martin, Malique Lewis, John Jenkins, DeShawn Schwartz, Yannis Morrin or Dakota Mathias? If the answer is yes, then perhaps he's that look that gives you some pocket change to deploy elsewhere.

4/ Nate Hinton and Jaylin Wiliams:

Hinton seems the better prospect of the two, yet I don't see enough yet to get excited SuperCoach wise. We saw him early preseason playing against an NBL1 select team in a blow out win where he produced 22pts 8rbds 6 assists 3 steals 1 block 48SC (23mins). Good but with a giant asterisk given the competition. In the first Blitz outing he came back down to earth with 20SC. I'll watch more and keep tabs on him but I'm not seeing anything that makes me want to trade at this price.

Wiliams was and underwhelming signing and has done nothing to sway my opinio sice hitting the shores of Australia. A 6’8 stretch forward, brought in to essentially replace an MVP candidate in Casey Prather. Jaylin Williams (no not that one) comes from the G League's Stockton Kings where he averaged 13.7ppg and 6.9rpg in 30 minutes a night. This follows the previous season where he had 8.6ppg and 3rpg in 19 minutes for Grand Rapids Gold. The upside is his 3pt% is in the high 30s although I have concerns about his slow release. At $277k and a porr early schedule the hope is that he loses cash while finding his feet prior to round 6 and we can look to pick him up as a cheap bench option.

Long story short, Brisbane are a legitimate SuperCoach team. The lack of depth and reliance on starters gives us clear roles and much needed predictability. The schedule is sparse early until round 6 where they enter a run of 4 consecutive doubles and Velicka and Harrison at least become must own. They start off with back to back singles allowing 2 weeks to wait and see before any price rises take effect also.