IT HAS been a near-perfect start to the National Basketball League (NBL) season for Melbourne United, looming as the championship favourite at the midway point of the fixture and sitting atop the standings after 10 rounds.

It was a simply dominant start to season 2025/26 for United, who went on an astounding winning streak for their first 10 games, with some experts predicting they may not lose a game for the entire home and away fixture. That theory did not pan out as Melbourne suffered back-to-back losses, but has since steadied to remain at the top of the table and enter the second half of the season as the team to beat for this season.

United have been the benchmark all season, starting the season on fire and looking near-impossible to stop throughout the first couple of months of the fixture. Whether it was at home at John Cain Arena or on the road in enemy territory, Melbourne was firing on both sides of the ball, and could adapt its style of play to whichever team it was playing.

Now, at the conclusion of Round 10, they still sit in first place on the ladder, with 13 wins and two losses from their 15 outings. However, hot on their tail are the Adelaide 36ers, who are just a win behind in second place, so there is not much allowance for United to slip up if they want to finish the season as minor champions.

Head coach Dean Vickerman is once again at the helm of a team with tremendous depth, with Melbourne’s list of contributors changing each and every match. With legendary sharpshooter Chris Goulding and reigning Defensive Player of the Year Shea Ili sidelined for a large portion of the season to date, Melbourne relied on other sources of production, and some of the team’s role players went above and beyond within the system.

It was also a positive recruitment period over the offseason for Melbourne, headlined by the addition of former NBL Champion Milton Doyle, who is leading the team in scoring with 16 points per game on 42 per cent shooting from the field to go with 4.8 assists per game. Although he took a while to adjust to a new team, the import guard has settled in nicely, and is looming as a central figure in the upcoming postseason.

Over the off-season, the team added Dutch big man Jesse Edwards to their frontcourt, and it is a move that has proven to be a masterstroke. As a rim protector, he is among the best in the competition, using his towering frame and wingspan in combination with his excellent defensive instinct to make life extremely tough for the opposition, while Edwards is a constant lob threat down the other end as well.

Getting Ili back will be a massive boost for the title heavyweights, who will regain their point-of-attack defender in the backcourt. With Doyle, Goulding and Tyson Walker providing the offence on this front, having the best defensive player in the competition back on the court could all but seal the championship for Melbourne.