THE Melbourne United have added another impressive offseason addition, signing National Basketball League (NBL)1 guard William ‘Davo’ Hickey to a two-year Development player contract, with the second year containing a potential elevation. Hickey joins the NBL as a development player for the second time, having already been a part of cross-town rival South-East Melbourne Phoenix as a development prospect, but will hope to take the next step in his basketball journey, joining the defending NBL champions.
The athletic shooting guard stands at 194cm (6ft 4in) and has shown his strong ability to score in explosive fashion in the past. Hickey most recently played at the Ballarat Miners in the NBL1’s South Men’s division, where he averaged 18.2 points and 8.35 rebounds per game while shooting quite efficiently too at over 42% from the field. His numbers at the Phoenix were hard to judge, given he only played three minutes for the entire 2019-20 season.
A proud Wiradjuri and Gamilaroi/Gomeroi man, Hickey joins the club consistent with the NBL Reconciliation Action Plan to Strengthen Pathways for Indigenous Players program, and looks to be an impressive young talent, with plenty of potential moving forward. He will join the team in the coming days to prepare for the 2021-22 NBL season, where United will look to defend their recent title.
Melbourne United coach Dean Vickerman said Hickey has been on the side’s watch list for quite some time, and also spoke of his talent on the court.
“I’ve enjoyed watching Davo’s growth during his time in NBL1. From his time at the Melbourne Tigers through to his recent season at Ballarat, we’ve had our eyes on him.” Vickerman said.
“We see Davo as an athletic guard who excels in transition but can also attack the paint and play above the rim. Combined with his length, intensity and activity, he can really step up on the defensive end as well. He’s also a great rebounder for his size, too, which is always helpful.”
Hickey completes Melbourne United’s roster ahead of the NBL22 season, with the side settled on its roster changes so far. With plenty of talent on the roster, Hickey will be looking to make his mark on this stacked United squad.
Picture credit: Australian Indigenous Basketball
NBL25 Next Star Watch – Round 8
ROUND 8 of the 2024/25 National Basketball League (NBL) season saw some Next Stars get some increased responsibility for their respective sides over the course of the weekend. With seven games taking place over the span of Thursday and Sunday, the teams were back in action with some cracking upsets produced over the weekend. The […]
Split results for WA sides on Saturday
WESTERN Australia watched its two basketball sides split results on Saturday night, with the Perth Wildcats falling to Melbourne United and a vintage Chris Goulding performance on Saturday night, while the Perth Lynx took care of business in Adelaide, comfortably handling the Lightning 92-78. The Cats have won five games from 11 appearances this season, […]
A Chris classic as Goulding gears United
ROUND 8 of the National Basketball League (NBL) saw one of the best scoring performances in competition history, with Chris Goulding erupting to help Melbourne United pull off a comeback win over the Perth Wildcats. United hosted the Wildcats at John Cain Arena on Saturday night, fresh off a high-scoring win over the Brisbane Bullets. […]
NBL25 Wrapped – Round 8
IT WAS a great weekend to be a home side in the National Basketball League (NBL), with Round 8 seeing most hosting teams secure a win in front of their adoring fans. There were seven games that took place from Thursday to Sunday, as the action continued to be extremely unpredictable in nature. Whether it […]
Mixed results for Western teams
WEDNESDAY night brought Fire to Bendat as the Perth Lynx hosted Townsville in the opening WNBL game of Round 2. Both teams entered after strong victories in the first round of the season, Perth hosting their second straight home game and Townsville travelling for the second consecutive week. Much of the opening quarter of basketball […]
United shoot the lights out with bounce back win
A POWER outage may have made the NBL clash a bit more complicated, but Melbourne United left Nissan Arena having defeated the Brisbane Bullets by 17 points in a high-scoring clash on Thursday night. In Mitch Norton‘s 350th, United played spoilers in the veteran guard’s milestone game, proving too good and ensuring they still maintain […]
Double-header set to kick off NBL action
THE NATIONAL Basketball League (NBL) will kick off Round 8 of the 2024/25 season with a double-header on Thursday night in a bumper start to the weekend’s action. Four sides looking to bounce back after a loss will make up the night’s play, with the Brisbane Bullets hosting Melbourne United and the Tasmania JackJumpers heading […]
Lopez making leaps as Next Star
ONE OF the most exciting Next Stars in the 2024/25 National Basketball League (NBL) season to date has been Karim Lopez, who has developed at a rapid rate as a member of the New Zealand Breakers so far. Lopez is the youngest Next Star of the five players in the system this fixture, but has […]
NBL25 Next Star Watch – Round 7
THE NBL Next Stars continued to show how comfortable they are feeling seven rounds into the fixture, with several young guns maintaining a strong run of form. With just five Next Stars suiting up for the 2024/25 season, there will be plenty of attention on each and every player within the program over the coming […]
