THE SYDNEY Kings have arrived in Melbourne for an epic matchup to take on South East Melbourne with one goal in mind—to overcome the Phoenix at John Cain Arena. The two teams faced off in August during NBL Blitz, with the Phoenix absolutely dominating the Kings bringing home a 102-81 victory. Whilst new signing Kendric Davis did not play, we were able to get a taste of what’s to come as the Phoenix looked to be an exciting team to look out for. 

The Sydney Kings showed glimpses of brilliance in their most recent game against the Perth Wildcats, coming back from a 22-15 first quarter loss to eventually go on a run and never slow down, dominating the game 94-72. 

Defensively, the squad were able to hold the Wildcats to a pitiful six points in the final quarter, as they kept their scoring prowess going and found their flow. The top contributors for the Kings so far in the early season have been Davis, Matthew Dellavedova and Tim Soares, who are all new signings and have been incredible so far in NBL26.

Dellavedova, fresh off of winning the finals MVP in a loss to the Illawarra Hawks surprised the league with his move to Sydney, and has struggled so far to find his form on the offensive side of the ball this year, with efficiency being a problem for him as he is shooting just 33 per cent from the field and 11 per cent from three.

Soares has made his return to Sydney, after spending some time in other international leagues. Soares was on the NBL23 Sydney team which won the championship, and was a good contributor and helped the Kings bring home the title alongside finals MVP Xavier Cooks, who is also currently on the roster.

Soares continues his solid play so far this year in NBL26, providing 12 points alongside 8.5 rebounds per game. One of the biggest signings this offseason is the addition of superstar guard Davis, who is coming off his first NBL season where he was absolutely incredible to say the least, as he was an MVP contender. These pickups for Sydney have created high expectations, as these new signings alongside its already existing talent gives the Kings a true chance at going far this season if they manage to put things together.

SEM Phoenix have started off their NBL26 campaign quite solid, with a 3-2 record but coming off of a 40 point victory against the Hawks, confidence is high and they will be looking to capture yet another win to back up their last. Among the key players to look out for would be Nathan Sobey, who has proven that even at age 35 is an offensive threat who can contribute twenty points on the regular.

Import John Brown III has been one of the best defensive players in the league, leading the league in steals with 2.6 per matchup and his overall presence on the defensive side is unparalleled. Angus Glover has looked like arguably the best three point shooter in the competition, who on 8 attempts per game is shooting at an impressive 45 per cent clip. 

With both teams being fired up and coming off of 20-plus wins, they will look to maintain their form and make their mark as contenders early in the season, so expect a high stakes and exciting game tonight as the two teams battle it out.