The following are previews with betting tips for selected fixtures in Round One of the 2022/23 NBL season.
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South East Melbourne Phoenix vs Tasmania JackJumpersSaturday Oct 01, 6:00pm |
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The season opener for the NBL 2022/23 season sees the Phoenix play hosts to the JackJumpers, with both teams having high aspirations for the campaign ahead. South East Melbourne finished just two wins outside of the Top Four via Mitch Creek’s all-round star plays. Whilst for Tasmania their incredible debut year stole the hearts of ‘Aussie’ sports fans across the country, with Scott Roth’s men giving Sydney a real stern shakeup in the Grand Final series.Now with influential leader Clint Steindl potentially out for the first month of the season, the emphasis is on the rest of the JackJumpers now more then ever to stand up and once again prove their worth. And one man in particular comes to mind in the form of new signing and former VTB All-Star Rashard Kelly. The six-foot-seven Forward busted open the Taipans defence in his sides most recent Blitz affair, a 100-81 victory, as he posted 16PTS and 7REB, while going 6/11 from the floor. Meanwhile for the Phoenix Point Guard Kyle Adnam appears to be a smokey pick to have an unexpectedly efficient season. The underrated 28-year-old veteran posted 24PTS last time out versus the Kings and prior to that he scored 16PTS opposing the Wildcats in the Blitz. His ability to penetrate close to the rim, as well as pull up quickly from deep will no doubt have Tasmania’s defence working overtime in this clash. And we might see a few cheeky lobs to Zhou Qi as well, somewhat reminiscent of the Chris Paul & Blake Griffin ‘Lob City’ Clippers era.With both sides having a point to prove, alongside with their history being extremely close at three wins to ‘Tassie’ and two to South East Melbourne, Larry Kestleman, Jeremy Loeliger & Co couldn’t have picked a better matchup today start us off with. Expect a tasty affair with the home side to come out on top … just.
Betting tips: Back the Phoenix to win at $1.80 (Bet365)
Also look for them to edge Q1 out at $1.80 (Bet365)
And pick South East Melbourne to score over 77.5PTS at $1.55 and Tasmania over 75.5 at $1.45 (Bet365)
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Illawarra Hawks vs Sydney KingsSaturday Oct 01, 8:00pm |
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The second Saturday clash of the day pits Illawarra up against Sydney in what will no doubt be a tense and heated affair. These two sides DO NOT like each other and when you throw in the additional frosty reception Angus Glover always gets when returning home, it only just adds to the intensity surrounding this game.The Kings knocked the Hawks off their perch last season, smashing them 2-0 in the opening week of the finals. That also ended Brian Goorjian’s time in the ‘Gong’, with Jacob Jackomas now in charge. He’ll no doubt be aiming to get his underdogs up and about in what is simply a massive rivalry.Last season it was Jaylen Adams who touched up the Hawks and now the batton has been passed down to Derrick Walton Jr, a new arrival from the Detroit Pistons. Similar to last seasons MVP he’s a lethal scorer close to the rim and he can dish them out for days too! In his latest match vs New Zealand he shot 11/13 from the FT line, en route to 15PTS. While he also conjured up 2REB, 3AST and 1STL. Similar to Adams, last seasons NBA G-League Assists Leader Walton Jr will also probably leave Wollongong at the end of the night having given the Illawarra players nightmares.Meanwhile another player who might get jeered a lot, but this time by the travelling contingent of Kings supporters, will be former Championship winning King turned Hawk Wani Swaka Lo Buluk. His dawg like defensive tenacities drew a lot of cheers at Qudos Bank Arena last season as he quickly became a Sydney fan favourite. Whilst there’s also Xavier Cooks a similarly moulded player to Swaka Lo Buluk and one who came up with 16PTS and 11REB in that all-crucial Game Two dub against the Hawks. Expect the two Forwards to pester each other all night long.Again this should be an very close clash, but pick the Kings to get the cherries at the end of the day. They know what it takes to shut down their best players cough, cough Tyler Harvey and this encounter should prove to be no different. And they have all the confidence in the world against Illawarra too (insert winky face emoji here).
Betting tips: Back a Sydney Kings victory at $1.54 (Unibet)
Also look for the fourth quarter to belong to Sydney at $1.80 (Unibet)
Whilst the total points in quarter four will be over 41.5 at $1.82 (Unibet)