United stars clean up at NBL Awards Night
Written By
Melbourne United Media
With the NBL24 regular season done and dusted, Melbourne United’s league-best campaign, which saw MU sit atop the ladder for 19 of the 20 rounds, was celebrated on Monday evening.
Club captain, Chris Goulding, finished second in MVP voting and was named to the All-NBL First Team following his tremendous season.
Across his campaign, CG43 cashed in on 111 three-pointers; 36 more than the next nearest player, at a 40% rate.
Big-man Jo Lual-Acuil Jr was also named to the All-NBL Second Team after dominating the paint throughout NBL24.
JLA finished the regular season amongst the leaders in blocks and second-chance points.
Having amassed the competition’s only 20 win season, which featured zero back-to-back losses, Head Coach Dean Vickerman was honoured with the Lindsay Gaze Coach of the Year Award. This marked the third time Vickerman has claimed the award.
Moving back to the on-court action, Shea Ili claimed his first Damian Martin Defensive Player of the Year Award.
The head of the proverbial snake that is Melbourne’s defence, Ili’s intensity helped United restrict opponents to the league’s lowest shooting percentage, while hounding ball-handlers into mistakes at every opportunity.
Looking at the league’s top bench performers, Ian Clark shone through to take home the Best Sixth Man Award Presented by Marsh.
The American sharpshooter averaged more points than any other bench player in the competition, while shooting the ball at close to a 50/40/90 clip.
In the front office, club CEO Nick Truelson was named as the Executive of the Year, having helped orchestrate a season which has seen United reach record growth numbers across the board.
With so much excitement surrounding Melbourne’s regular season, things are set to only get bigger from here as we move into the Finals.
We need you to UNITE with us as we look to deliver on our goal of a championship.
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