Familiar faces drive Loe-post return

For the second time in two seasons, a veteran player has reneged on his retirement to help Melbourne United in a time of need.

Last season it was David Barlow who returned to the club not even a month after his retirement announcement, to add another 21 appearances to his already incredibly long-living and successful career.

This season Rob Loe has been called into the trenches as a nominated replacement player (NRP), following the announcement of his retirement from the NBL just a month earlier. 

Loe looks set to fill a key spot at United while star signing Jo Lual-Acuil Jr sits on the sidelines due to a wrist injury, and will likely split his minutes at the centre spot with Next Star Ariel Hukporti.

The ability to spend more time with family was noted as the crucial reasoning behind Loe’s departure from the NBL, and even though United is a new environment for the veteran former Tall Black, there are plenty of familiar faces to lean on at his new club.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Loe calls time ?<br><br>The <a href="https://twitter.com/NZBreakers?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NZBreakers</a> big has announced his retirement from the NBL at the age of 31.<br><br>Thanks for the memories, Rob ?<br><br>Read more: <a href="https://t.co/pGshzpDBMW">https://t.co/pGshzpDBMW</a> <a href="https://t.co/oDKiHDL5u0">pic.twitter.com/oDKiHDL5u0</a></p>&mdash; NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1666306069478658048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“Growing up Dean (Vickerman) was an assistant at the Breakers,” Loe told MU Media. “I was in the academy there in high school, so I got to work with him a little bit then.

“Being on the other side against him for the past seven years in the NBL, he’s one of the best if not the best coaches in the league, so this is a really good opportunity to work with him.

“I’ve played a lot of basketball with and against Shea (Ili) ever since we played against each other in high school. Any chance I get to play with him is exciting – he’s an amazing talent.

“Flynn I’ve got to experience recenrly with the Tall Blacks and I think his game is going from strength to strength. Just to see what he’s like in a professional setting will be awesome.”

Loe has so far played 173 games in his NBL career – with all bar 28 of those coming in Breakers colours.

He was recently named MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in the NZNBL, and averaged 5.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game in NBL23.

Melbourne will play in the opening game of the NBL24 season when they take on local rivals South East Melbourne on Thursday, September 28.