The text that brought Joe home

A chance off-season conversation with Melbourne United CEO Nick Truelson may have proven the ultimate catalyst for Joe Ingles' return to the NBL.

Chatting to the media after his first training session on Monday, Ingles revealed how he'd subtly pre-empted a potential move to United well before it came to fruition.

"I joked with Nick about a year ago when they were signing Jesse Edwards, who I'd played with. We'd spoken about Jesse and he'd asked my opinion on what I thought he would be like in the NBL. And I think the last text I sent him was like, 'If you need a three-man next year, let me know.' Not thinking anything of it," Ingles revealed.

For an 800-game NBA veteran, words like that carry weight.

As one of Australia's greatest ever players, his signature was in high demand in recent months.

"Obviously the last couple years for me not playing wasn't tough, because I'm in a pretty good situation, but obviously as a competitor, you want to play, you want to help your team win," Ingles said.

"Later in the season it kind of got floated about (a move to Australia). I think it probably got reported a bit more than what was actually going on. And then yeah, the last couple months kind of heated up a little bit.

"The more we talked about it was exciting for me basketball wise and playing wise, but obviously raising our kids back in Australia was always a goal, was always in the back of our mind. (I) just didn't think it would be this June."

Ingles' signing saw him follow the likes of fellow Australian Boomers Andrew Bogut and Matthew Dellavedova in returning to the NBL following highly successful overseas careers.

"Confidently, I have no doubt I could have got another job over there (in the NBA)," he said.

"I think I've earned the respect and professionalism of the league over there, whether I could have played some minutes or helped by being on the bench."

But Ingles' was made up. It was time to come home.

"I think my agent tried to tell me that he was going to reach out to teams and I told him not to and we moved on. Once the decision to come to Australia and figure out where I was going, the NBA stuff was done in my mind," he added.

"I went into every meeting having never asked anything money wise, never asked or demanded to start, never asked anything about playing time. It was all about getting here and whatever team that was going to be."

Ingles will play a key role in the post-Dean Vickerman era, alongside fellow recruit Sam Waardenburg.

The pair headline a refreshed roster, but one that still boasts incredible talents with vast experience, like Chris Goulding and Shea Ili.

Waardenburg said the opportunity to play with a player of Ingles' calibre is a huge appeal.

"It's someone you grew up watching play in the NBA at the highest level. So he's going to be a great person to have in the locker room, a great resource to feed off and improve my game," the former Taipan said.

"I'm going to be asking a lot of questions while we are here together. He's a world class shooter and that's part of the game I want to improve … just talking to him about where I can find my shots, better ways to be more efficient."