Starting 5: The key talking points leading into Round 17

The highly anticipated 2026 HoopsFest is finally upon us.

All 10 teams will this week descend on Perth for Australasia’s biggest basketball, culture and lifestyle festival.

The exciting five-game slate tips off on Thursday night, with the red-hot Sydney Kings battling the desperate Brisbane Bullets.

Pete Hooley takes a look at some of those key moments to watch out for.

The full schedule

Sydney Kings v Brisbane Bullets - Thursday, January 15, 9.30pm AEDT - RAC Arena
Watch: ESPN | Scores and stats: Game Centre

Perth Wildcats v Illawarra Hawks - Friday, January 16, 9.30pm AEDT - RAC Arena
Watch: ESPN | Scores and stats: Game Centre

Cairns Taipans v New Zealand Breakers - Saturday, January 17, 7pm AEDT - RAC Arena
Watch: ESPN | Scores and stats: Game Centre

Tasmania JackJumpers v Melbourne United - Saturday, January 17, 9.30pm AEDT - RAC Arena
Watch: ESPN | Scores and stats: Game Centre

Adelaide 36ers v South East Melbourne Phoenix - Sunday, January 18, 2.30pm AEDT - RAC Arena
Watch: ESPN and Channel 10| Scores and stats: Game Centre

Talking points

1 – Sydney’s depth on full display

The Sydney Kings have been battered and bruised in recent weeks and are still finding ways to win. With Bul Kuol out for the season, Xavier Cooks missing time and now Matthew Dellavedova in concussion protocols, Brian Goorjian has had to turn deeper down his bench to find answers.

Thankfully, this Kings roster is loaded with players who are desperate to see more opportunity, and they’ve taken it with both hands. Jaylin Galloway is coming off a career night, while Tyler Robertson and Shaun Bruce have both provided impactful minutes when they are on the floor.

The Kings continue to pile up the wins and are closing in on a potential top two spot, if the Phoenix drop any more games.

2 - Rebuild the Jungle

It wasn’t that long ago that RAC Arena was a fortress and that teams feared traveling over to Perth to try and get a win in the jungle. However, that’s all changed and with just four wins from their 10 home games this season, the Wildcats need to find a way to get that fear factor back.

Kristian Doolittle said post game following their big road win against the Phoenix that “to win a championship you need to win on the road,” which is spot on, but you also need to take care of business at home.

The Wildcats will face a hungry and determined Illawarra Hawks team who would love nothing more than to inflict some pain on the 10,000 plus screaming Perth fans.

3 - Free agent showdown

The New Zealand Breakers are still in the hunt for an unlikely play in spot, but they need to continue to take care of business themselves and hope Tasmania drop some games.

Outside of that, this game against Cairns will be fascinating for what the future could hold for both of these clubs. Both Sam Mennenga and Sam Waardenburg are set to be two of the hottest free agent names in the league at the end of the season and while both their current clubs would love to keep them around, the big man landscape is forever changing.

Could this be an audition for two of the best local bigs in the competition?

4 - Snakes and ladders

Saturday night provides one of the best matchups in HoopsFest, as two teams meet in very different circumstances in their seasons.

On one side you have Melbourne United, who are falling out of the top four by each passing game, losing both of their last round games. They will face a Tasmania team who are climbing the ladder and proving to be a really tough team to play against, now that they are healthy.

Could this be United’s chance to snap out of their funk and get back to the form that saw them go 9-0 to begin the season? Or are the JackJumpers destined to become one of the most dangerous teams in the league and legitimate title contenders?

5 - Top spot battle

To end an incredible weekend in Perth, the top two teams in the competition will battle it out for top spot and some more security of a top two finish.

What makes this game even more enticing is that both Adelaide and South East Melbourne are coming off rare losses, which will leave Adelaide with back to back losses for just the first time this season or the Phoenix for the first time in over a month.

It’s an MVP showdown, with Bryce Cotton facing Nathan Sobey and you can expect a big healthy Perth crowd there to get behind their former Wildcat and five time MVP.