Phoenix at the pointy end of major signing

The South East Melbourne Phoenix loom to be one of the strong contenders once again when the Hungry Jack’s NBL27 Season tips off in September.

The Heartland club has Nathan Sobey, Angus Glover, Jordan Hunter, Akech Aliir, Ellis Biggar, Daniel Foster, and Patrick Ryan all returning to Josh King’s side.

As well as that, import D'Shawn Schwartz, NBL Next Star Dash Daniels, sharpshooter Tanner Krebs, and big man Hunter Goodrick have all joined the club in the off-season.

The one glaring hole on the squad, especially after Owen Foxwell’s departure, is the point guard spot.

But during Friday’s Phoenix Major Luncheon at the Glasshouse, coach King, who just signed a new three-year deal with the club, explained his team are closing in on a potential signing.

“We've still got three roster spots to fill,” King said.

“Whether we sign two imports and one local or two locals and one import, we're not sure.

“We had a meeting yesterday, and we had about a hundred different scenarios up on the board, so it’s really exciting to see where we finish up.

“We have an offer out there right now for a point guard, and hopefully that gets cleaned up really soon.”

King went on to elaborate what kind of point guard his club was chasing.

“We were on two or three guys, and we liked all of them,” he said.

“We've decided to go with the guy that's got the contract in hand.

“He's a big point guard. He's got a lot of experience, with about 100-plus NBA games on his belt.

“He's played EuroLeague, and he's played high-level European basketball, so I think it's going to translate really nicely to the NBL if we're able to get it across the line.”

The Phoenix open their 2026-27 campaign at RAC Arena against the Perth Wildcats on Saturday, September 19, from 9.30pm AEST.