2025–26 S.E. Melbourne Phoenix season

2025–26 S.E. Melbourne Phoenix season
Head coach Josh King
Co-captains Jordan Hunter
Nathan Sobey
ArenaJohn Cain Arena
NBL results
Record13–6 (68.4%)
Ladder3rd
Finals finishTBD
Stats at NBL.com.au
Ignite Cup results
Record0–1 (0%)
Ladder9th
Ignite Cup finishTBD
All statistics correct as of 20 December 2025.

The 2025–26 S.E. Melbourne Phoenix season will be the 7th season of the franchise in the National Basketball League (NBL), and their second under the leadership of head coach Josh King.

Roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

S.E. Melbourne Phoenix roster
Players Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht. Wt.
F 0 Brown, John (I) 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 98 kg (216 lb)
C 1 Hunter, Jordan (C) 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) 109 kg (240 lb)
G 2 Ryan, Pat (DP) 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in)
F 4 Biggar, Ellis 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in)
G 5 Glover, Angus  1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 90 kg (198 lb)
F 7 Aliir, Akech 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) 102 kg (225 lb)
F 8 Mitchell, D. J. 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) 106 kg (234 lb)
G 11 Foster, Daniel 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 98 kg (216 lb)
G 15 Foxwell, Austin (DP)
G 20 Sobey, Nathan (C) 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) 82 kg (181 lb)
G 24 Maldonado, Hunter (I) 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 91 kg (201 lb)
G/F 25 Iwundu, Wes (I) 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 88 kg (194 lb)
G 30 Foxwell, Owen 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 81 kg (179 lb)
F 33 Lewis, Malique (NS) 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) 88 kg (194 lb)
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Development player
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (I) Import player
  • (SRP) Special restricted player
  • (NS) Next Star player
  • Injured
Updated: 18 December 2025

Depth chart

Pos. Starting 5 Bench 1 Development Injured
PG Owen Foxwell Hunter Maldonado (I) Austin Foxwell (DP)
SG Nathan Sobey Pat Ryan (DP) Angus Glover
SF Malique Lewis (NS) Wes Iwundu (I) Daniel Foster
PF John Brown (I) D. J. Mitchell Ellis Biggar (DP)
C Jordan Hunter Gorjok Gak Akech Aliir

Standings

Ladder

Pos 2025–26 NBL season
Team Pld W L PCT Last 5 Streak Home Away PF PA PP
1 Adelaide 36ers 19 15 4 78.95% 4–1 W1 8–2 7–2 1762 1642 107.31%
2 Melbourne United 20 14 6 70.00% 1–4 W1 8–2 6–4 1918 1776 108.00%
3 S.E. Melbourne Phoenix 19 13 6 68.42% 4–1 W3 7–3 6–3 1832 1671 109.63%
4 Sydney Kings 18 11 7 61.11% 4–1 W4 5–3 6–4 1690 1546 109.31%
5 Perth Wildcats 20 11 9 55.00% 2–3 W1 4–6 7–3 1771 1725 102.67%
6 Tasmania JackJumpers 19 8 11 42.11% 3–2 L1 2–7 6–4 1626 1644 98.91%
7 New Zealand Breakers 19 7 12 36.84% 3–2 L2 4–5 3–7 1693 1689 100.24%
8 Illawarra Hawks 18 6 12 33.33% 2–3 L2 4–6 2–6 1597 1732 92.21%
9 Brisbane Bullets 19 5 14 26.32% 0–5 L7 1–7 4–7 1621 1825 88.82%
10 Cairns Taipans 19 5 14 26.32% 2–3 L1 2–9 3–5 1558 1818 85.70%

Updated to match(es) played on 21 December 2025. Source: NBL.com.au

The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win–loss record, the overall points percentage will determine order of seeding.

Ladder progression

Leader and qualification to semifinals
Qualification to semifinals
Qualification to play-in
Last place
2025–26 NBL season
Team ╲ Round12345678910111213141516171819202122
Adelaide 36ers—21223332211
Brisbane Bullets378977778899
Cairns Taipans747781091010101010
Illawarra Hawks—9981081087988
Melbourne United212111111122
New Zealand Breakers610101099899767
Perth Wildcats564365555445
S.E. Melbourne Phoenix156432223333
Sydney Kings—85656444554
Tasmania JackJumpers433544666676
Updated to match(es) played on 14 December 2025. Source: NBL.com.au

Game log

Pre-season

Main article: 2025 NBL pre-season

The 2025 NBL Blitz will run from 27 to 31 August 2025 with games being played at the AIS Arena, Canberra.[1][2]

2025 NBL Blitz game log
Total: 1–1 (Home: 0–1; Road: 1–0)
August: 1–1 (Home: 0–1; Road: 1–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 29 August New Zealand L 101–109 Jordan Hunter (21) Lewis, Sobey (6) Foxwell, Sobey (5) AIS Arena
n/a 		0–1
2 31 August @ Sydney W 81–102 Angus Glover (20) Nathan Sobey (9) Owen Foxwell (9) AIS Arena
n/a 		1–1

NBLxNBA games

Main article: NBLxNBA
2025 pre-season game log
Total: 0–1 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–1)
October: 0–1 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 5 October @ New Orleans L 92–127 Jordan Hunter (17) John Brown (7) Nathan Sobey (5) Rod Laver Arena
15,164 		0–1

Regular season

Main article: 2025–26 NBL regular season

The regular season will begin on 18 September 2025.[3] It will consist of 165 games (33 games each) spread across 22 rounds, with the final game being played on 20 February 2026.[4]

2025–26 game log
Total: 13–6 (Home: 7–3; Road: 6–3)
September: 1–1 (Home: 1–0; Road: 0–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
1 20 September Cairns W 114–77 Angus Glover (18) Hunter, Lewis (8) Nathan Sobey (8) John Cain Arena
5,371 		1–0
2 25 September @ Melbourne L 103–83 Nathan Sobey (26) Glover, Gak (6) Hunter Maldonado (7) John Cain Arena
10,035 		1–1
October: 4–1 (Home: 2–0; Road: 2–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
3 12 October @ New Zealand W 81–87 Owen Foxwell (19) Jordan Hunter (7) Foxwell, Sobey (7) Spark Arena
4,520 		2–1
4 16 October @ Adelaide L 88–71 Jordan Hunter (16) Hunter, Sobey (7) Hunter Maldonado (7) Adelaide Entertainment Centre
9,802 		2–2
5 18 October Illawarra W 116–76 Angus Glover (26) Jordan Hunter (9) Hunter Maldonado (9) John Cain Arena
5,615 		3–2
6 23 October Sydney W 112–95 Nathan Sobey (33) Owen Foxwell (6) Owen Foxwell (8) John Cain Arena
3,786 		4–2
7 25 October @ Brisbane W 86–109 Nathan Sobey (29) Malique Lewis (8) Hunter Maldonado (7) Brisbane Entertainment Centre
5,244 		5–2
November: 4–2 (Home: 1–2; Road: 3–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
8 2 November Perth W 94–89 Nathan Sobey (22) Malique Lewis (11) Malique Lewis (6) John Cain Arena
9,386 		6–2
9 6 November @ Tasmania W 102–103 Nathan Sobey (28) John Brown (14) three players (4) Silverdome
3,255 		7–2
10 8 November Melbourne L 81–92 Nathan Sobey (15) John Brown (8) Foster, Foxwell (7) John Cain Arena
8,806 		7–3
11 14 November @ Cairns W 90–101 Angus Glover (24) John Brown (6) Owen Foxwell (7) Cairns Convention Centre
3,567 		8–3
12 20 November @ Brisbane W 76–103 Jordan Hunter (24) Jordan Hunter (9) Nathan Sobey (6) Brisbane Entertainment Centre
3,429 		9–3
13 22 November Adelaide L 81–94 Nathan Sobey (26) Jordan Hunter (12) Wes Iwundu (6) John Cain Arena
5,906 		9–4
December: 4–2 (Home: 3–1; Road: 1–1)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
14 4 December @ Illawarra L 113–109 (OT) Wes Iwundu (22) John Brown (10) Hunter Maldonado (7) Wollongong Entertainment Centre
3,432 		9–5
15 7 December Melbourne W 111–86 Nathan Sobey (25) Akech Aliir (8) John Brown (5) John Cain Arena
10,175 		10–5
16 10 December Tasmania L 81–89 Wes Iwundu (17) Hunter, Iwundu (8) Wes Iwundu (4) Gippsland Indoor Stadium
1,953 		10–6
17 13 December New Zealand W 92–80 Nathan Sobey (36) Jordan Hunter (9) Brown, Sobey (5) Gippsland Indoor Stadium
2,581 		11–6
18 18 December @ Perth W 76–77 Jordan Hunter (18) Jordan Hunter (8) Nathan Sobey (5) Perth Arena
10,802 		12–6
19 20 December Brisbane W 107–78 Nathan Sobey (20) Hunter Maldonado (5) Nathan Sobey (8) John Cain Arena
10,175 		13–6
20 29 December @ Tasmania Derwent Entertainment Centre
 –
21 31 December @ Cairns Cairns Convention Centre
 –
January: 0–0 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
22 5 January @ Sydney Sydney SuperDome
 –
23 8 January Illawarra State Basketball Centre
 –
24 10 January Perth State Basketball Centre
 –
25 18 January @ Adelaide Perth Arena
 –
26 21 January New Zealand State Basketball Centre
 –
27 24 January Cairns State Basketball Centre
 –
28 28 January @ Perth Perth Arena
 –
29 31 January @ Adelaide Adelaide Entertainment Centre
 –
February: 0–0 (Home: 0–0; Road: 0–0)
Game Date Team Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance		 Record
30 5 February @ New Zealand Eventfinda Stadium
 –
31 8 February Sydney John Cain Arena
 –
32 14 February Tasmania John Cain Arena
 –
33 19 February @ Melbourne John Cain Arena
 –
2025–26 season schedule

NBL Ignite Cup

Main article: 2025–26 NBL Ignite Cup

The NBL introduced the new NBL Ignite Cup tournament for the 2025–26 season, with all games except the championship final counting towards the regular-season standings.[5][6]

Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD BP Pts Qualification
1 New Zealand Breakers 3 3 0 325 262 +63 9 18 Ignite Cup final
2 Perth Wildcats 3 2 1 298 272 +26 7 13
3 Tasmania JackJumpers 3 2 1 259 246 +13 6.5 12.5
4 Adelaide 36ers 2 1 1 190 182 +8 5 8
5 Brisbane Bullets 2 1 1 194 206 −12 5 8
6 Illawarra Hawks 3 1 2 280 307 −27 5 8
7 Sydney Kings 4 1 3 350 381 −31 5 8
8 Melbourne United 2 1 1 200 200 0 4 7
9 S.E. Melbourne Phoenix 1 0 1 81 89 −8 1.5 1.5
10 Cairns Taipans 1 0 1 78 110 −32 0 0
Updated to match(es) played on 17 December 2025. Source: Ignitecup.com.au


Transactions

Free agency began on 4 April 2025.[7][8]

Re-signed

Player Date Signed Contract Ref.
Malique Lewis 11 June 2025 1-year deal [9]

Additions

Player Date Signed Contract Former team Ref.
Akech Aliir 10 April 2025 1-year deal Melbourne United [10]
Daniel Foster 29 April 2025 1-year deal Nevada Wolf Pack [11]
D. J. Mitchell 15 May 2025 2-year deal (mutual option) Manchester Basketball [12]
Gorjok Gak 17 May 2025 1-year deal Tasmania JackJumpers [13]
Wes Iwundu 10 October 2025 2-year deal Promitheas Patras [14]

Subtractions

Player Reason left Date Left New team Ref.
Matt Kenyon Free agent 15 May 2025 Adelaide 36ers [15]
Vrenz Bleijenbergh Released 16 September 2025 TBC [16]

Awards

Club awards

  • Club MVP:
  • Clubman Award:

See also

References

  1. ^ "Blitz heads to Canberra". NBL.com.au. 27 June 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  2. ^ "Canberra back on NBL agenda with hosting of Blitz". CanberraTimes.com.au. 27 June 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  3. ^ Uluc, Olgun (20 June 2025). "Storylines everywhere as NBL releases schedule for 2025-26 season". ESPN Australia. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  4. ^ Jackson, Andrew (20 June 2025). "'Personal' rivalries as 'hurt' US star, five-time MVP face former teams: NBL and WNBL Schedule". Fox Sports. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  5. ^ Uluc, Olgun (7 October 2025). "NBL Ignite Cup: Everything you need to know". ESPN Australia. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
  6. ^ Shadlow, Jai (7 October 2025). "'All roads lead to Gold Coast': In-season tournament reveal adds to NBL expansion rumblings". Fox Sports. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
  7. ^ "Free agency begins April 4". NBL.com.au. 19 March 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  8. ^ "NBL26 Roster Tracker: Every signing, extension and departure". NBL.com.au. 22 June 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  9. ^ "Next stop, NBL26: Lewis runs it back with Phoenix". NBL.com.au. 11 June 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  10. ^ "Rival swap: Aliir signs with Phoenix". NBL.com.au. 10 April 2025. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  11. ^ "Phoenix to Foster new DP". NBL.com.au. 29 April 2025. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  12. ^ "Phoenix sign DJ Mitchell for two years". South East Melbourne Phoenix | Official NBL Website. 15 May 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  13. ^ "Return to the Heartland: Gak runs it back at Phoenix". NBL.com.au. 17 May 2025. Retrieved 23 August 2025.
  14. ^ "Phoenix unveil new import". NBL.com.au. 10 October 2025. Retrieved 10 October 2025.
  15. ^ "36ers add versatile Kenyon for NBL26". Adelaide 36ers Official Website. 15 May 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
  16. ^ "Phoenix axe import days out from season | Basketball.com.au". www.basketball.com.au. 16 September 2025. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
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