A son of a retired AFL star is heading into the NBA draft while the son of a past NBL player is heading home to Melbourne.
Rising Australian point guard William McDowell-White, son of Brisbane Lions premiership player Darryl White, will throw his name in the NBA draft on June 21 [AEST] while Dane Pineau, son of former Melbourne Tigers player Brad Pineau, has signed with expansion side South East Melbourne Phoenix.
McDowell-White, 21, has played in Germany for the past two seasons after deciding to become a professional player instead of playing US college basketball. He also spent time with the Sydney Kings as a teenager.
McDowell-White announced his decision to ESPN and it comes despite him missing a large chunk of the current season with a foot injury.
He is expected to head to the US in May for workouts with NBA sides and he hopes to do well enough to be selected in the draft.
Fellow Queenslander Harry Froling, 20, has already stated his intention to test his chances in the draft after impressing in his first full NBL season with the Adelaide 36ers, where he won rookie of the year.
It's hard to gauge where the two players sit at present but they could end up being drafted, as teams can keep them overseas for another year or two to let them develop further.
Pineau's move home to Melbourne was a predictable one as he looks for more opportunities following two seasons with the Sydney Kings and the Phoenix need a reliable back-up big man.
He has signed for one season with a club option for a further two seasons.
The 24-year old is already back home playing with his junior club Melbourne Tigers in the NBL1 competition.
Phoenix coach Simon Mitchell said he was happy to "bring home" another Victorian for his inaugural roster.
"Dane is a blue chip defender in the pick and roll," Mitchell said.
"I love his defensive technique and I think he ranks among the very best in the NBL for bigs.
"I also appreciate his ability to crash the boards, whilst his opportunities may have been limited in Sydney, both seasons he ranked amongst the best in the league in offensive and defensive rebounding percentages."
The Phoenix have signed Mitch Creek (with an NBA out), Tai Wesley, Adam Gibson, Ben Madgen, Daniel Trist, Chima Moneke and Pineau, with more signings to be announced.
Leave a Reply