NICKNAME/S: DSav

BIO: Originally from Western Australian, Okwera moved to Melbourne as a teenager. The 210cm forward is known for his length and athleticism, can protect the rim and defend at a highly competitive level. The big-man can also get it done on the offensive end of the floor, with his strengths residing in the paint and around the rim.

After receiving close to 20 NCAA D1 offers, Okwera made the decision to forgo the collegiate path and play in the NBL. Okwera received a scholarship to attend the Australian Institute of Sport (Canberra) in 2020. He spent two years year there and played for the program’s state league team (2020, 2021, 2022).

NBL EXPERIENCE

David Okwera made his NBL debut with the Melbourne United at 19 years of age. He scored 10 points in his first game.

After winning the 2021 championship, Melbourne lost its leading scorer Jock Landale to a NBA opportunity with San Antonio and starting point guard Mitch McCarron, who became the league’s highest paid local player as a result of signing a three-year deal with Adelaide. United then quickly turned their attention to rebuilding the roster for the NBL22 season, immediately re-signing Lual Acuil, David Barlow and Shea Ili, received a boost from the return of Jack White, who missed the second half of last season to a ACL injury, and added free agents Brad Newley (via Sydney) and Dion Prewster, who had just won the NZNBL MVP award. Next, United secured the biggest free agent of the year, inking NBA champion Matthew Dellavedova to a three-year deal. German talent Ariel Hukporti was also signed under the Next Stars program and import Caleb Agada, having just played for Nigeria at the Japan Olympics was signed to replace Scotty Hopson. 18-year old Okwera also signed on to play as a development player>.

“David’s size, length, and natural athletic abilities are very unique in a player with his versatility,” said Perth’s GM of Basketball Operations upon him joining the Wildcats.

“We truly believe that in the program we are building here in Perth, with player development and a competitive daily environment at the core of what we do, David has the opportunity to really accelerate his growth as a player on and off the court.”

Outside of a 0-2 start, United were dominant all season, winning their next three games to end December and then losing only one game (5-1) in January while playing all of their games on the road.

In January 2022, Goulding reached 5,000 NBL points, becoming just the second active player to reach the milestone behind Daniel Johnson (Adelaide).

In February, United would win four of their five games and with a record of 12-4 sit atop of the NBL ladder where they would stay for the remainder of the season. Jo Lual Acuil (16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks) would lead the team in scoring and earn selection to the All-NBL First team while Chris Goulding (15.1 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) was named to the All-NBL Second Team. The impact of Shea Ili (8.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists, and 1.4 steals) off the bench was also recognised around the league with him winning the Sixth Man of the Year award. Okwera would average 2.1 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.4 assists and helped United finish the regular season in first place (20-8).

Tasmania would lose game one to United 74-63 but bounce back in their home semi-final game to even the series 1-1. Heading into the deciding game three, captain Goulding was deemed unfit to play, which allowed Tasmania to take clamp down on the defensive end. Without Goulding, United couldn’t buy a basket from outside, with Dellavedova (1-7), Agada (0-7), White (0-5) and Baba (0-2) shot a combined 1-21 from beyond the arc. Overall, United went 6-29 (20 per cent) from three, compared to the JackJumpers 10-32 (31 per cent). Still, United were able to keep it close, and it was only in the final moments that Tasmania secured the victory (76-73), ending Melbourne’s playoff run and making history by reaching a Grand Final in their debut season..

2022/23
After Melbourne finished the previous season on top of the ladder but suffered a early playoff exit after losing star guard Chris Goulding to injury, many felt United would return as championship favourites. Unexpectedly, however, United lost almost half of their starting unit prior to their first game as a result of injuries and better opportunities overseas.

Leading scorer Jo Lual Acuil, was very keen to stay in Melbourne but exited the club after receiving a offer to play in China, which was far too good to refuse.

White and Dellavedova were both contracted for this season, but with only weeks before tip-off, both secured deals to play in the NBA from Denver and Sacramento respectively. The loss of both players couldn’t have come at a worse time, as most players around the globe had already signed deals with team’s, leaving very few options available to replace them. Isaac Humphries (via Adelaide), Xavier Rathan-Mayes (via Illawarra), Rayjon Tucker and Jordan Caroline were all signed, and David Barlow, who had announced his retirement, returned to help fill the gaps.

Things went from bad to worse when Next Star Ariel Hukporti went down clutching his lower leg during the NBL Blitz in Darwin. With starting centre Hukporti out for the season, Humphries, who was coming back from a serious bout of knee problems, was thrust into playing major minutes. The absence of a clear backup big man forced veteran forwards Barlow and Brad Newley, as well as import Jordan Caroline, to log considerable minutes at the centre position.

United were able to win their first game of the season, a overtime victory against New Zealand (101–97) off the back of a huge night from Rathan-Mayes (33 points, 5 rebounds and 9 assists).

Rathan-Mayes (14.2 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.4 assists), who had been recruited to lead the team’s second unit, was thrust into the starting lineup after Shea Ili (8.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.7 assists) became a late omission, a result of a concussion suffered during FIBA qualifying games while playing for New Zealand. Ili would drift in and out of the team’s roster for most of the season, appearing in only 13 games through three separate stints, forcing Tucker to spend time out of position and running the floor in his absence.

Melbourne (5-6) struggled through the first three months of the season, with numerous media outlets calling for a import change to try and improve their situation. While Tucker (17.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.4 assists), who, when first signed, proclaimed that he would be the ‘best first year import in the league’ was a long way away from that, it was Caroline (5.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists) who came into United’s program as a high-effort, bustling power forward but failed to establish himself as a undersized centre and was axed.

Marcus Lee (9.1 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks), a former teammate of Humphries, was signed in November, adding size and interior defence to the squad and sparking a major turnaround for Melbourne. During this time, United also got a boost from the return of Ili, and Tucker finally began to find his feet offensively.

The last straw seemed to be a loss to Illawarra (93–79), who at the time had only one to their credit for the entire season. This loss, combined with Melbourne finally being able to put their intended starting roster fit on the floor, resulted in a 16-point win over Brisbane (104-88) the following game. Goulding (20 points), Tucker (20 points), Lee (18 points), Ili (15 points) and Rathan-Mayes (8 points and 10 rebounds) off the bench, all producing good numbers and gelling together for the first time. Following their shock defeat to the Hawks, United ended their campaign on a 11-3 run.

Melbourne’s turnaround saw them enter the final day of the regular season with hopes of scraping into the Play-In Qualifier. It looked like United would make it after Tucker (31 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists) carried the team to a win over Adelaide (116–107) in their last game, a Perth victory over league leaders Sydney saw them claim the final playoff spot due to points percentage.

A telling sign of what hindered Melbourne this season was the fact this marked the first time a Dean Vickerman led United team had finished the season outside the top five in the competition in defensive rating. Despite their poor form, United were a part of multiple historic events during the season. United faced off against reigning and eventual champs Sydney on Christmas, which drew more than 300,000 people to their TV screens and sparked a new tradition across Australia. Tucker (31 points and 5 rebounds) would finish as the game’s highest scorer, but United would suffer a 21-point loss to the Kings (101-80). On the back of big man Isaac Humphries (9.6 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks) publicly announcing he was gay, the team also spearheaded a NBL pride round. As a part of the round that celebrated the LGBTQ+ community.

Okwera would appear in 27 games this season and averaged 4.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 0.9 assists. His biggest game came in United’s 25-point win over the South East Melbourne Phoenix (110-85) during their Multicultural Game. Okwera brought the sold-out crowd to their feet with a alley-oop dunk to ignite Melbourne’s scoring run and finished with 13 points (5-6 shooting) and 5 rebounds.

PERTH WILDCATS
2023/24
After missing the NBL playoffs in 2023, Perth decided to re-tool the roster after losing NBA talent Luke Travers (to Melbourne) aquiring highly coveted free agent Keanu Pinder (via Cairns) and promising rookie Ben Henshall.

Henshall’s signing would culminate with the Wildcats decision to buy out Todd Blanchfield (to Illawarra) and Mitchell Norton (to Brisbane) from their contracts, allowing Perth to bring in some younger talent to boost the squad after two consecutive years of missing the playoffs. 18 year old French tyro Alexandre Sarr was acquired via the Next Star Program, import players Jordan Usher and Kristian Doolittle were added to the roster and Okwera, a Perth junior talent, signed to a multi-year deal.

Perth’s season began with a season-opening victory over Tasmania, where Usher (35 points) set RAC Arena alight in his Wildcats debut, scoring the most points ever in a Wildcat debut.

The new look roster struggled after that, however, losing five of their next six games, which culminated in a loss to Brisbane where fans and media began calling for a new head coach.

Perenial league MVP Cotton was also a key factor in the slow start, with a new offence run through guards Tai and Corey Webster, seeing him left routinely in the corners. Cotton’s lack of contact with the ball even resulted in his wife taking to social media and calling for change, something which made national headlines.

The Bullets loss prompted new addition Pinder (13.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.7 steals) to publicly promote that the team would win their next five games. His deep fortune-telling proceeded in the Wildcats, turning their season around.

After a poor showing across the team’s first seven games, Bryce Cotton (22.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 1.5 steals) broke out of his early-season offensive slump, scoring 29 points in a dominant win over Adelaide on November 4 and from this game onwards, he was the point guard of old.

In December, he dropped a season-high 41 points in a December 1 triumph over Sydney and across an eight-game span from December 15 to January 21, Cotton averaged 30.4 points, including four 30-point games and, in the process, sealed the MVP conversation.

The Wildcats’ success also came from a number of key moves from Rillie, moving Usher (12.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) into a sixth-man role and bringing Hyrum Harris (5.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) into the starting line-up. Harris instantly brought a level of competitiveness and defensive intensity to the squad, diving on the hardwood for a loose ball or flying in from the baseline to pluck an offensive rebound.

Despite being only 18, Alexandre Sarr (9.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks) showed great poise for his age, showcasing his potential to be an NBA star. In only his third NBL game, Sarr came through in the final two minutes, nailing two triples against the Adelaide 36ers after Keanu Pinder fouled out and by the end of the season, he had skyrocketed by pre-draft scouting reports and was tipped to be the number two pick in the NBA draft.

Perth’s hot form saw them finish in second place (17-11) and return to the postseason. Cotton claimed his fourth MVP award at the end of the season, surpassing Brisbane Bullets legend Leroy Loggins (three), moving into outright second only behind leader Andrew Gaze (seven).

Perth’s run during the second half of the season ended abruptly however, with a semifinal series loss to eventual champions Tasmania. Okwera finished the season averaging 1.6 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 0.4 assists, appearing in 17 games.

David Okwera currently plays for the Perth Wildcats and has played 58 games in his NBL career. He has averaged 2.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 0.5 assists since entering the league in 2021.

CURRENT CONTRACT:

Perth Wildcats – 3 Year Deal (2023-26)
3rd Year Mutual Option

Dan Boyce (811 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.