NBL EXPERIENCE

Tom Koppens made his NBL debut with the Melbourne United at 20 years of age. He scored three points in his first game.

After a forgettable season where United attempted to regroup after losing starters Jo Lual-Acuil to China and Jack White and Matthew Dellavedova to the NBA, United welcomed back Lual-Acuil and Dellavedova for NBL24 and added NBA prospect Luke Travers to build out a roster very similar to the team which narrowly missed out on a grand final berth in 2022.

Looking to run things back, import Ian Clark (via Adelaide) was signed as the team’s only import, filling the team’s bench scoring role that Scotty Hopson had previously occupied while young, up and coming talent Tanner Krebs (via Brisbane), Kyle Bowen and Flynn Cameron were also added to the roster. Following Zac Triplett’s elevation to the full roster, Tom Koppens was signed as a Development Player for the NBL24 campaign.

Koppens, who had been playing with United as a training player across the offseason, joined the club after a number of impressive showings with United across the NBL preseason.

“TK is the type of player you always look out for: a versatile defender who plays a high-IQ brand of basketball,” coach Dean Vickerman said upon signing him to the roster.

“He’s been with us across the preseason and has shown that he can contribute when called upon.”

Koppens, 21, appeared sparingly for United, but showcased continual growth across the season. He appeared in nine games across the season, scoring a total of two points.

In his sixteenth NBL season, Chris Goulding (16.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.5 assists) delivered one of the best seasons of his career on the back of playing with the Boomers at the FIBA World Cup in 2023 and fighting for a spot on the 2024 Olympic team.

In addition to Goulding leading the way in scoring, United were unguardable for most of the season with any of the team’s starters able to take over games. Lual Acuil (14.5 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks), Dellavedova (12.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists) and Clark (13.6 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) kept the scoreboard ticking over while swiss army knife Travers (11.6 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists 1.1 steals and 1.3 blocks) filled the stat sheet in almost every other category.

Koppens saw minutes in only four games for the season, scoring a total of two points.

Melbourne’s success saw the team playing in front of sell-out crowds almost every week with their biggest win at home came against Brisbane in December where they won by 35 points and thanks to some lights out shooting from Goulding (7/9 from beyond the arc) and forcing the Bullets to shot a woeful percentage at the other end (3/26 from the perimeter).

Melbourne faced Illawarra in the semifinals, where both teams lit it up, the scoreboard displaying 100 points in consecutive playoff matches. Tied at a game apiece, United survived a huge scare in Game 3 to advance to the Grand Final series.

United delivered a blowout win in game one (104–81) behind Goulding (22 points on 7-12 shooting) and Lual-Acuil (20 points, 11 rebounds and 2 blocks). The JackJumpers evened the series at home (77-82) thanks to big games from Jack McVeigh (16 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists) and Milton Doyle (13 points, 10 rebounds, and 3 assists). Shea Ili (20 points on 8-12 shooting) led United in the loss.

Dellavedova (21 points and 8 assists) delivered one of his best games of the season in a game looked like easy victors until a miracle shot from McVeigh (18 points and 12 rebounds) resulted in Melbourne losing back-to-back games for the first time this season.

In game four, United rode the hot hand of Ian Clark (18 points and 4 rebounds) to even the series at two wins a piece (88-86).

Tasmania’s Jordon Crawford had struggled through the majority of the playoffs, but was the epitome of the JackJumpers never-say-die attitude, scoring 19 points in the first quarter and finishing the game with 32 points as the JackJumpers came from behind to win at John Cain Arena (83-81). It was the equal-third highest tally by any player in a title-series game during the 40-minute game era, and ended Melborne’s championship hopes.

2024/25
Melbourne re-signed Tom Koppens in 2024, joining the team as a Development Player for a second straight season.

“As someone who started as a training player and got upgraded to a DP when we saw his commitment to the program and his development, TK is someone we wanted to keep at United,” Coach Dean Vickerman explained after re-signing the talented forward.

“The progress we saw from him as a member of our scout team, he was able to be multi-positional, guard everyone on the court, and even play as a five at times.”

Tom Koppens currently plays for the Melbourne United and has played 5 games in his NBL career. He has averaged 0.4 points, 0.2 rebounds, and 0 assists since entering the league in 2023.

CURRENT CONTRACT:

Melbourne United – 1 Year Deal (2024-25)

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.