BIO: Ben Knight was born in Wollongong (NSW) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Penrith basketball program. He later joined the Sydney Sky where he played under 18’s basketball and his first season in the NSW state league competition.

As a player, he was one of the most underrated players in NBL history. He was tough, hard-nosed, intimidating and dependable. But he also had a wide-ranging skillset. He could hit the three, knock down the midrange jumper and play tough in the post. He was a strong rebounder, he could defend multiple positions, and was a better passer than given credit for. He was a outstanding teammate and a leader wherever he played.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Ben Knight made his NBL debut with the Sydney Kings at 21 years of age. He scored two points in his first game.

A year into the Kings rebuilding around Boomers guard Shane Heal, a incredible 1996 Olympic campaign saw him sign a contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves, leaving Sydney with a huge hole to fill. The decision was made to sign up-and-coming guard Aaron Trahair, who had shown a lot of promise playing in Perth despite being stuck behind legendary guard Ricky Grace. The Kings also added Cameron Dickinson (via Townsville) to help cover the perimeter shooting lost by Heal’s departure.

With Hobart, Geelong, and Gold Coast exiting the league after the 1996 season and the talent from those rosters distributed among the league’s remaining team’s, the 1997 season was one of the most competitive in NBL history. This, combined with the unexpected loss of Shane Heal, saw the Kings struggle, losing three of their first four games. Much of the responsibility would be thrown onto import Isaac Burton (20.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 3.0 steals), who led both the team in scoring and the league in steals for the second year in a row. His all-around brilliance was on full display when he recorded a near quadruple-double when Burton recorded 44 points, nine rebounds, eight assists & seven steals, hitting 15 of 22 from the field in a 123-107 win over the Illawarra Hawks.

Melvin Thomas (18.9 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 1.6 steals) led the team in rebounds in his second year in Sydney. 26-year-old Stephen Whitehead would blossom into the team’s third-leading scorer (12.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists), a young Matthew Nielsen (9.9 points and 4.9 rebounds in 27 minutes per game), who had been a training player with the Kings since 1995, claimed Rookie of the Year honours and fellow rookie Knight averaged 0.5 points, 0.8 rebounds, and 0.3 assists per game.

Sydney would lose their last three games (12-18) and finish second-last (tenth) on the ladder.

SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE MAGIC
1998
Knight then moved to Victoria to play with the South East Melbourne Magic where he felt playing under legendary coach Brian Goorjian would help him develop his game further and help him become one of the premier big men in the NBL.

After falling short in the grand final, South East Melbourne coach Brian Goorjian looked to rekindle some of the ‘Magic’and replace import guard Brian Tolbert with Billy McCaffrey, who led the Magic to the 1996 championship. Goorjian also blossoming big man Brett Wheeler (via Adelaide) to the squad as a replacement for the NBA departure of Chris Anstey.

The team would win their first six games in a row before a loss to Brisbane that also saw the team release McCaffrey (10.3 points and 2.9 assists) after realising he was not quite the same player as he was in 1996. Former NBA guard Clinton McDaniel (17.4 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.7 steals) would replace him and go on to lead the league in steals.

Tony Ronaldson (18.1 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists) who had led the team in scoring since 1994 did so yet again, while 20-year-old Frank Drmic (14.4 points and 6.6 rebounds) had a breakout season, gaining interest from multiple NBA teams. Alongside Ronaldson, McDaniel and Drmic, Knight would average 2.6 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 0 assists and the Magic would finished on top of the ladder, recording the third best regular season record of all-time (26-4). Only Adelaide in 1986 (24-2) and Geelong in 1984 (21-2) being able to top it. As a result, Brian Goorjian took home his third Coach of the Year award and Mike Kelly was named the defensive player of the year for the second straight season.

The Magic received a first-round bye thanks to finishing in first place, then faced off against Brisbane in the semi-finals.

The Magic would swiftly eliminate the Steve Woodberry led Bullets in two straight games to reach the NBL Grand Final for the third season in a row, this time going head to head with the Adelaide 36ers.

In game one of the Grand Final series, second seed Adelaide (19-11) delivered the initial blow (100-93) on the back of first-year import Kevin Brooks (24 points and 8 rebounds). Amazingly, game one of the Grand Final was only the second time the 36ers had defeated the Magic since the Eastside Melbourne Spectres and Southern Melbourne Saints had merged to form the Magic in 1992.

The 36ers, who had started the season off slowly, had really found their form come the Grand Final and, in game two, obliterated the Magic, who at that point had lost only one home game for the season, at Melbourne Park 90-62. The 36ers held the Magic to less than 15 points in three of the game’s quarters. Brooks (21 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks) and Martin Cattalini (20 points and 6 rebounds) were brilliant for the 36ers in a game decided by turnovers and free throws, with South East Melbourne finishing with 26 turnovers and 6 of 8 from the free throw line to Adelaide’s 14 turnovers and 25 of 33 from the stripe.

The win saw Adelaide capture their first NBL championship since 1986 with Kevin Brooks being named Grand Final MVP in what was to be the last NBL season played during the winter months. This season also saw the end of the South East Melbourne Magic, who merged with the North Melbourne Giants the following year to become the Victoria Titans.

That season Knight averaged 2.6 points and 1.4 rebounds while the Magic cruised through the season, finishing with a record of 26-4 () to claim top spot on the NBL ladder.

The Magic would receive a first round bye in the play-offs, thanks to their first place finish and would later meet the Brisbane Bullets in the semifinals. The Magic defeated Brisbane 106-98 in game one and 90-84 in game two and returned to the NBL Grand Final for the third season in a row. The Magic would face a formidable Adelaide 36ers team led by Kevin Brooks and Darnell Mee who would prove too strong for the Magic, defeating South East Melbourne in a narrow game one 93-100 before the completely dominating them in game two 90-62 to win their first championship since 1986.

BRISBANE BULLETS
1998/99
In 1998/99 the Magic merged with crosstown rivals the North Melbourne Giants and with a plethora of talented big men to choose from, Knight saw himself squeezed out of the roster with the club retaining proven stars like Tony Ronaldson, Brett Wheeler and Paul Maley.

Knight signed with the Brisbane Bullets as a free agent and continued to improve, averaging 6.8 points and 3.3 rebounds. He played a key in helping the Bullets finish in fifth place with a 13-13 record which saw them face the Melbourne Tigers in the quarterfinals of the NBL playoffs. Brisbane would lose to Melbourne in two straight games in what would be the last time the Bullets reached the NBL playoffs until 2004.

What a warrior Ben Knight was 💯🇳🇿🏀💪

🏀 403 games across 16 seasons
🏀 Played with 9 different team’s
🏀 Made playoffs with 7 different team’s
🏀 2005 @NBL Champion 👑pic.twitter.com/eGHAQmjuO5

— John Casey (@JohnCasey2880) March 26, 2023

TOWNSVILLE CROCODILES
1999/00
In 1999/00 Knight again switched team’s, this time heading to Townsville where he put up 8.5 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. That season the Crocodiles finished the year in a second place finish with a record of 22-6 which earned them a first round bye in the playoffs before a semi-final matchup against the eventual champions the Perth Wildcats which they lost in three games.

CAIRNS TAIPANS
2000/01
Knight delivered a breakout season in 2000/01, more than doubling his numbers from the previous season to average 18.9 points and 10.1 rebounds, and helped guide the Taipans to a ninth-place finish during the regular season with a 6-22 record.

2001/02
Knight averaged 15.1 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists during the 2001/02 season, a season where the Taipans struggled to remain competitive as financial woes within the franchise grew stronger and the team finished dead last with a 9-21 record under first year head coach Guy Molloy.

2002/03
During the 2002/03 season, Knight averaged 17 points and 8.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists, and helped guide the Taipans to a eighth place finish in the regular season with a 13-17 record.

ILLAWARRA HAWKS
2003/04
In 2003/04 Knight averaged 14.3 points and 7.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists, and helped guide the Hawks to a second place finish in the regular season with a 25-8 record.

SYDNEY KINGS
2004/05
In 2004, Knight returned to his hometown Sydney to play for the Kings again, where he faced the arduous task of replacing departed star Matthew Nielsen who had just won two championships and established himself as one of the greatest Sydney Kings players ever. That challenge could have overwhelmed a lesser athlete, but not Ben Knight, who right from the start in the 2004/2005 season became a key member of the ballclub that would create history as the first team ever to win three straight NBL titles.

Knight averaged 13.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.1 assist and shot the ball at 52.2% from the field and 75.4% from the free throw line, but in the playoffs his efficiency went to another level as he compiled 12.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per game, while shooting eye-popping numbers of 55.1% from the field, 50% from three-point range and 85.7% from the charity stripe in 35 minutes per contest.

His best game in purple and gold came in a clutch situation in game two of the semi finals in Brisbane against the Bullets, when the home team looked to send the series back to a third game in Sydney only to be denied by a spectacular performance by Ben, who had 22 points on 9 of 12 from the field and added 14 rebounds, and four assists in 44 minutes.

2005/06
In 2005/06, Knight averaged 10.3 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.6 assists as the Kings again finished atop the NBL ladder. In a loaded squad where he maintained his outstanding play as part of a group that won a franchise-record 15 straight games in the regular season and went to their fourth consecutive grand final.

Import centre Rolan Roberts suffered a torn pectoral muscle imitating a Vince Carter dunk during the All Star dunk competition and was replaced by Sedric Webber. In the finals they were swept 3–0 by the Chris Anstey led Melbourne Tigers.

SINGAPORE SLINGERS
2006/07
For the 2006/07 season the Singapore Slingers entered the league and with former Sydney Kings legendary coach Bob Turner charged with setting up the team, he convinced Knight to leave the Kings for a opportunity to captain the NBL’s first Asian based team.

Knight (15 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists) played for the Singapore Slingers during their inaugural season where he recorded a career high 33 points in the Slingers road loss against Melbourne United, 125-114. He also added 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block in one of the best games of his NBL career.

2007/08
In 2007/08, Knight averaged 14.3 points, 9.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in his second season with the Slingers but with the team failing to invest the same amount of money during the team’s second year as they did in the first season, the roster struggled to be competitive and finished with a dismal record (6-24). Singapore withdrew the following season due to financial reasons.

PERTH WILDCATS
2008/09
In 2008/09, Knight averaged 8.8 points and 6.6 rebounds, and helped guide the Wildcat’s to a fourth place finish in the regular season with a 17-13 record.

MELBOURNE TIGERS
2009/10
Thanks to the demise of the South Dragons in 2009, Mark Worthington, who found himself without a team, joined Melbourne to pair with Boomers teammate Chris Anstey in the frontcourt. Anstey’s body would struggle through the 2009/10 season, however, missing a large amount of the team’s games due to a recurring back injury. Even when he was able to suit up, Anstey (9.8 points and 5.6 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game) was a shadow of himself on the court, putting up his worst numbers since his 1996 breakout season with the Magic. His absence would benefit rising star Daniel Johnson, who improved his numbers from 2.7 points and 1.9 rebounds to 10.6 points and 4.3 rebounds, including a career-high 17 points effort against Adelaide.

The Tigers’ injury woes didn’t finish with Anstey. New addition Ben Knight (4.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assists) managed only four games before suffering a season ending injury after he jumped to get a loose ball against Gold Coast Blaze big man Pero Cameron. This was later diagnosed as a ruptured quad tendon in his right knee. Co-captain Nathan Crosswell was sidelined with a fractured finger for three weeks, forcing versatile import Julius Hodge to switch from small forward to point guard. Prior to Crosswell’s injury, the Tigers had just won their first set of back-to-back games for the year and, despite being last on the ladder, hoped to win seven of the team’s last nine games. After winning their next three games in a row, the Tigers fell well short, however, losing four games in a row to end the season in sixth place (11-17).

After failing to make the playoffs, Long time teammates Anstey and MacKinnon announced their retirements together at the end of the season.

SYDNEY KINGS
2010/11
“After the Sydney Kings licence was revoked in 2008 after club sponsor Firepower collapsed and the Kings were unable to pay player salaries, new ownership relaunched the Sydney Kings for the 2010/11 NBL season, returning to the league after a two-year absence.

The ‘Resurrection Squad’, the name given to the Sydney Kings roster which had returned to the league for the first time in two years with the team’s first moves being the hiring former Kings player Ian Robilliard as head coach and convincing a number of European based aussies to return to play for the team’s latest reincarnation.

Julian Khazzouh (Israel), Luke Cooper (Latvia) and Damien Ryan (Italy) all signed deals for the 2010/11 season, as was college graduate Ben Madgen (Augusta State University). The Kings then filled the remaining roster with offcast NBL talent, Graeme Dann (via State League), Luke Martin (via Wollongong) and Ben Knight (via Melbourne), who had played for the previous iteration of the Kings, was added and named co-captain along with Khazzouh. Robilliard added imports Taj McCullough and Rod Grizzard for excitement and scoring punch to the roster and the team was ready to return to the NBL.

Grizzard, who had previously put up 19 points per game with Singapore and 13 points per game with Melbourne struggled to produce as a King. He produced a megre 8 points per game on a 36% field goal percentage, resulting in the import axe swinging quickly, as he was released five games into the season.

The axe then fell for fellow import McCullough who after being told his contract was on the line prior to a game against New Zealand he managed only ten points on a lowly 5 from 17 from the field in a 80-94 home loss. After eight games Taj McCullough (11.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game) would become the second import to be released by the Sydney Kings during the 2010/11 season.

Former NBA talent Trey Gilder (13.2 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.1 steals) replaced Taj McCullough then Patrick Sanders (13.3 points, 4 rebounds, and 1.7 assists) filled the shoes of Rod Grizzard as Robilliard looked to deliver a team capable of entertaining the valuable Sydney market while it was clear they would struggle to compete against other NBL team’s. The Kings limped home to a last place finish and a record of 8–20, the poor season likely costing Julian Khazzouh (17.4 points, 10 rebounds, and 1.7 assists, 1 steal, and 1.8 blocks per game) a MVP trophy as mid-season he was the hot favourite for the award but ended up finishing second in the voting behind Wollongong’s Gary Ervin.

During the season Knight (6.3 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.3 assists) would go on a incredible shooting tear, where he hit a amazing 17 consecutive shots over a two-game period against Melbourne and Townsville. The Kings comeback season ended with Sydney finishing in last place with a record of 8–20.

2015/16
Knight would retire in 2011, starting his career and ending it with the Sydney Kings. However when Julian Khazzouh ruptured his quadriceps tendon in 2016, Knight returned to active duty, playing a reserve role behind Tom Garlepp and Angus Brandt. Knight played out the final four games of the Kings season before hanging up the boots for good this time.

Before his return, Knight had played 399 games and so through his cameo he was also able to reach the 400 game milestone, something he regretted not being able to do at the time of his first retirement. Knight played 16 seasons in the NBL, which included playing for a record nine different NBL team.

Ben Knight played sixteen seasons in the NBL. He averaged 11.6 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.7 assists in 403 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:
– 30th in total rebounds

Dan Boyce (828 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.