Dan Hickert made his NBL debut with the Brisbane Bullets at 22 years of age. He scored 19 points in his first game.
The Bullets were established in 1979 by Brisbane Amateur Basketball Association for the foundation season of the National Basketball League under the captaincy of Bruce Fitzgerald (13.3 ppg) and head coach Bob Young. Hickert (13.9 ppg) played in all 18 games for the Bullets, who won 10 games and lost 8, finishing in fifth place. US star Cal Bruton (33.2 points per game) led both the Bullets and the league in scoring at a time when there was no 3-point line and games were played in 40 minutes.
To crown the first champions of the national league, only the first and second team’s progressed into the postseason, St Kilda (1st) defeating Canberra (2nd), 94–93, in the Grand Final match.
Dan Hickert played six seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Brisbane Bullets and the Perth Wildcats. He averaged 9.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 0.4 assists in 114 NBL games.
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 32 | Perth | 13-11 (6) | 9 | 94 | 26 | 17 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 7 | 17 | 11 | 18 | 61% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 4 | 4 | 100% | 66% | 61% | 4 |
| 1987 | 31 | Perth | 19-7 (4) | 19 | 285 | 60 | 57 | 10 | 16 | 41 | 5 | 5 | 19 | 52 | 28 | 66 | 42% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 4 | 4 | 100% | 44% | 42% | 10 |
| 1983 | 27 | Perth | 6-16 (13) | 22 | 0 | 207 | 120 | 18 | 46 | 74 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 68 | 78 | 161 | 48% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 51 | 70 | 73% | 54% | 48% | 18 |
| 1982 | 26 | Perth | 10-16 (10) | 23 | 0 | 258 | 206 | 26 | 76 | 130 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 84 | 111 | 224 | 50% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 36 | 48 | 75% | 53% | 50% | 19 |
| 1980 | 24 | Brisbane | 15-7 (3) | 23 | 0 | 289 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 88 | 122 | 244 | 50% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 45 | 61 | 74% | 53% | 50% | 26 |
| 1979 | 23 | Brisbane | 10-8 (5) | 18 | 0 | 250 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64 | 108 | 216 | 50% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 34 | 46 | 74% | 53% | 50% | 31 | Totals | 114 | 379 | 1090 | 400 | 55 | 146 | 254 | 18 | 29 | 101 | 373 | 458 | 929 | 49.3% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 174 | 233 | 74.7% | 53% | 49% | 31 |
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 32 | Perth | 13-11 (6) | 9 | 10.4 | 2.9 | 1.9 | 0.1 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 61% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0.4 | 0.4 | 100% | 66% | 61% | 4 |
| 1987 | 31 | Perth | 19-7 (4) | 19 | 15.0 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 1.0 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 3.5 | 42% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0.2 | 0.2 | 100% | 44% | 42% | 10 |
| 1983 | 27 | Perth | 6-16 (13) | 22 | 0.0 | 9.4 | 5.5 | 0.8 | 2.1 | 3.4 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 7.3 | 48% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 2.3 | 3.2 | 73% | 54.0% | 48% | 18 |
| 1982 | 26 | Perth | 10-16 (10) | 23 | 0.0 | 11.2 | 9.0 | 1.1 | 3.3 | 5.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.9 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 9.7 | 50% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 1.6 | 2.1 | 75% | 52.6% | 50% | 19 |
| 1980 | 24 | Brisbane | 15-7 (3) | 23 | 0.0 | 12.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.8 | 5.3 | 10.6 | 50% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 2.0 | 2.7 | 74% | 53.4% | 50% | 26 |
| 1979 | 23 | Brisbane | 10-8 (5) | 18 | 0.0 | 13.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3.6 | 6.0 | 12.0 | 50% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 1.9 | 2.6 | 74% | 52.9% | 50% | 31 | Total | 114 | 3.3 | 9.6 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 1.3 | 2.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.9 | 3.3 | 4.0 | 8.1 | 49.3% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0% | 74.7% | 53% | 49% | 31 |
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 31 | 16 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
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After his NBL career had ended, Hickert played a number of seasons in the WA state league for Perry Lakes. There he appeared in 60 games and scored 509 points (8.5 ppg)
Hickert played college basketball at Kansas State, As a freshman he was in the Wildcats program before his first varsity statistics were recorded as a sophomore in 1975-76 under head coach Jack Hartman in the Big Eight Conference.
In 1975-76, Hickert was listed on the official Kansas State roster as a sophomore center from Bird City, Kansas, wearing No. 52, and he appeared in 8 games with 0 starts, scoring 12 total points for 1.5 points per game while adding 11 rebounds for 1.4 per game and shooting 5-of-15 from the field for 33.3 percent and 2-of-4 from the foul line for 50.0 percent.
That 1975-76 Kansas State team finished 20-8 overall and 11-3 in Big Eight play to place second in the conference, with Mike Evans, Chuckie Williams, Darryl Winston and Larry Dassie among the key contributors on a Jack Hartman team that reached postseason play and closed its season with a 81-78 loss to Kentucky in the NIT in New York.
For 1976-77, Hickert was again on the official Kansas State roster as a junior center from Bird City and remained in Jack Hartman’s program on a Wildcats team that went 23-8 overall and 11-3 in the Big Eight, won the regular-season conference title, won the Big Eight tournament, beat Providence 87-80 in the NCAA Tournament, and then lost 67-66 to eventual national champion Marquette in the Midwest Regional Semifinal.
No varsity playing statistics are listed for Hickert in either Sports Reference season data or Kansas State’s all-time player statistics for 1976-77, which indicates he did not record an official varsity appearance that season despite being on the roster during one of the strongest Kansas State campaigns of the period.
Hickert returned in 1977-78 as a senior and was listed on the official roster as a center from Bird City, Kansas, now at 230 pounds and still wearing No. 52, while Kansas State again played under Hartman in the Big Eight alongside teammates such as Mike Evans, Curtis Redding, Rolando Blackman, Steve Soldner, Scott Langton and Jerry Black.
In that senior season, Hickert appeared in 9 games and made 5 starts, finishing with 18 points, 24 rebounds, 1 assist and 14 personal fouls, while averaging 2.0 points and 2.7 rebounds per game and shooting 6-of-14 from the field for 42.9 percent and 6-of-10 at the free-throw line for 60.0 percent.
Kansas State finished 18-11 overall and 7-7 in Big Eight play in 1977-78, tying for fourth in the conference, and Hickert opened the year with a real chance to hold down the center spot before injuries limited both him and Jerry Black during the season.
Across his recorded Kansas State varsity career, Hickert played 17 games with 5 starts and totaled 30 points, 35 rebounds and 1 assist, averaging 1.8 points and 2.1 rebounds per game while shooting 11-of-29 from the field for 37.9 percent and 8-of-14 from the free-throw line for 57.1 percent.
His college timeline at Kansas State covered three rostered seasons from 1975-76 through 1977-78, with his documented varsity production coming in his sophomore and senior years and his most complete season role arriving as a senior when he moved into the starting lineup for five games on an 18-win Wildcats team.
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