NICKNAME/S: The Ace

BIO: Emery Atkinson was born in Miami, Florida (USA).

NBL EXPERIENCE

Emery Atkinson made his NBL debut with the Brisbane Bullets at 25 years of age. He scored 15 points in his first game.

With Brisbane looking to go ‘younger, bigger and faster’ with their roster to compete with the likes of Adelaide’s Mark Davis and Perth’s James Crawford, the decision was made to release US born players Cal Bruton and Dave Nelson in favour of incoming import Emery Atkinson and giving more playing time to young local talent.

Atkinson (15.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.3 steals), quickly became a fan favourite in Brisbane, whose athletic dunks had Bullets fans on their feet throughout the season. Despite standing at only 196cm (6ft 5′) he played at centre for the Bullets and was one of the best rebounders ever at his size.

The Bullets were led offensively by star Leroy Loggins (28.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.9 steals), who became the first player to win back-to-back NBL Most Valuable Player awards, sharing the award with Mark Davis of the Adelaide 36ers. Behind Loggins’s brilliance, Brisbane finished with 20 wins and 6 losses and finished in second place (behind Adelaide) during the regular season.

Beyond Loggins, the Bullets had built a roster so full of talent that the team’s second-leading scorer, Atkinson, became one of the first import players ever to come off the bench. Veterans Ron Radliff (15.4 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 1.9 steals) and team captain Larry Sengstock (12.3 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 2.1 assists) supported the two imports offensively, while 25-year-old John Dorge (11.1 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks), 21-year-old Robert Sibley (11.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.1 assists), and 19-year-old Darren Perry (6.8 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.2 steals) all made huge contributions despite their inexperience.

Ending the season with a 20-6 record, the Bullets finished in second place (Adelaide claimed the top spot) and, as a result, received a first-round bye. There, they would face the Illawarra Hawks after they defeated the North Melbourne Giants in the elimination finals. With Illawarra advancing, the Bullets easily won game one of the semi finals (109-87) before losing game two in a nail-biter (77-78). Brisbane rebounded in game three (100-82), earning a spot in the 1987 NBL Grand Final after winning game three 100-82.

Brisbane made it to the NBL grand final for a league-record fourth consecutive season and would face off against the Perth Wildcats, who had just upset the defending champions Adelaide on the other side of the semi final bracket.

Perth was led by player/coach and former Bullets’ favourite Cal Bruton. Bruton’s exit had also come on the back of a very public falling out with coach Brian Kerle. In a surprise move, Brisbane elevated teenage point guard Darren Perry (10 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals) into the starting lineup for the playoffs and alongside Atkinson, who came up big in the opening game. In 28 minutes of court time, he scored 22 points (on 10/16 shooting) and hauled in 9 rebounds as the Bullets took game one in Perth by a single point alongside Loggins (17 points and 5 rebounds) as the Bullets were able to defeat Perth in a low scoring, ‘grind-it-out’, 80-79 victory. Kendall Pinder (27 points and 15 rebounds) and James Crawford (23 points, 14 rebounds and 2 blocks) led the way for the visitors.

In game two, although Pinder (25 points, 15 rebounds) and Crawford (22 points, 11 rebounds) still proved hard to stop, Brisbane’s frontcourt of Sengstock (8 points and 6 rebounds), John Dorge (7 points and 10 rebounds) and Emery Atkinson (12 points and 4 rebounds), made it almost impossible for the Wildcats’ guards to score inside. The Wildcats guard rotation of Bruton (9), Mike Ellis (6) and Alan Black (2) combined for just 17 points and after the Bullets won a tightly fought first half (47-44), they owned the Wildcat’s in the second.

Brisbane outscored Perth by 16 points, with Loggins (36 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists) doing most of the damage on the scoreboard.

With the final score reading 106-87 and Brisbane winning their second championship, Loggins, who averaged 26.5 points over the two games, was named Grand Final MVP.

1988
The Bullets finished third during the regular season with a 18–6 record, but they couldn’t manage to reach their fifth grand final in a row after losing to Perth in the elimination finals. A highlight of the 1988 season for the Bullets was 17-year-old Shane Heal (15 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 27 minutes per game), backing up starting point guard Darren Perry and winning the league’s Rookie of the Year award.

Atkinson would average 16.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists as teammate Leroy Loggins (24.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 2.4 steals) was selected to his seventh straight All NBL First team.

The Bullets didn’t re-sign Atkinson after his second season, at the time coach Brian Kerle noted “it was one of the toughest decisions he had to make as a coach”.

CANBERRA CANNONS
1989
Atkinson led the Canberra Cannons in scoring and rebounding in 1989. He averaged 18.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 3.7 assists and play a key role in helping the Cannons to a second-place finish in the regular season with a 17-7 record.

1990
During the 1990 season Atkinson averaged 22.7 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists and helped the Cannons finish with a record of 16-10 and end the regular season in seventh place.

1991
During the 1991 season, Atkinson averaged 21.2 points, 9 rebounds, and 3.8 assists and was a part of the Cannons squad, which finished in ninth place with a record of 9-17.

Emery Atkinson played five seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Brisbane Bullets and the Canberra Cannons. He averaged 19 points, 8.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 128 NBL games.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dan Boyce (815 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.