NBL EXPERIENCE

Lual Diing made his NBL debut with the Brisbane Bullets on 18/9/2022. He scored two points in his first game.

Lual Diing signed with the Brisbane Bullets as a development player for the 2022/23 season. Brisbane, coming off a second-to-last finish the prior year, bolstered their roster with the additions of Boomers big man Aron Baynes and veteran guard Tyler Johnson, both former NBA teammates with Phoenix. The Bullets also brought in Devondrick Walker (via NBL1), Harry Froling (via Illawarra), Gorjok Gak (via Europe), and DJ Mitchell (via NBL1), alongside returning players Jason Cadee, Tyrell Harrison, Tanner Krebs, and captain Nathan Sobey.

Brisbane’s recruitment raised expectations, with many tipping them for a top-four finish. However, doubts surrounded the fitness of Sobey, recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for much of NBL22, and Baynes, returning from a near-paralyzing neck injury sustained at the Olympics. Six games into the season, Brisbane remained winless, with Baynes (11.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 1.0 assists) struggling to regain his NBA-level form and Sobey (15.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 4.6 assists) posting his lowest stats in five years.

The Bullets broke their losing streak with back-to-back victories over Illawarra. The first win (82-56) featured a dominant 17-point, 14-rebound performance from Baynes, while Sobey led the second (86-61) with a career-high 14 points in the first quarter and 22 in the first half. A hard-fought 74-72 victory over Tasmania extended their streak to three games. However, the momentum stalled with the release of underperforming import Walker (9.0 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) and the firing of head coach James Duncan.

General Manager Sam Mackinnon stepped in as interim coach but lasted only three games before assistant coach Greg Vanderjagt took over for the remainder of the season. Midway through the campaign, Andrew White (7.6 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 0.7 assists) was signed as a replacement for Walker, relegating Diing to a development player role.

The season unraveled further with reports of tensions between Bullets CEO Peter McLennan and Mackinnon. During this tumultuous period, Brisbane suffered two historic defeats—a 37-point loss to New Zealand and a record-breaking 49-point drubbing by Sydney. The Bullets finished second-last (8-20), with three of their eight wins coming against Illawarra, who endured their worst season ever.

Diing appeared in six games, scoring a total of two points, as the Bullets endured another disappointing campaign marked by inconsistency and off-court challenges.

Lual Diing played one season in the NBL. He averaged 0.5 points, 0.5 rebounds, and 0 assists in 6 NBL games.

Dan Boyce (832 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.