BIO: Neil Turner was born in Newcastle (NSW) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Newcastle basketball program. Turner received a scholarship to attend the Australian Institute of Sport (Canberra) in 1987. He spent two years year there and played for the program’s state league team (1987, 1988).

NBL EXPERIENCE

Neil Turner made his NBL debut with the Newcastle Falcons at 18 years of age. He scored nine points in his first game.

1993
After a challenging season with Cal Bruton serving as both player and coach, the Hobart Devils shifted direction in 1993, opting not to renew Bruton’s contract. Alongside Bruton, the team parted ways with import standout Joe Hurst and veteran Shane Froling, while promising young big man David Stiff departed to play college basketball at Boston College.

Despite these notable changes, the Devils retained a familiar core featuring prolific scorer Wayne McDaniel, import guard Donald Whiteside, sharpshooter David Close, rising second-year guard Anthony Stewart, and versatile role player Neil Turner, who brought valuable depth to the roster. Turner (3.0 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.4 steals, 0.5 blocks across 19 games) was relied upon for defensive energy and hustle plays, stepping into larger minutes when injuries thinned the roster.

The season kicked off with promise as Hobart notched a 131–113 road win over Geelong, but the Devils soon encountered obstacles, including tough losses to Newcastle (89–103), Wollongong (83–102), and Brisbane (109–122). Injuries to key figures like McDaniel and Close forced the Devils to bring in Mike Kelly as an injury replacement, who delivered an impactful short stint with (19.5 points, 9 rebounds, 2.5 steals) over two games. Turner provided critical backup throughout these stretches, contributing strong defensive shifts and occasional offensive sparks.

Among Turner’s standout performances was a 10-point, 6-rebound, 2-assist effort on August 7 against Sydney, where he hit a perfect 4-of-4 from the field and nailed both his three-point attempts. Turner also impressed in the final round against the Gold Coast Rollers on September 25, scoring 10 points (3-of-8 FG, 4-of-4 FT) with 3 rebounds and an assist, and earlier in the season against Perth on September 17, where he logged a hard-fought 23 minutes, adding rebounds, a block, and strong defensive work despite limited scoring. His hustle was consistently felt in smaller moments, whether pulling down rebounds, blocking shots, or setting up teammates with unselfish passing.

The Devils’ roster saw solid contributions from across the lineup, with McDaniel leading the scoring load (20.2 points, 8.9 rebounds), Svaldenis delivering a career-best year (15.6 points, 9.2 rebounds), Whiteside orchestrating the offense (15.2 points, 5.6 assists), and Stewart (11 points, 3.7 assists) doubling his scoring from the previous year. Additional support came from Jim Havrilla (9.8 points, 5.4 rebounds) and Justin Cass (7.5 points, 3 rebounds, 2.3 assists). Yet, despite the individual efforts, Hobart’s lack of depth and the toll of injuries proved too much, culminating in a 6–20 record and a 13th-place finish.

Neil Turner played eight seasons across three NBL teams. This included the Newcastle Falcons, Hobart Devils and Sydney Kings. He averaged 3.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 145 NBL games.