BIO: Samuel Short was born in Ballarat (VIC) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Ballarat basketball program.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Samuel Short made his NBL debut with the Melbourne United at 19 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.

After finishing sixth with a 13–15 record and missing the playoffs, Melbourne replaced Dean Demopoulos with former Sydney assistant Dean Vickerman on a two-year deal. Todd Blanchfield (to Sydney), Ramone Moore (to Adelaide) and Nate Tomlinson (retired) departed, while David Barlow, Josh Boone and Casper Ware re-signed. Craig Moller (via Sydney), Casey Prather (via Perth) and Daniel Dillon (via Hiroshima) were added, although Dillon ruptured his Achilles while playing for Kilsyth before the season and was ruled out for six-to-eight months, leading Melbourne to add Peter Hooley (via Ballarat) as his injury replacement. Samuel Short joined Melbourne as a development player.

Short (0 points across 5 games) remained outside Melbourne’s regular rotation throughout his first NBL season, with no injury reported during the year and his limited appearances coming because of his development-player role and selection.

Short’s best game for the season came in his NBL debut against Adelaide on October 14, where Short (0 points and 1 rebound) played 2:16 as Melbourne defeated the 36ers 99–79. Adnam (23 points) led United, with Ware (18 points, 6 assists, 4 steals, and 1 block) and Boone (18 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks) also contributing, while Creek (20 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks) led Adelaide.

Short made three appearances during Melbourne’s opening six games before spending most of the middle of the season outside the playing group. Prather dislocated his left elbow against Illawarra on December 16 and was ruled out for at least eight weeks, with development player Von Hofe elevated before Carrick Felix (via Long Island Nets) was signed as his injury replacement. Chris Patton (via Cairns) was later added as an injury replacement on January 24.

Short made his final appearance against Perth on February 16, where Short (0 points) played the final 43 seconds as Melbourne defeated the Wildcats 97–85. Ware (19 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists) and Goulding (19 points) led United, while Angus Brandt (24 points and 6 rebounds) and Bryce Cotton (19 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists) led Perth. The game also marked the returns of Prather and David Andersen from injury, with Prather’s medical clearance forcing Carrick Felix from Melbourne’s active roster under NBL rules.

Ware (16.6 points and 4.3 assists across 35 games), Prather (15.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.3 steals across 23 games), Goulding (14.7 points across 33 games), Boone (12.9 points and 8.9 rebounds across 35 games) and Wesley (11.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks across 35 games) were Melbourne’s major contributors as United finished first with a 20–8 record. Ware and Boone were named to the All-NBL First Team, Wesley earned All-NBL Second Team honours and Vickerman was named Coach of the Year.

Short did not play when Melbourne opened the semifinals with an 88–77 win over New Zealand behind Ware (33 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal) and Prather (15 points and 5 rebounds), while Newbill (19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals) and Ili (16 points and 5 assists) led the Breakers.

Melbourne completed the sweep with an 88–86 overtime win in game two behind Boone (33 points, 15 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks), who scored the winning putback at the buzzer, and Ware (15 points and 6 assists), while Newbill (21 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Penney (17 points) led New Zealand.

Melbourne opened the Grand Final with a 107–96 win over Adelaide behind Goulding (26 points and 4 rebounds) and Ware (20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists), while Johnson (18 points and 5 rebounds) and Shorter (16 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals) led Adelaide.

Adelaide levelled the series with a 110–95 win in game two, where Prather (20 points and 7 rebounds) and Goulding (19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals) led Melbourne, while Deng (18 points and 6 rebounds) and Creek (17 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists) led the 36ers.

Melbourne regained the series lead with a 101–98 win in game three behind Ware (25 points and 3 assists) and Prather (23 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals), while Johnson (20 points and 3 assists) and Moore (18 points and 2 steals) led Adelaide. Sobey was ejected following a halftime clash with Prather before Deng missed a potential game-tying three-pointer in the final seconds.

Adelaide responded with a 90–81 win in game four behind Johnson (21 points and 9 rebounds) and Sobey (16 points and 4 rebounds), while Prather (23 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals) and Goulding (15 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists) led Melbourne.

Short did not appear during the postseason as Goulding (23 points and 4 rebounds), Ware (23 points) and Prather (19 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, and 1 block) led Melbourne to a 100–82 win over Adelaide in game five, while Shorter (20 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block) and Johnson (17 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 block) led the 36ers. Goulding was named Grand Final MVP after averaging 19.6 points and 3.6 rebounds as Melbourne won the series 3–2.

2019/20
After not being re-signed by Melbourne after the team’s championship run in 2018, Short gained a second chance when he signed a second development player deal prior to the 2019/20 season.

In his year away from the club, United had fallen to Perth in the 2019 Grand Final series, Melbourne reshaped its roster, with Casper Ware (to Sydney), Josh Boone (to Illawarra), Daniel Trist (to South East Melbourne) and Craig Moller (to Sydney) departing. United added Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, Shea Ili (via New Zealand), Jack Purchase, Melo Trimble (via Cairns) and Shawn Long (via New Zealand), while David Barlow, Alex Pledger, Tohi Smith-Milner and Casey Prather returned. Samuel Short returned to United as a development player for the 2019/20 season.

Melbourne lost the inaugural Throwdown against South East Melbourne 91-88 to open the season and dropped four of its first five games before recovering with six consecutive wins. Short (0.8 points across 8 games) remained a development player and was used sparingly off the bench, with no reported injury responsible for his limited appearances.

Short’s best game came against Sydney on December 1, where he finished with 5 points, 1 rebound, 1 assist, and 2 steals in six minutes as Melbourne fell 111-101. Trimble (32 points, 5 assists, and 2 steals) and Goulding (18 points) led United, while Casper Ware (27 points and 5 assists) and Jae’Sean Tate (25 points and 6 rebounds) led Sydney.

Trimble (19.9 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 1.3 steals) led Melbourne in scoring, alongside Long (18.5 points and 9.5 rebounds), Goulding (17 points) and McCarron (8.7 points, 6 rebounds, and 3.3 assists). Melbourne won its final three games to finish fourth with a 15-13 record, with Short’s final appearance coming against Illawarra on February 8.

Short did not play during Melbourne’s semifinal series against Sydney. United lost game one 86-80 behind Trimble (34 points, 5 assists, and 3 steals) and Long (23 points and 10 rebounds), while Tate (23 points and 5 rebounds), Brad Newley (17 points and 5 rebounds) and Xavier Cooks (13 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists) led Sydney. Melbourne responded with a 125-80 win in game two behind Long (26 points and 11 rebounds), Trimble (21 points and 2 steals) and Stanton Kidd (18 points and 4 rebounds), before Sydney won game three 89-87 behind Tate (20 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists) and Cooks (14 points and 9 rebounds).

2020/21
After multiple seasons trying to get import Casey Prather healthy, Melbourne and Prather mutually agreed to terminate the second year of his contract ahead of the 2020/21 season. United reshaped its roster by adding Duke University product Jack White and Japanese guard Yudai Baba, while captain Chris Goulding signed a new three-year deal and David Barlow, Mason Peatling and Sam McDaniel were also retained. Scotty Hopson arrived from Europe as Melbourne’s only import, before Australian Boomers big man Jock Landale became the final major addition on a one-year deal after his planned move to Lithuania fell through because of COVID-related travel restrictions.

Samuel Short returned to Melbourne as a development player after appearing eight times the previous season. The 22-year-old guard entered the year looking to develop into a backup point guard capable of defending multiple positions, while continuing to improve his shooting and physical strength. He saw court time immediately in United’s season opener against Adelaide, scoring three points and grabbing a rebound in five minutes as Melbourne began the season with a convincing 89-65 victory.

Short would receive considerably more opportunities than in his previous seasons, appearing in 18 games and averaging 1.1 points per game. His availability was also valuable during a stretch in which Melbourne’s backcourt and wing depth was tested by injuries. Shea Ili missed time with an ankle injury, Goulding was sidelined with a calf problem and White fractured and dislocated a finger in February, while Baba also dealt with a corked calf. By late February, Short and Dillon Stith were both being carried on United’s active roster as injury replacements. Short’s irregular appearances primarily reflected his development-player role and Melbourne’s active-roster requirements, with no injury to Short reported.

Short produced the best performance of his NBL career to that point against Sydney on 19 March. With Melbourne suffering through a difficult night at Qudos Bank Arena, Short provided eight points, five rebounds and an assist while shooting 3/4 from the field and 2/2 from three-point range. He also beat the half-time buzzer, although United was unable to recover from a large first-half deficit and lost 103-75. The eight points remained Short’s season-high.

Melbourne’s injury problems continued when White, having only recently returned from his finger injury, ruptured his Achilles against Cairns on 2 April and was ruled out for the remainder of the season. Veteran David Andersen was later signed as an injury replacement. Despite the interruptions, Landale led United with 16.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per game, while Goulding averaged 15.7 points, and Melbourne completed the 36-game regular season on top of the ladder with a 28-8 record.

COVID restrictions forced Melbourne’s entire semi-final series against South East Melbourne to be played at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney. After the teams split the opening two games, United recovered from a 17-point deficit in Game 3 to win 84-74 behind Landale’s 27 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Melbourne then faced Perth in the Grand Final, with Western Australian border restrictions resulting in the lower-seeded Wildcats hosting the opening two games. United won both before returning to Melbourne, where a restricted capacity crowd of 5,000 watched them complete the sweep with an 81-76 Game 3 victory. Landale finished with 15 points and nine rebounds and was named Grand Final MVP. The championship was Short’s second with Melbourne, having also been part of United’s 2018 title-winning squad.

NEW ZEALAND BREAKERS
2021/22
After playing 29 of their 36 games in Australia and finishing eighth the previous season, the New Zealand Breakers were again forced to spend NBL22 away from home. Corey Webster (to Egypt) was released to continue his career overseas, while Tai Webster (to Lithuania) departed after choosing not to meet the NBL’s COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

Coach Dan Shamir added Yanni Wetzell (via South East Melbourne), imports Peyton Siva (via Berlin), Hugo Besson (via France) and Jeremiah Martin (via Cleveland), while French prospect Ousmane Dieng (via France) joined through the NBL’s Next Stars program.

New Zealand entered the season following a team-wide COVID-19 outbreak and began the year without captain Thomas Abercrombie, before Siva suffered a torn hamstring and Martin injured his ankle. Chasson Randle (7.8 points) joined as an injury replacement for Siva as the Breakers lost their opening six games. After Siva (11.8 points, 4.9 assists, and 2 steals) returned, Martin (12.3 points and 3.6 assists) was released and Randle was elevated into the full roster.

With injuries, illness and international commitments continuing to affect the roster, the Breakers signed Samuel Short as a nominated replacement player until the end of NBL22 on February 19. Short had previously spent three seasons as a development player with Melbourne United, including its 2021 championship season.

Short made his only appearance against Illawarra at MyState Bank Arena on March 1, playing the final 22 seconds and finishing with 0 points as the Hawks defeated New Zealand 102-87. Besson (20 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Kyrin Galloway (16 points, 5 rebounds, and 1 block) led the Breakers, while Justinian Jessup (23 points, 3 steals, and 2 blocks) was Illawarra’s best.

Short (0 points across 1 game) did not suffer a reported injury during his time with New Zealand. He was not part of the roster for the first 14 games and remained a replacement and depth option after joining, accounting for his limited playing opportunities.

Wetzell (17.7 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals) led New Zealand in scoring and rebounding before being released (to Spain) to join Baskonia and was later named club MVP. Besson (13.9 points and 3.9 rebounds), Delany (10 points and 5.6 rebounds) and Dieng (8.9 points and 3.2 rebounds) were the team’s other major contributors, with Besson and Dieng returning (to France) before the final game to prepare for the NBA draft.

Short did not enter New Zealand’s final game against Adelaide at MyState Bank Arena on April 24, where Randle (14 points, 1 steal, and 1 block) and Rasmus Bach (14 points and 1 steal) led the Breakers, while Sunday Dech (19 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals) led the 36ers to a 93-60 victory as New Zealand suffered its tenth consecutive loss and finished tenth with a franchise-worst 5-23 record.

Samuel Short played four seasons in the NBL, playing for both the New Zealand Breakers and the Melbourne United.