BIO: Scott Delzoppo was born in Melbourne (VIC) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Diamond Valley basketball program.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Scott Delzoppo made his NBL debut with the North Melbourne Giants at 20 years of age. He scored three points in his first game.

After missing the playoffs in 1986, the Giants moved home venues from Coburg to the inner city where they would play at the Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Centre, more commonly known as ‘The Glasshouse’. Thanks to a influx of finances the team then rebranded to the North Melbourne Giants and appointed a new head coach in Bruce Palmer and recruited star import Scott Fisher. As a rookie Delzoppo added 3.1 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.1 assist alongside Fisher (25.1 points and 11.0 rebounds), and together they helped guide the Giants back into the playoffs. North Melbourne finished in sixth place at the end of the regular season (15-11) and then went on to lose to Illawarra (97–105) in the Elimination Finals.

In 1988 Delzoppo averaged 3.1 points and 1.7 rebounds, and helped guide the Giants to a second place finish in the regular season (18-6). It was (almost) a Cinderella season for Delzoppo and the Giants in 1988. This year the team added bruising import Tim Dillon to play alongside Scott Fisher, a duo that quickly became known as the ‘Twin Boulders’ by media and fans. The team also acquired US born Mark Leader from Geelong, who had become a naturalised Australian during the off-season.

The Giant’s new frontcourt saw the team skyrocket to the top of the NBL ladder, causing regular sellouts at the team’s 7,000 seat home court. Delzoppo would contribute 3.1 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.1 assist for the season, alongside stars Fisher (27.5 points and 11.3 rebounds) and Dillon (33.2 points and 10.9 rebounds) who had statistically, two of the greatest individual seasons of all time. Together, they led the Giants to a second place regular season finish and a 18-6 record.

In the semifinals, the Giants made easy work of the Wildcat’s and reached the Grand Final for the first time in the club’s history. 5,200 Cannons fans turned up to the AIS arena to see Phil Smyth (25 points) and Jamie Kennedy (21 points) lead the Cannons to victory in game one (120-95). Delzoppo would add 5 points in the opening game.

In game two Dillon was unstoppable, notching up 43 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 assists to ensure the Giants returned the favour and evened the series with a 117-101 win a home. Delzoppo added 3 points and 2 rebounds to the stats sheet in the win. 7,200 Giants fans turned up for Game 3, keen to see the team win their first championship, North Melbourne’s Cinderella season wouldn’t come to pass, with Canberra winning the series clinching game (108-101). Willie Simmons (23 points and 10 rebounds) led the way for the Cannons with alongside Simon Cottrell and Phil Smyth (both 21 points). Smyth would be awarded the Grand Final MVP after averaging 21.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 2.6 steals across the three-game series.

In 1989 Delzoppo was not offered a contract to play for the Giants, the season they won the NBL championship but returned to the league in in 1990 to play for the Gold Coast Cougars. He averaged 4.7 points and 1.4 rebounds for the season but the Cougars failed to make the playoffs and finished with a 9-17 record.

For the 1991 season, Delzoppo returned to play for the North Melbourne Giants in what would be his final season. He averaged 4.2 points and 1.2 rebounds, and helped the Giants achieve a second place finish in the regular season with a 16-10 record. After eliminating the Geelong Supercats in the elimination finals in three games the Giants were defeated in the semifinals by rival club Eastside Melbourne Spectres.

Scott Delzoppo played four seasons in the NBL. He averaged 3.8 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 97 NBL games.

Dan Boyce (827 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.