BIO: Tim Hudson was born in Australia

NBL EXPERIENCE

Tim Hudson made his NBL debut with the Sydney Kings at 25 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.

As a rookie, Hudson averaged 0.6 points, 0.3 rebounds, and 0 assists as the Kings finished in first place (22-8).

HUNTER PIRATES
2003/04
As a result of Canberra’s NBL licence moving to Newcastle, former Cannons players Brendan Mann, Matthew Shanahan and Cameron Rigby all came across to the Pirates to form the beginnings of the Pirates roster. Hunter chose not to retain Cannons coach Cal Bruton and signed Bruce Palmer as their first head coach.

Hunter signed rookie point guard Chris Harriman (via Augusta State) straight out of college and filled the remainder of the roster with low-cost imports Kevin Brooks and Chris Brown, local players Josh Morgan and Adam Melmeth, and a number of players who had been discarded by their former clubs like Geordie Cullen (via Wollongong), Michael Kingma (via Sydney) and Travis Lindstrom (via Perth) who were all unable to secure deals elsewhere.

It took six games before the Pirates won their first game, a four-point victory over Adelaide at home (103–99) and then managed to win only one more, a home win against Cairns (109–103) and ended their first season on a 15-game losing streak. Their two win season was the second worst in NBL history (outside of Geelong’s zero win season in 1988).

Initial coach Bruce Palmer was controversially fired partway into the season and was replaced by assistant coach David Simmons but that made little difference to the team’s success.

Cullen (17.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists) would lead the team in scoring and win the league’s Most Improved Player award at the end of the season. Kevin Brooks (16.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists), Matthew Shanahan (15.7 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 4.0 assists) and Chris Brown (10.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) would lead the team in scoring. Starting point guard Brendan Mann (9.3 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 steals) suffered a season ending injury only three games into the season, resulting in rookie Chris Harriman (7.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 4 assists) stepping into the starting lineup. Harriman would narrowly miss out of winning the Rookie of the Year award, finishing second to West Sydney’s Steven Markovic.

Hudson would see limited playing opportunities, appearing in 14 games for the Pirates and average 2.7 points, 0.6 rebounds, and 0.4 assists per game.

WEST SYDNEY RAZORBACKS
2004/05
After reaching the 2004 NBL Grand Final, the West Sydney Razorbacks faced a challenging offseason marked by financial instability and roster changes. Head coach Gordie McLeod was replaced after six seasons, with longtime assistant Mark Watkins stepping into the head role. The club’s ownership, the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, faced financial troubles, including a $500,000 fine and the loss of all 37 NRL premiership points due to salary cap breaches, which further destabilized the franchise.

The Razorbacks saw the departure of John Rillie (to Townsville), Russell Hinder (to Hunter), and David Pennisi (to Europe), while Brad Williams retired. In response, West Sydney focused on internal development, with Scott McGregor returning from injury and Steven Markovic stepping into a bigger role after winning NBL Rookie of the Year the previous season. The team also moved away from its all-Australian roster approach, signing Nick Horvath (via Duke University) as their marquee import.

Horvath (20.4 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks) became the team’s primary offensive weapon, while Simon Dwight (15.9 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 3.2 blocks) anchored the defense, continuing his dominance in the paint. Sam MacKinnon (14.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 5.9 assists) remained a versatile leader, impacting both ends of the floor. Meanwhile, McGregor (12.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists) provided additional scoring and experience.

West Sydney opened the season with a 97–120 loss to Perth on October 2, 2004, struggling to find cohesion with their new lineup. Their first win came in Round 2, with a 106–75 home victory over Brisbane, followed by a narrow 113–111 road win over Brisbane, led by Horvath (23 points, 17 rebounds) and McGregor (26 points).

The early success was short-lived, as the team suffered a four-game losing streak, including a 97–105 home defeat to Melbourne and back-to-back losses against Adelaide (85–102) and Perth (90–101). The absence of a consistent perimeter scorer to replace Rillie’s production became evident.

The Razorbacks showed flashes of promise, securing a 96–82 win over Wollongong in Round 8 behind Horvath (29 points, 14 rebounds) and MacKinnon (22 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists). They followed it up with a tight 87–84 victory over Cairns, where Markovic (18 points, 6 assists) demonstrated his growing confidence. However, inconsistency remained a major issue as they failed to build momentum.

West Sydney’s playoff hopes were effectively dashed during a seven-game losing streak from January 2 to January 29, 2005. This stretch included a 123–89 blowout loss to Sydney and a 112–85 loss to the Kings on February 19. The team struggled defensively and lacked offensive depth beyond Horvath.

The Razorbacks managed to break their slump with a 103–76 home victory over Hunter on February 2, with McGregor (21 points, 7 rebounds) playing a key role. Another strong performance came on February 11, when they defeated Wollongong 117–95, showcasing one of their best offensive outings of the season. However, these moments were not enough to salvage their season.

Tim Hudson found opportunities scarce in a crowded backcourt rotation, appearing in 26 games but playing a limited role, averaging 1.5 points and 0.4 rebounds per game. Struggling to break into the regular rotation, he often saw reduced minutes as the team leaned on its more experienced guards.

West Sydney finished the season in ninth place with an 11–21 record, missing the playoffs just one year after reaching the Grand Final.

Tim Hudson played three seasons across three NBL teams. This included the Sydney Kings, Hunter Pirates and West Sydney Razorbacks. He averaged 1.7 points, 0.5 rebounds, and 0.3 assists in 47 NBL games.