BIO: Tom Howard was born in Townsville (QLD) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Townsville basketball program.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Tom Howard made his NBL debut with the Townsville Crocodiles at 19 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.

After finishing seventh with a 9-19 record in 2014/15, Sydney retained head coach Damian Cotter and again built around Josh Childress, Jason Cadee, Tom Garlepp and reigning Rookie of the Year Angus Brandt. Cody Ellis (to Illawarra), Kevin White (to Illawarra), Ben Madgen (to Belgium), Kendrick Perry, Josh Duinker and Daniel Joyce departed, while Julian Khazzouh (via Lebanon), Steven Markovic (via Townsville), Rhys Carter (via New Zealand), Jeromie Hill (via UTSA), Marcus Thornton (via William & Mary) and Dion Prewster (via Wellington) were added.

Childress missed Sydney’s first four games with a foot injury before fracturing his right hand during his first game back. Al Harrington (via Fujian) joined on October 28 on a four-week injury-replacement deal and played six games before his stint ended on November 19 as Childress prepared to return. With Sydney sitting last with a 3-9 record, Cotter was released on November 28 and former Washington Wizards assistant Joe Connelly, who had joined the coaching staff earlier that month, was appointed interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Childress returned in late November but fractured his left hand two games later, leading Sydney to sign Damion James (via Le Mans) on December 9 as another short-term injury replacement. James had signed a one-year deal with Le Mans before parting ways with the French club on November 20 after six league games and five EuroCup appearances and had previously been part of San Antonio’s 2014 NBA championship team. He arrived in Sydney the following morning, was driven straight from the airport to training with his suitcases sitting courtside and then flew to New Zealand with his new teammates only a few hours later as the last-placed Kings sat at 3-10. “I came here to win basketball games,” James said. His five appearances covered every game during his replacement stint, with James not missing any games through injury while with Sydney.

James (7 points, 10 rebounds, and 1 block) made his NBL debut against New Zealand in Auckland on December 11, playing 23 minutes as the Breakers defeated Sydney 96-84. Cadee (19 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals) and Thornton (17 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists) led the Kings, while Mika Vukona (18 points, 11 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks) was New Zealand’s best.

James (7 points and 7.8 rebounds across 5 games) averaged 22.2 minutes during his brief stint and provided Sydney with rebounding and size while Childress was unavailable. He struggled to find his shot, making 11-of-49 field-goal attempts at 22.4 percent and only one of 12 three-pointers, while starting one of his five appearances.

James made his home debut two days later in the final Kings game ever played at the Sydney Entertainment Centre, finishing with 4 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block as Perth defeated Sydney 87-69. Brandt (17 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 blocks) and Cadee (13 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists) led the Kings, while Jesse Wagstaff (26 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals) led Perth as Sydney farewelled the venue which had been its home since 1990.

James’ best game came against Melbourne on December 16, where James (11 points and 10 rebounds) made five of 11 field-goal attempts and did not commit a turnover in 25 minutes as Sydney defeated United 96-81 and ended a five-game losing streak. Cadee (28 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists) and Garlepp (22 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists) led the Kings, while Todd Blanchfield (18 points and 11 rebounds) was Melbourne’s best.

Sydney’s injury problems continued when Khazzouh (13.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks across 17 games) ruptured his right quadriceps tendon in mid-December and was ruled out for the remainder of the season. Former captain and assistant coach Ben Knight (via retirement) (0.5 points across 4 games) returned to the active roster more than four years after retiring to provide emergency frontcourt cover. James remained on the roster through December 27 and appeared in all five games available to him before Childress (21 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.2 steals, and 1.7 blocks across 13 games) was reactivated on December 29. James (to Cangrejeros de Santurce in January) was subsequently taken off Sydney’s roster, ending his NBL stint after less than three weeks.

Further changes followed in January, with Jordan Vandenberg (via Westchester) (3.1 points across 8 games) signed for the remainder of the season as Khazzouh’s injury replacement. Indiana Faithfull (2.6 points across 7 games) was also signed to replace Markovic (3 points across 7 games), who had battled illness before undergoing surgery to remove his tonsils in December, with Sydney believing he would struggle to return to full fitness before the end of the season. Craig Moller (0 points across 1 game) was initially brought in alongside Vandenberg for a trial to replace Khazzouh and remained as a full-time training player after Vandenberg won the roster spot, before an injury to Hill (4.1 points and 3 rebounds across 23 games) saw Moller elevated for Sydney’s February 10 game against Perth and make his NBL debut.

Harrington (17.7 points and 6.8 rebounds across 6 games) provided Sydney’s strongest production from its temporary imports, while Cadee (14 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.5 assists across 28 games) and Garlepp (13.9 points and 4.2 rebounds across 27 games) carried increased offensive responsibility throughout the injury-hit season. Thornton (12.8 points across 28 games), Brandt (8.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks across 28 games) and Carter (5.6 points across 28 games) provided the other major contributions, with Garlepp named the Kings’ Club MVP.

Sydney finished last with a 6-22 record and closed its season in Townsville on February 13, where Cadee (32 points, 4 rebounds, and 7 assists) and Childress (31 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 blocks) led the Kings, while Omar Samhan (25 points and 13 rebounds) led the Crocodiles as Townsville won 126-123 in overtime.

Tom Howard played two seasons with the Townsville Crocodiles. He averaged 1.8 points, 0 rebounds, and 0 assists in 4 NBL games.