Biggest NBL1 East storylines this season

Today feels like Christmas as the NBL1 East returns for 2025! With so many game changing additions across the conference and divisions we have taken a dive into some of the huge storylines to keep an eye out on for this season..

Bankstown Men – Can They Make the Leap?

Last year, the Bankstown Bruins were one of the NBL1 East's biggest improvers. With the introduction of new Head Coach Curtis Sardi, the boys in blue and white saw a massive improvement, with a late-season surge pushing them into the final spot of the playoffs.
This year, Bankstown will be looking to make another leap, but with vastly different expectations. Not only do we see the return of hometown kid, 424-game NBL veteran, and Australian Boomer Jason Cadee, but also Sydney Kings player Jaylin Galloway, as well as returning import Andre Wolford and bucket-getter Hayden Blankley.
This year, people won’t be looking at the Bruins to squeak into the playoffs but instead expecting them to come close to winning the whole thing.

Maitland Men – Worthy Replacement?

After two straight grand final heartbreaks, the Maitland Mustangs finally broke through and won their maiden NBL1 East Championship. Spearheaded by two-time MVP Will Cranston-Lown, the Mustangs were a juggernaut in the regular season, averaging a winning margin of 20 points. Over six months later, things are a bit different in the Hunter Valley, as Cranston-Lown has made a move south to Hobart, leaving a two-time-League and Finals MVP-sized hole in the Mustangs' rotation. Enter Mandrell Worthy. Worthy, a former Norths Bears guard and NBL1 East All-Star 5 member, shocked the league by signing with the NBL1 East Champions for 2025. Worthy may not have the passing game that Cranston-Lown had, with much of the playmaking to be shouldered by returning guard Christian Little. This leaves Worthy to focus on what he does best... be a bucket. Coming in 4th in the league in scoring, averaging a solid 24.5 points per game, he will be a welcome addition to the league’s best offence.

 
Canberra Men – Continuity > Additions

The Canberra Gunners are one of the most successful teams in the NBL1 East. The maiden league champions have won a grand final, fell a game short of the big dance in 2023, and then lost to Maitland in last year’s title game. With a local superstar core in Glenn Morison, James Toohey, and Will Mayfield, the Gunners are set up for long-term success whenever those three are together on the court.

Speaking to Morison on ‘NEXT QUESTION…’, he discussed how, soon after their Grand Final loss, the team’s eyes were firmly set on bouncing back and hoisting the NBL1 East trophy once again.

“Straight away we were thinking, how are we going to do this next year? How are we going to bring this team back? How are we going to add depth pieces to propel us over the top so we can get back onto that top step? We've been there before, and we want to be there again."

A team that thrives on its continuity, it will be interesting to see how they stack up against newly formed superstar teams ready to challenge for the crown.

Illawarra Men – Todd and the Kids

The Illawarra Hawks made moves this off-season. Hawks fans, who are still buzzing from an NBL Finals Championship, will see plenty of familiar faces on their NBL1 East squad this year. No name is bigger than Todd Blanchfield deciding to stick around the Gong for 2025. Last year’s NBL1 North Grand Final MVP has been balling for the Hawks to end the NBL season, including two HUGE threes in the Game 5 decider of the NBL Finals.
He will be joined this year by Illawarra Hawks NBL Development Players Kobe McDowall-White and Brad Ballinger. Ballinger, a returning local junior, averaged 11 points and 6 rebounds for the Hawks last year in the East, while McDowall-White averaged 15 points and 7 assists in the NBL1 North.

Adding a veteran presence who will be able to contribute like Blanchfield is huge for the Hawks, while the improvement of Ballinger and the X-factor from McDowall-White could result in the Hawks— a team that has missed the finals the previous two seasons— being the league’s biggest improvers.

 
Norths Women – Light a Flame

Following their 2023 NBL1 East Championship, many wondered if the Bears could go back-to-back. Even with a historic season from the Albury-Wadonga Bandits (more on them later), who went undefeated in the regular season, you wouldn’t blame anyone for thinking the Renae Garlepp-led side could still achieve a second championship. They did go 18-2 for the regular season, only falling to fierce rivals Manly and those Bandits.

They then fell at home to a hot shooting performance from the Sutherland Sharks, one game from the Grand Final. Now, at the season's beginning, they have 2023 NBL1 East Grand Final MVP Joelene Anderson returning, as well as Flames players Caitlyn Martin and, fresh off starting in the WNBL semi-final series, Carla Pitman.

Speaking to Pitman on ‘NEXT QUESTION…’, she noted that NBL1 East fans may just see an expanded offensive game from the young guard.

“That’s the goal (to average 20 points per game). I definitely want to be getting more points on the board, but I definitely want to get lots of rebounds too. I want to focus on that as more of a bigger guard,” Pitman said.
Pitman becoming a late-teen-per-game scorer will give Norths every chance of getting that second chip.

Hornsby Women – Can the Spiders Keep Climbing the Water Spout?

The Hornsby Ku-Ring-Gai Spiders surprised plenty of teams last year. Seen as potential wooden spooners following a single-win season in 2023, they shocked the league with massive improvement across the board, adding an extra 4 wins to their total from the previous year. Youngster Keira Hudson continued to show growth as a young point guard, and import Ay’Anna Bey supplied consistent production for the Spiders.
However, a lot of the credit goes to Youth Player of the Year, Jessie May-Hall. May-Hall was a stat-stuffing machine, averaging 20 points, 4 assists, 7 rebounds, and 4.5 steals. She is a blur on the court and is only just shy of her 18th birthday.
Did I tell you that, as a 16-year-old, she amassed 27 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists, and had 7 steals in a win against the COE?
A lot of eyes will be on the youngster to see if the league can slow down the recently crowned National U20 Championship winner. Could we maybe see the Spiders squeak into the 8? We'll find out soon.

Newcastle Women – And We Go Again

You know what’s better than winning a championship? Winning a championship and coming out of the next off-season somehow looking even better than when you went in.
In great news for Newcastle fans, captain Kate Kingham, youngster Hannah Chicken, and regular season and finals MVP Nicole Munger are all retuning. 

However, the new additions of University of Canberra Capitals players Meg Jefferson and Claudea Waihape-Andrews, veteran Susanne Walmsley and Japanese import Rio Yamazaki have now created more depth in the guard positions which will only help preserve Munger, whose pinball style can be even more effective with a reduced minute load. With Isla Juffermans, who is currently plying her trade for the Louisville Cardinals, and Elise Brett being the only major omissions from the defending champions, the Falcons may be the best-equipped club the NBL1 East has seen to go back-to-back. 

Albury Women – New Sheriff in Town

A new era for the Albury-Wadonga Bandits has begun. After going 20-0 in the regular season, only to lose in straight sets at home in the playoffs to the Newcastle Falcons and Sutherland Sharks, the Bandits have decided to switch things up for NBL1 East 2025.
A team that once had three of the league’s All-Star Five members in Triple-Double Queen Mikayla Pivec, the non-stop Unique Thompson, and GOAT Lauren Jackson, looks to have none of them returning.

Sam MacDonald has decided to focus on shooting for NBL1 East 2025 with a brand new back-court in Catie Jones and Rily Lupfer.
Jones had no problem finding the bottom of the net for the Lakeside Lightning in the NBL1 West, averaging 22.7 points per game on 2.5 made threes each outing. Meanwhile, Lupfer, who last appeared in the NBL1 South with Launceston in 2023, averaged 15 points per game on a 39.7% three-point shooting clip.

From what used to be a post-centric offence filled with low and high block touches for Jackson and Thompson, as well as a plethora of pick-and-roll options created by Pivec’s deft passing ability, expect to see younger and much more fast paced offence to create three-point chances for the Bandits’ shiny new back-court.