The Pick and Roll

The Pick and Roll

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
Davo Hickey scores 25 to lead AIB All-Stars against Illawarra Hawks in preseason Indigenous Challenge
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

Davo Hickey scores 25 to lead AIB All-Stars against Illawarra Hawks in preseason Indigenous Challenge

Kein's avatar
Kein
Sep 10, 2019

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
Davo Hickey scores 25 to lead AIB All-Stars against Illawarra Hawks in preseason Indigenous Challenge
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
Share

The Illawarra Hawks played their first preseason game against the Australian Indigenous Basketball (AIB) All-Stars last Saturday at the Snakepit. The game tipped off with a strong 36-27 first quarter, that eventually ended with a 110-87 win.

Despite a dominant Hawks showing, the AIB All-Stars fought back with guard William 'Davo' Hickey's 25-point scoring performance at the Illawarra Basketball Stadium, and hints at Hickey's potential with the South East Melbourne Phoenix this NBL season.

Being a preseason outing, minutes were distributed freely among Illawarra's youthful talent - this included Emmett Naar, Sam Froling, Daniel Grida and Next Star LaMelo Ball, none of whom played less than 17 minutes.

Credit: Australian Indigenous Basketball

Naar started at the point guard spot and played nearly 23 minutes with 9 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, while big man Froling had 6 points, 7 rebounds and an assist. Grida saw the floor for 21 minutes, recording 5 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist; Ball had 12 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 6 turnovers and 2 steals.


Feature: Is Daniel Grida our next star in the making?


Hickey, who started for the Australian Indigenous Basketball All Stars, played nearly 30 minutes, in which he impressed with his speed and drives to the basket. The guard ended with a game-high 25 points (9/18 FG), 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.

Credit: Australian Indigenous Basketball

Despite the performance, Hickey didn't feel like the game was an outlier.

"Honestly, it felt like just another game. It might sound a bit pretentious but it's how it really felt. After I got my feet under me I felt really good out there. Got the green light from [AIB head coach Joel Khalu] to attack when I think I could get to the rim, and it gave me great confidence throughout the game."

There's plenty of room for improvement, however. Hickey, who had a tough 1/6 from the perimeter on Saturday night, knows it.

"There's definitely quite a few things I personally think I need to fine tune, but the first thing that comes to mind is definitely my shooting." There's no doubt that shooting continues to be a point of focus for Hickey - he shot 22% from deep with the NBL1 Melbourne Tigers last season.

"I want to be a more reliable, consistent shooter. I think it'll really elevate my game to the next level. Just got to keep working on it though."

https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1153516100685926400

The 6'4 guard, who hails from Cowra, New South Wales, impressed at the recent NBL Next Gen camp, and was signed as a Development Player (DP) by the South East Melbourne Phoenix for this coming NBL 2019/20 season.

“He’s got unbelievable open court ability, he’s explosive and he’s got a little bit of niggle in him as well,” Phoenix head coach, Simon Mitchell said. “He doesn’t mind getting up and in and testing out his teammates.

Being a DP isn't the end goal however - it's just the beginning.

"I'm hoping to be in the NBL within the next year or two at least. With the NBL growing so fast and having more coverage than it has before, it's where I want to be to really test myself," the 20 year old Hickey said. "That'll be a massive achievement for me going forward and can hopefully put me on a bigger platform, for bigger things to come in the future, whatever that may be."

The Phoenix similarly, sound like he could be a part of their long-term future.

"[Hickey's] ascension into that position has been quite meteoric. It’s all on the back of him getting his mindset right," Mitchell shared. “He’s got the physical tools, there’s no doubt about that, but he’s really committed himself to the sport and he’s a great kid to have around. We’ve got big plans for him.”

Things can only get better from here.


Subscribe to The Pick and Roll

Hundreds of paid subscribers
We're all about Aussie hoops. Authentic, independent, objective analysis and commentary around Australian basketball. Read about our men and women in the NBA, WNBA, NCAA, Europe, national teams, NBL, WNBL, NBL1, junior prospects and more.

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
Davo Hickey scores 25 to lead AIB All-Stars against Illawarra Hawks in preseason Indigenous Challenge
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
Share

Discussion about this post

User's avatar
Breaking down the Australian Boomers 2021 Tokyo Olympic squad
Who will make the Boomers' final squad for Tokyo?
Feb 15, 2021 • 
Benjiman Mallis
2

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
Breaking down the Australian Boomers 2021 Tokyo Olympic squad
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
The Boomer and NBA Australian that never was: Can Australia still claim Kyrie Irving?
We all know someone who wants to.
Apr 27, 2020 • 
Ayush G
2

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
The Boomer and NBA Australian that never was: Can Australia still claim Kyrie Irving?
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More
How Matisse Thybulle went from Olympic hero to Boomers castoff
It's the decision that enraged, upset, and confused a whole country of basketball fans. The question remains: how on earth did Matisse Thybulle miss out…
Jul 15, 2024 • 
Jacob Doole
7

Share this post

The Pick and Roll
The Pick and Roll
How Matisse Thybulle went from Olympic hero to Boomers castoff
Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

Ready for more?

© 2025 The Pick and Roll Pty Ltd
Publisher Privacy ∙ Publisher Terms
Substack
Privacy ∙ Terms ∙ Collection notice
Start writingGet the app
Substack is the home for great culture

Share

Copy link
Facebook
Email
Notes
More

Create your profile

undefined subscriptions will be displayed on your profile (edit)

Skip for now

Only paid subscribers can comment on this post

Already a paid subscriber? Sign in

Check your email

For your security, we need to re-authenticate you.

Click the link we sent to , or click here to sign in.