JackJumpers 2.0? Justin Schueller's Bullets are starting from scratch

With a focus on culture and a winning identity, the Brisbane Bullets are following a recipe that helped crown the NBL's newest champions.

Sometimes, things happen quickly. That’s true in every aspect of life, but doubly so in the sports world, where the momentum of a game can shift in an instant, the future of a player can change in a second, and the direction of an entire club can be upset with just a handful of conversations.

Take the Brisbane Bullets, for example.

On 5 March, it was reported that the Bullets had picked up the team option on star guard Nathan Sobey’s contract, keeping him on their roster for next season. On the night of March 28, Sobey was presented with the team’s MVP award, a deserved reward for a season in which he ranked fourth in the league in scoring and earned selection in the All-NBL Second Team. Less than 24 hours later, on the morning of 29 March, Sobey’s departure from the Bullets was reported as he and the club mutually decided to part ways. 

On the surface, that’s a whirlwind chain of events, even by the standards of professional basketball. Sobey was a standout for Brisbane this season, providing the kind of production that every team covets from a local player and leading them in a bounce-back season. He averaged 20.1 points per game, his highest mark since the 2020-21 season, and after winning just 18 games over the previous two seasons combined, the Bullets finished with a 13-15 record and missed the play-in tournament by percentage alone. That’s why his contract option being taken was merely a formality – as reported by ESPN’s Olgun Uluc, it was essentially an arbitrary deadline that passed with minimal fanfare.

Now, less than one month later, Sobey is leaving Brisbane and is reportedly set to join the South East Melbourne Phoenix for NBL25.

Credit: JBC Studios

In reality, this is just the latest move in a seismic shift that began, back when Justin Schueller was appointed as Brisbane’s head coach.