Noi's small ball minutes, 36ers bigs and more: Rotation notes from the NBL's first round

Analysing the first seven games of the 2023/24 NBL season, and how each coach is allocating minutes so far.

Covering injuries

With a projected starter in Josh Bannan sidelined, it was D.J. Mitchell who missed an opportunity for extra playing time. On the opening play, he and Chris Smith’s execution in defending pick and roll was missing, giving Adelaide a dream start within 12 seconds. Later, it was a matchup on Wiley, who was the ball handler this time, with McCarron as the screener that caused problems. Matthew Johns then checked in for him with the score 2-17.  

The deficit certainly wasn’t just Mitchell’s fault, and I’d fully expect him to start again next game, but it did quickly push Justin Schueller towards more defensive lineups, meaning Mitchell wouldn’t be a priority. The defensively minded Johns finished with as many minutes as Mitchell, whilst Brisbane closed both the third and fourth quarters with Sam McDaniel or Chris Smith defending power forward.

Schueller was full of praise for McDaniel’s toughness and defensive versatility post game as Adelaide scored just 54 points in the final 37 minutes.

After being overlooked in game one, in a roundabout way for Michael Harris, Ben Henshall found his first opportunity for Perth in game two with Tai Webster absent. Despite the heavy loss, Henshall had an all-time debut.

John Rillie postgame: