What if there was NBL1 Central All-Star Weekend?

Thanks to an idea from Downtown Allan Browne and our NBL1 Central Commentary Crew, we wondered if we were to have an All-Star weekend what shape would it take and who’d be our picks, here’s my take on the concept for 2022…

These lineups would be something to behold and showcase the best the league has to offer to the rest of the nation. Pictures by LukeJMedia/Luke Mollett; Snap shot Photography and Picture IT Sports Photography

3-Minute Read

My format would be as so in the form of four games across the weekend with the North taking on the South clubs with two different selections. Each club must have at least one nomination suit up for their respective conference all-star team.

North (Central District Lions, North Adelaide Rockets, Norwood Flames, West Adelaide Bearcats and Woodville Warriors)

South (Southern Tigers, South Adelaide Panthers, Sturt Sabres, Eastern Mavericks and Forestville Eagles)

  • NBL1 Central All-Stars (Mens and Womens)
  • NBL1 Central Rising-Stars (Mens and Womens born after 2000)
  • NBL1 Central three-point stars (Four of the best from the league, Mens and Womens: can be an all-star player)
  • NBL1 Central All-Stars Skills Comp (Four of the best from the league, Mens and Womens: must not be in all-star game)

Here is my list of the above I’d nominate from the clubs in a three guard and two forward selection

Northern All-Stars (Women) – Coached by Kay Lee-Stuart

Guard – Jasmin Fejo (Bearcats)

Guard – Ally Wilson (Flames)

Guard – Casey Samuels (Lions)

Forward – Regan-Tunour McCarty (Warriors)

Forward – Jennie Rintala (Bearcats)

Guard – Brooke Basham (Flames)

Guard – Sam DeFrancesco (Rockets)

Guard – Ranisha Washington (Lions)

Forward – Peyton Taylor (Rockets)

Forward – Emily Winter (Warriors)

The team has some of the most skilful guards in the league and watching Fejo and Wilson feed Casey Samuels at the perimeter while Tunour-McCarty and Rintala are mobile bigs that cause trouble for the Southern team. Off the bench is scoring and punch through Basham, DeFrancesco and Washington complete with rebounding masterclasses from Taylor and Winter.

Superstar Ally Wilson would do it all for the Northern All-Stars

Southern All-Stars (Women) – Coached by Richard Dickel

Guard – Morgan Yaeger (Tigers)

Guard – Ash Spencer (Panthers)

Guard – Sam Simons (Eagles)

Forward – Brigitte-Lefebvre Okankwu (Mavericks)

Forward – Olivia Levicki (Panthers)*

Guard – Meg Prosser (Sabres)

Guard – Demi Skinner (Tigers)

Guard – Isabella Stratford (Eagles)

Forward – Mikayla Williams (Sabres)

Forward – Oksana Gouchie-Provencher (Mavericks)

The Southern team is built for scoring in its starting five with Yaeger, Spencer and Simons a formidable scoring trio with Lefebvre-Okankwu and Levicki cleaning up from mid-range and the glass. The backup unit are some of the toughest competitors in the league in Prosser and Stratford, more scoring from Skinner and the import tandem of Williams and Gouchie-Provencher will go toe to toe on the glass with the bigs of the Northern side.

The prospect of Yaeger, Spencer and Simons skilful feeding Brigitte Lefebvre-Okanwu in the paint and running action would be a treat to watch for the Southern All-Stars

Northern All-Stars (Men) – Coached by Scott Whitmore

Guard – Nik DeSantis (Bearcats)

Guard – Jawan Stepney (Warriors)

Guard – Bijan Johnson (Lions)

Forward – Joe Jackson (Warriors)

Forward – Terry Winn (Rockets)

Guard – Nate Sheppard (Bearcats)

Guard – Brad Rathjen (Rockets)

Guard – Trey McBride (Flames)

Forward – Magok Manyang (Lions)

Forward – Ray Harding (Flames)

Impactful and athletic is how you describe the Northern lineup for the Mens with a guard trio of DeSantis, Stepney and BJ starting things off with the bigs that play bigger than their size Jackson and Winn in tandem. They don’t lose much when they go to the pine with the scoring continuing through Sheppard and Manyang, with Harding chipping in and McBride and Rathjen setting the table for their team.  

Walter “Trey” McBride would be setting the table for his Northern All-Stars off the pine in a potent ruthless lineup

Southern All-Stars (Men) – Coached by Andy Simons

Guard – Jeremy Smith (Panthers)

Guard – James Legan (Mavs)

Guard – Joel Spear (Sabres)

Forward – Daniel Johnson (Eagles)

Forward – Alex Starling (Panthers)

Guard – Adam Doyle (Eagles)

Guard – Jacob Rigoni (Sabres)

Guard – Vionte Daniels (Tigers)

Forward – Koop McCalop (Mavericks)

Forward – Lachlan Olbrich (Tigers)

The shooting stars of the league are laden in this lineup with two of the best import scorers in Smith and Legan threatening from different areas, Spear you can’t leave open either but will dominate glass at his position and DJ and Starling in tandem is mouth watering. Then you bring in Doyle and Daniels facilitating for the triple threat of Rigoni and two of the most athletic above the rim artists in McCalop and Olbrich.

We saw them teamup in the Pro 3×3, lets unite Jeremy Smith (pictured) and James Legan to really ask the question, where and whom do you guard???

Northern Rising Stars (Women) – Coached by Terry Jo-McNamara

Guard – Grace Facchini (Rockets)

Guard – Jemima Whitton (Flames)

Guard – Sarah Deng (Lions)

Forward – Abby Brenton (Bearcats)

Forward – Eliza Joynes (Warriors)

Reserve – Madelyn Curry (Lions)

Reserve – Lily Zbierski (Rockets)

An exciting lineup of talented women with a huge skill set split amongst themselves with current starters Abby Brenton and Eliza Joynes ones to watch. Facchini will lead it from the front and the talented Whitton, Deng, Curry and Zbierski at both ends of the floor balance out this side…

The Northern Rising Stars would have plenty of tall talent with Lily Zbierski coming off the pine behind Brenton and Joynes

Southern Rising Stars (Women) – Coached by Matt Clarke

Guard – Hatti Cox (Panthers)

Guard – Emily Close (Sabres)

Guard – Jess Simons (Eagles)

Forward – Olivia Bradley (Mavericks)

Forward – Maddy Freer (Eagles)

Reserve – Chloe Dumesny (Mavericks)

Reserve – Margot Hall (Tigers)

This team are DBG – designated bucket getters led by the shooting of Close and Simons. Cox will run the show and Freer and Dumesny will be hard to stop from deep, Hall provides the all-aroundness to balance out this lineup…

It’ll be close encounters of the rising kind for the Southern Rising All-Stars with a bunch of DBG’s – Designated Bucket Getters

Northern Rising Stars (Men) – Coached by Tim Odell

Guard – Sunday Bol (Lions)

Guard – Riley Harrap (Rockets)

Guard – Luca Barei (Flames)

Forward – Cameron Huefner (Flames)

Forward – Nate Deer (Lions)

Reserve – Cooper Osborne (Warriors)

Reserve – Steve Parfitt (Rockets)

Another exciting youthful lineup with plenty making a huge impact in state championships. Bol can feed Harrap and Barei for plenty of buckets and Huefner and Deer provide big targets inside. Then you have two of the leagues most exciting prospects in Osborne and Parfitt coming in for back-up…

He may have finished up his season but the “Cannon” we couldn’t miss in this Northern rising Stars lineup

Southern Rising-Stars (Men) – Coached by Scott Ninnis

Guard – Owen Raneburg (Mavericks)

Guard – Fiston Ipassou (Eagles)

Guard – Curtis Scott (Tigers)

Forward – Jarryd Hoppo (Panthers)

Forward – Hayden Meakes (Sabres)

Reserve – Declan Bell (Eagles)

Reserve – Jamie Smith (Tigers)

A lineup equally talented to their rival, Hoppo and Ipassou are the starters that drive this lineup with Scott, Raneburg ready to take the next step. Meakes is reliable and Bell and Smith have shown in limited minutes they are more than capable for backup…

The hopes of the Southern All-Stars would largely be on Jarryd Hoppo


And last of all my nominations for the three point and skills stars competition…

NBL1 Central Three-Point Shooting Stars

Womens: Keeley Pearce (39 percent for the Bearcats), Jade Johnson (41.9 for the Panthers), Maddy Freer (56.3 for the Eagles) and Sam Defrancesco (42.9 for the Rockets)

Mens: Andrew Barton (43.6 for the Panthers), Todd Davies (40.4 for the Panthers), James Legan (39.1 for the Mavericks) and James Boonstoppel (48.6 for the Warriors)

NBL1 Central Skills Stars

Womens: Jordan Hunter (Panthers), Kayla Mathews (Sabres), Jasmine Simmons (Bearcats) and Sophie Kerridge (Flames)  

Mens: Nick Wurm (Warriors), Sam Daly (Sabres), Branden Jenkins (Lions) and Anthony Spadavecchia (Bearcats)    

Well I guess its time to debate and decide your lineup and who would win with these teams

We are back to doing recaps for the NBL, Catch all the NBL1 Central action this weekend on the NBL1 website, app and game of the week.

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