NBL1 East imports making waves

By Rani Hodges for NBL1.com.au

NBL1 East teams have made a conscious effort to recruit internationally this season and analyst Jacinta Leigh has revealed which import players have made their mark in 2023 season.  

The NBL1 East are four rounds into their season and already proving to be National Championship contenders with strong performances across the conference. 

Leigh spoke on the latest episode of The NBL1 Show with host Megan Hustwaite and mentioned three import players that have turned heads in the first part of the season. 

Albury-Wodonga Bandits big Jamir Coleman came from the Vera Tbilisi in the Georgia Superleague. 

Coleman has surprised his opponents with his shooting percentage of 61.8 per cent from the field. He was also the Foot Locker Player of the Week in Round 3 as the Bandits now sit eighth on the ladder, Leigh hints the Bandits can only go up. 

“This guy is smooth as liquid smoke. He has great shot selection from anywhere, great elevation, able to finish,” Leigh said.

“He’s already averaging close to 20 points and 10 rebounds a game, so certainly making a strong impact.”

Power forward Marquel Beasley from the Sutherland Sharks missed a couple of games earlier in the season due to visa issues, however, Leigh assured he had “wasted no time” when he stepped onto the NBL1 courts. He averages 15 points and 10 rebounds per game.  

“He has jets in his joints, he had a huge poster dunk against Glenn Morison from the Canberra Gunners,” Leigh said.

“Just look out for this guy, he’s going to put a hole in the roof pretty soon.”

Marquel Beasley is throwing that DOWN ?

Watch #NBL1East via https://t.co/NEk1I7kIKG or the NBL1 App ? & ? pic.twitter.com/OCBjW5Camn

— NBL1 (@NBL1) April 1, 2023

Finally, import Chris Bryant impressed Leigh with his versatility on the court. Bryant has averaged 15.5 points and 8.5 rebounds this season and threw down arguably the play of the season in Round 1 of the competition. 

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by NBL1 (@nbl1)

“He’s someone that is very versatile, he plays both ends of the court very well,” Leigh said.

“As he gets used to the league he’s probably just going to get better and better.”

To stay up to date with the latest NBL1 news via the NBL1 Show weekly on the NBL1 YouTube channel, NBL1 Website and the NBL1 App. 

Feature image via: James O'Donohue Photography