Supercats shooter joins Bullets for NBL24

GEELONG United Supercats guard Gabe Hadley will return to Australian basketball’s top flight in 2023/24, after he was signed to a one-year deal at the Brisbane Bullets.

Hadley’s return to the National Basketball League (NBL) sees him return under the tutelage of former Supercats coach and current Bullets coach Justin Schueller, following a career season in the NBL1 South.

Hadley ranked second in the NBL1 South in scoring averaging 24.71 points, becoming one of the competition’s most prolific scorers under head coach Grant Wallace.

“I’m super pumped to have signed with the Bullets. Justin has coached me for a long time now so it’s nice to go into a system that I already know and hopefully he can trust me in,” Hadley told the Bullets post-signing.

“NBL24 is going to be my first NBL season so I’m looking forward to that the most!

“I can’t wait to be around like-minded players, as well as being able to get in the gym with DMack (Darryl McDonald) and work on my game.

“[Brisbane] fans can definitely expect me to shoot some 3’s.”

“But more importantly I’m going to try and bring defensive intensity off the bench, to lift the second unit, while also being the first one off the bench to celebrate my teammates success.”

Hadley featured as a development player on the Cairns Taipans roster in NBL1 2023, making a lone on-court appearance and playing three minutes against Melbourne United.

Schueller welcomed Hadley to the Bullets organisation where he will suit up alongside the likes of former NBA player and champion Aron Baynes, NBL legend Nathan Sobey, and highly touted seven-foot-three rookie Rocco Zikarsky to name a few.

“Gabe is a product of hard work and grinding his craft in the NBL1 and it’s great that he gets this opportunity with us,” Schueller said.

“When rounding out our roster we knew we needed to add shooting to our list and that’s exactly what he will bring to our squad.

“I’ve known Gabe a very long time and coached him on multiple teams and levels. He is someone that is dependable, competes every day and wants to get better, exactly the type of guy we want to round out our list.”

Hadley’s top scoring game as a Supercat came on July 15 earlier this month against Keilor.

The sharpshooter finished the game with 43 points on 71 per cent shooting in 30 minutes of play.