‘Catch 22’: Goorjian's contract clock and Bogut waiting behind

• NBL and WNBL dominate Australia’s most coveted head coaching roles.
• Brisbane and Adelaide highlight how fast coaching pressure can escalate.
• WNBL expansion in 2026–27 adds two major jobs to the market.

Australia's 22 most coveted head coaching jobs are in the NBL, the WNBL, the Boomers, and the Opals, and the 22nd has no club yet.

The NBL has no vacancies. Melbourne United filled the last one on June 29, 2026, handing Jacob Chance a four-year deal as head coach and head of basketball operations; the 32-year-old arrived from the Austin Spurs, where he went 23-13 in his first season as a head coach in the NBA G League.

Dean Vickerman left United in May after nine seasons, two championships and a run of grand finals, and now coaches Nagasaki Velca in the Japan B.League. He keeps his associate head coach role with the Boomers.

Adelaide moved first and fastest. Trevor Gleeson signed a three-year deal on May 22 after Mike Wells stepped down to prioritise family, leaving the 36ers re-established as a genuine title contender with a 58 percent winning record, a championship series appearance and the club's best regular season since 1986.

The New Zealand Breakers went and got a world champion in Gordon Herbert, and the Brisbane Bullets handed Will Weaver the keys in March.

Three coaches signed extensions across the winter. Josh King is at South East Melbourne through at least NBL29, Adam Forde is at Cairns through NBL28, and Scott Roth extended at Tasmania on September 16, through NBL29, and said it will be his last contract.

That leaves one clock running, and it is the loudest job in the country.

Fans, critics, former coaches and players alike have pummelled the Brisbane Bullets for the number of coaches the club has had since it rejoined the league in 2016-17. Eight men have held the job across ten seasons, six of them permanently, and the interim tag has been handed out twice. Will Will Weaver bring the stability Bullets fans crave?

The Adelaide Lightning faced the same criticism after appointing their fourth coach in 12 months last season. But they are chasing stability, removing Aja Parham-Ammar's interim tag and locking her into a two-year deal.

basketball.com.au has taken a close look at each job, the incumbent head coach, and the next generation of coaches preparing to step into the spotlight.

WNBL Clubs

Adelaide Lightning – Aja Parham-Ammar

Aja Parham-Ammar was rewarded for her work after taking over as interim head coach in WNBL26 from Kerryn Mitchell. It was a job interview of the toughest kind, because stability has not been the calling card for one of the WNBL's most storied clubs, but Parham-Ammar was handed a two-year deal and will be back for WNBL27.

Bendigo Spirit – Kennedy Kereama

Kereama re-signed for two more seasons on May 8, 2026, and he has earned every bit of it. He was named WNBL26 Coach of the Year and led the Spirit to the 2024-25 championship the season before, then back to the semi-finals despite losing MVP Sami Whitcomb, Marianna Tolo and Casey Samuels from a younger core. Kereama is one of the best coaches in Australia. He joined the Spirit ahead of the 2022-23 season after leading the New Zealand Tall Ferns from 2010 to 2017. Kereama was Sandy Brondello's Australian Opals assistant coach at the 2026 FIBA World Cup in Germany.

Canberra Capitals – Paul Goriss

Two-time WNBL championship head coach Paul Goriss was the WNBL Coach of the Year in 2019-20. He has won titles with the Capitals, served as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Dream in the WNBA from 2022 to 2024, and returned to Canberra as an assistant before being appointed head coach in 2024. Expectations were high at the start of WNBL26 with an upgraded roster, but Canberra struggled to string wins together and finished fifth. He is contracted until 2028, and he is also the Opals associate head coach, which tells you what the national program thinks of him.

Geelong Venom – Cheryl Chambers

Cheryl Chambers took over on March 30, 2026, on a two-season deal, and her resume is elite: three WNBL championships in 2017, 2020 and 2024, and three WNBL Coach of the Year awards. She is the head coach of the Sandringham Sabres in the NBL1 South women's conference and an assistant to Sandy Brondello with the Opals. Former head coach Chris Lucas coached his 400th game in WNBL26, but it was a tough campaign for the rebranded Venom, with injuries wrecking any chance of continuity.

Perth Lynx – Ryan Petrik

Ryan Petrik re-signed on a new multi-year deal on June 3, 2026, to prove it. Petrik led the Lynx into the WNBL26 championship series but fell short against Shannon Seebohm's Townsville Fire. The Lynx finished second on the ladder and recruited Chinese superstar Han Xu, who has since been named in the 2026 FIBA World Cup All-Second Team. The last time Perth missed the playoffs was in 2020. Petrik's Lynx were beaten by a better team in WNBL26, but make no mistake, Perth will be back.

Southside Melbourne Flyers – Sam Mackinnon

Former NBL star Sam Mackinnon was appointed head coach on March 31, 2026, after the club announced on March 19 that it would not renew WNBL champion Kristi Harrower, an Australian Opal and WNBA player. Flyers owner Gerry Ryan said of Mackinnon: "His distinguished playing career and extensive coaching experience bring outstanding leadership and a proven ability to build strong teams. He will drive a high-performance culture, sharing our vision to deliver both team success and the individual growth of our athletes, on and off the court."

Sydney Flames – Renae Garlepp

The Flames locked down Renae Garlepp for two seasons on February 4, 2026, after the Australian Gems World Cup coach took over from Guy Molloy mid-season amid injuries galore, no second import, Agnes Emma-Nnopu with a concussion and import Grace Berger ruled out. Garlepp is highly respected and would have been first in line for the Tasmania Jewels, which makes it huge for Sydney to lock her in. Garlepp was Sandy Brondello's Australian Opals assistant coach at the 2026 FIBA World Cup in Germany.

Townsville Fire – Shannon Seebohm

WNBL26 championship winning coach Shannon Seebohm is contracted to the end of WNBL29. Seebohm is not just one of the best women's coaches in Australia, he is one of the best coaches in Australia, full stop. He put on a masterclass in the WNBL26 final series, sweeping Perth 2-0 and winning game two 108-105 in overtime. He is a five-time WNBL Coach of the Year, a two-time WNBL champion in 2023 and 2026, and a two-time NBL1 North Coach of the Year.

Tasmania Jewels – Claudia Brassard

Claudia Brassard was named the Jewels' inaugural head coach on March 2, 2026. She began her WNBL coaching tenure as an assistant under Chris Lucas at the Townsville Fire before taking over as head coach from 2016 to 2019, leading the Fire to the 2018 WNBL championship and the club's third title in four seasons. After departing in 2019 she returned to coaching in 2025 with the Townsville Flames in NBL1 North. She now guides an expansion club into its first WNBL season.

Queensland-based club

Launch data and location yet to be announced.

WNBL Head Coaching Candidates

• Kristi Harrower: The most available credentialed coach in the country. Southside did not renew her for WNBL27, and the former Opal and WNBA player now coaches Keilor Thunder in NBL1 South and takes the Australian Gems for the October 2026 FIBA U18 Women's Asia Cup window.
• Chris Lucas: Two-time championship coach, 400-plus WNBL games, left Geelong after WNBL26 and is unattached.
• Guy Molloy: Championship coach, now senior advisor for female performance at the Melbourne Tigers.
• Tully Bevilaqua: Former WNBA star, and an interim assistant coach with the Indiana Fever since July 1, 2026.
• Marcus Wong: Seebohm's deputy at Townsville and the 2026 NBL1 North Coach of the Year with the Cairns Dolphins. There is no better place to learn the craft.
• Matt Clarke: Head coach of the West Adelaide Bearcats in NBL1 Women and an advance scout and strategy coach with the Tasmania Jewels for WNBL27. He won NBL1 Central Coach of the Year in 2021, was lead assistant at Adelaide and a guest coach with the New York Liberty.
• Dave Herbert: Ran the Basketball Australia women's program at the CoE for three years to May 2025, and was appointed head coach of the Ballarat Miners NBL1 women's team on September 15, 2026.
• Kristen Veal: A legend of the WNBL as a player and part of several Canberra championships as Paul Goriss' assistant. She was head coach of the Capitals when Goriss joined the Atlanta Dream, and ran the Basketball Australia CoE women's program until 2022.
• Paul Flynn: Coached the Nunawading Spectres women from 2017 and was a Melbourne Boomers assistant from 2017 to 2022. He has stepped down from the bench and is now Nunawading's general manager for representative, brand and commercial.

NBL Clubs

Adelaide 36ers – Trevor Gleeson

Trevor Gleeson signed a three-year deal on May 22, 2026, and inherits a club in far better shape than the one he might have expected. Mike Wells stepped down after two seasons having guided Adelaide back to the finals for the first time in seven years and delivered the club's best regular season since 1986, before departing to prioritise family commitments. Wells started his coaching career as an intern with the Houston Rockets in 1994, during the team's first of back-to-back NBA championships, and has been an assistant with the Lakers, Spurs, Jazz and Hornets.

Brisbane Bullets – Will Weaver

Musical chairs best describes the Bullets: Andrej Lemanis, James Duncan, Sam Mackinnon, Greg Vanderjagt, Justin Schueller, Stu Lash, interim head coach Darryl McDonald and now Will Weaver, since the club rejoined the league in 2016-17. McDonald, in the most public way, said on December 30, 2025: "They don't need a coach, I'm right here, man. Stop bringing these coaches from the States. It hasn't worked. What we are doing is overhauling people. You got a coach right here. I know what it takes to win in this league." But the Bullets did. They signed the 42-year-old Texan and former Sydney Kings head coach as head coach and president of basketball operations in March 2026.

Cairns Taipans – Adam Forde

Adam Forde came back to the Taipans after deciding to leave following NBL25, and credited coaching the Australian 3x3 team for reigniting the spark. The Taipans splashed the cash but were hurt by injuries, and everyone has injuries. They battled hard down the stretch to avoid sharing the wooden spoon with Brisbane. Forde is a four-time NBL champion as an assistant with the Perth Wildcats and was NBL Coach of the Year in 2023 with the Taipans. He has since re-signed through NBL28.

Illawarra Hawks – Justin Tatum

NBL Coach of the Year and NBL25 championship coach Justin Tatum is already a legend in the 'Gong, and despite the Hawks' title defence failing to launch, he is into the fourth year of a deal that runs through this season. Roster construction is Tatum's top priority for NBL27.

Melbourne United – Jacob Chance

Jacob Chance is the newest head coach in the league and the biggest bet on it. United gave the 32-year-old four seasons and the head of basketball operations title on June 29, 2026, after Dean Vickerman's nine-year run ended in May. Chance is a former Melbourne United, Tasmania JackJumpers and Perth Wildcats assistant who went to the NBA G League, was named G League Coach of the Month in November 2025 and took the Austin Spurs to 23-13 in his first season in charge. He opens against Adelaide at John Cain Arena on Saturday.

New Zealand Breakers – Gordon Herbert

The Breakers turned to one of world basketball's most decorated coaches after moving on from Finnish mentor Petteri Koponen, who delivered the club the inaugural Ignite Cup and a $300,000 prize across two seasons in Auckland before a 10-19 NBL26 campaign ended his tenure at 20-38 overall. Herbert, 67, has coached professionally in Finland, Germany, France and Greece, and led Germany to bronze at the 2022 EuroBasket before guiding them to the 2023 FIBA World Cup title, beating Serbia 83-77 in the gold medal game after an unbeaten tournament. He was a Canadian national team assistant before Germany, and he now holds the Canada head coaching job at the same time as this one, leading them into the 2027 World Cup and Los Angeles 2028.

Perth Wildcats – John Rillie

The Wildcats finished fourth and faced recruiting and injury headwinds all season, and are still recovering from how Bryce Cotton left the ball club. Rillie was an assistant at Boise State in the NCAA from 2011 to 2017 and at Santa Barbara from 2017 to 2022 before being appointed at Perth in 2022, and he is contracted to the end of 2027-28.

South East Melbourne Phoenix – Josh King

American Josh King is an elite coach who was runner-up to Australia's greatest coach, Brian Goorjian, in the NBL26 Coach of the Year award, and the Phoenix extended him on July 24, 2026, through at least NBL29. South East Melbourne are so tough to play against because King's squad has bought in on both sides of the ball. King has done the hard yards since 2008: Vassar College, UMass Lowell, Marshall, New Hampshire and Riesen Ludwigsburg as an assistant, then USK Praha, Darussafaka, and now the Phoenix.

Sydney Kings – Brian Goorjian

Seven-time NBL Coach of the Year, and now a seven-time NBL champion after the Kings beat Adelaide 113-101 in overtime in game five of the NBL26 grand final series in front of a record 18,589. Goorjian is 73, his contract expires at the end of NBL27, and he told the NBL three days ago that he is coaching every day like this is it. His first coaching job was with the Ballarat Miners in 1986-87, forty years ago. Andrew Bogut is in year two beside him as an assistant, and if that is a head coaching apprenticeship, Bogut's basketball IQ is off the charts and downloading from Goorjian is a frightening prospect for rival coaches. This is the job the whole league is watching.

Tasmania JackJumpers – Scott Roth

American Scott Roth has the JackJumpers job for as long as he wants it, and on September 16, 2026, he took two more years of it, extending through NBL29 and saying it will be his last contract. Roth is a no-nonsense head coach who is as SAFE as the gold inside Fort Knox. He led the JackJumpers to the championship in 2024, and his ball club grinded its way through injuries to 14-19 in NBL26. Injuries and building chemistry with a new backcourt were always going to take time, but rival coaches know to be prepared when it is the Jackies. Roth, the NBL Coach of the Year in 2022, has been an assistant with the Golden State Warriors, Toronto Raptors and Detroit Pistons. The JackJumpers are in very good hands.

NBL Head Coaching Candidates

• Matthew Nielsen: One of Australia's greatest NBL players, four years at the San Antonio Spurs working alongside Gregg Popovich. It does not get any better than that for the 47-year-old. Nielsen started coaching in 2015 as a Perth assistant, moved to the Austin Spurs in 2019 and joined the San Antonio staff in 2021.
• Aaron Fearne: NBL Coach of the Year in 2015 at Cairns, and far more gettable than he was a year ago. Charlotte sacked him on March 17, 2026, and he is now an assistant at the College of Charleston. He was a Taipans assistant from 2001 to 2009 and head coach from 2009 to 2018.
• Andrej Lemanis: Head coach of Altiri Chiba in the Japan B.League since 2021. Lemanis led Brisbane in the NBL after guiding the New Zealand Breakers to three titles between 2011 and 2013. He is a two-time NBL Coach of the Year and a former Boomers Olympic head coach, and the first Australian to coach the Boomers to a win over the United States, 98-94 in Melbourne in 2019.
• Shawn Dennis: Head coach of the Tokyo Sunrockers since May 2026, after five years at Nagoya. Dennis, 60, was NBL Coach of the Year in 2016 at the Townsville Crocodiles and has been in Japan since 2017.
• Chase Buford: A two-time NBL championship coach with the Sydney Kings, and then basketball.com.au columnist Andrew Bogut's first-choice recommendation for the Brisbane Bullets. The 37-year-old American is an assistant with the Denver Nuggets.
• Mick Downer: Longtime NBL assistant at Cairns, Brisbane and Adelaide, and a Boomers assistant at the 2016 Olympic Games. He has been head coach of the Akita Northern Happinets since December 2025 and re-signed in May 2026.
• Andrew Bogut: An assistant with the Sydney Kings in his second year on Goorjian's staff and learning from the best in the business. A head coaching role is only a matter of time for a member of Australian basketball royalty.
• Kerry Williams: An assistant coach at the Adelaide 36ers, retained on Gleeson's panel, and head coach of the Indigenous All-Stars.
• Anthony Petrie: Gold Coast Rollers head coach, who won the 2026 NBL1 North title and the National Finals after taking out the 2023 NBL1 North Coach of the Year.
• Robbie McKinlay: Ran the CoE men's program from 2021 until June 2026 and is now an assistant with the Tokyo Sunrockers. He started coaching in 2006 at Augusta State and was at the NBA Global Academy from 2017.
• Damian Cotter: Off the Chicago Bulls staff for 2026-27 and now head coach of B.LEAGUE UNITED. Cotter started at Knox in 2000, joined the NSW Institute of Sport in 2007 and the Sydney Kings in 2013, becoming head coach in 2014 before moving to the Long Island Nets in 2017.
• Steve Woodberry: Played for Brisbane between 1996 and 1999 and Sydney in 2000, and won the league MVP in 1999. Word is the American, an assistant at Missouri State, is interested in returning to Australia.
• Darryl McDonald: Left the Bullets in March 2026 after his interim stint and coached Northside Wizards in NBL1 North. D-Mac is not out of the race for a head coaching role.
• Greg Vanderjagt: With the Bullets from 2022 as an assistant, interim head coach and head coach until March 2026, and led the Under-16 Australian Crocs to the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup.
• Luke Cann: An Adelaide 36ers assistant until July 2026 and a Brisbane assistant from 2023 to 2025, who steered Logan Thunder to seven NBL1 North finals appearances across ten seasons in charge.
• Rob Beveridge: Former head coach of West Sydney, Sydney Spirit, Illawarra and Perth, where he won a title in 2010, and famously led the under-19 Emus to world championship gold in 2003 with Andrew Bogut and Damian Martin. He joined Basketball WA as a technical advisor in July 2026.
• Brendan Joyce: Heading into his 26th year as a coach. He led the Illawarra Hawks to their first NBL championship in 2001 and is a two-time NBL Coach of the Year.
• Jason Cadee: A 400-game NBL veteran and basketball.com.au contributor, retired last season and a natural to move to the bench. He does not know he has made our list, but he has a high-IQ basketball mind and can easily follow his father, who coached the Opals from 1986 to 1992 after winning the 1983 NBL Coach of the Year award. We hope he stays with us.

National Coaches

Australian Boomers

Adam Caporn is as SAFE as houses. He won the FIBA Men’s Asia Cup championship and has the backing of the Boomers players. His appointment was somewhat of a shock within the basketball community, but he’s proven himself to be the right man to lead the Boomers into the 2027 World Cup and the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. His challenge will be to manage expectations given the NBA talent he’ll have at his disposal at both tournaments. Six-time NBL MVP Bryce Cotton revealed to Jason Cadee on Cut to the Jase that he had spoken to Caporn about the 2028 Olympic Games.

Australian Opals

Sandy Brondello is as SAFE as houses. There are few more credentialed coaches in world basketball than Brondello, both internationally and in the WNBA. Brondello led the Opals to a bronze medal at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris and the New York Liberty to the WNBA championship in the same year. She is now the head coach of the WNBA expansion franchise, Toronto Tempo and will lead the Opals to the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Bonus: Basketball Australia Centre of Excellence – Michael Czepil and Mel Downer

It is two seats rather than one, and neither is on the list above. Michael Czepil was appointed to the men's program on June 22, 2026, and reported for duty in Canberra on July 8, arriving from a head coaching job at Sacramento State. He replaced Robbie McKinlay, who left on June 11 after eight years across the CoE and the NBA Global Academy, five of them as the men's head coach, and who is now an assistant with the Tokyo Sunrockers in Japan. Mel Downer has the women's program through to 2028, announced in January 2026 after an interim year in which she took the program to an NBL1 East grand final against Manly-Warringah.

Neither job pays like an NBL contract and neither comes with a home crowd. But the CoE in Canberra is where the next Boomer and the next Opal are built, both programs play in NBL1 East, and the people who run Australian basketball know exactly who holds these two seats. That is why they are here.