'Can't skip steps': Stu Lash's Brisbane Bullets blueprint

• Lash was appointed the Brisbane Bullets head coach in April after spending several seasons as the club's Senior Basketball Advisor
• The Bullets have signed 2022 NBL MVP Jaylen Adams as well as 2025 NBA champion Alex Ducas
• Defensive stopper Sam McDaniel will make his return after missing most of last season with a shoulder injury

Stu Lash is no stranger to the Brisbane Bullets.

Lash, 49, has been an influential presence within the Bullets front office for the past several seasons but now he's steering the ship as the Southeast Queensland's NBL club's head coach.

“(The transition) has been great,” Lash said.

“There’s always a transitional period, and we don’t get started right away when a move like this happens… but I have been part of the club for a number of years now.

"So, it was like the relationships were already there.”

Lash has gone from helping shape the team’s recruiting strategy and long-term vision behind the scenes as Brisbane's Senior Basketball Advisor to the spotlight of trying to lead the Bullets to their first championship in nearly two decades.

While the new role brings new responsibilities Lash's experience in player personnel roles across the NBA and global basketball and eye for talent and commitment to team culture made him a steadying force.

Brisbane has retooled significantly in the off-season, bringing in Jaylen Adams from the Sydney Kings, import guard Javon Freeman-Liberty from the G League's Windy City Bulls and 2025 NBA champion Alex Ducas to complement the rejuvenated Casey Prather.

“The focus is still more on recruiting and filling out the roster and probably wearing that front office hat as much as a coach hat. You need players to coach,” he said.

But Lash isn’t just trying to assemble talent, he wants to lay the foundation for something deeper — sustainable success.

The Bullets haven't made the playoffs for the past six seasons, but instead of rushing towards short term success, Lash and the Bullets have taken their time in rebuilding the team and their culture, determined to become a contender for the foreseeable future.

“We’ve put ourselves in a position now where the goal realistically is to compete for a top four spot every year,” he said.

“That’s how the top teams in this league work… Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, they put themselves in a position to be consistently competitive.

“You can’t skip steps.

"There’s things that we’ve done over the last couple of years off the basketball court that I think have put us in a position to be at the table with big players.”

One of those big players is former MVP Jaylen Adams, who was the biggest addition for the Bullets this offseason and signals a shift away from rebuilding and towards title contention. Lash believes Adams was the perfect fit for the club.

“For Jaylen, that guy’s a closer,” Lash said.

“We go back and we look at our games from last year, we had a hard time finishing games … So to have somebody like Jaylen come in… he’s shown the ability to do that.”

Lash said he believed Adams’ experience in the NBL gives him an edge in adapting quickly.

“He’s played against us. He knows our personnel. He knows our players. He knows the style of the league, the pace, the whistle, all the things that sometimes can take a while to learn.”

“We need Jaylen, but I think Jaylen needs us… He’s coming in with a mindset of, ‘I’m an MVP of this league and I want to do something with this franchise that hasn’t been done for a while'.”

While the addition of Adams has Bullets fans excited about a revitalised offense, Lash made it clear that defense was going to be the foundation for their success and big man Tyrell Harrison and former Defensive Player of the Year finalist Sam McDaniel were going to be the team's anchors on that end of the floor,

“It all starts on the defensive end. We have to be an improved defensive team from where we were last year… If you’re not in that top four, top five range defensively, it’s almost impossible to compete for a championship," he said.

“Empowering (Harrison and McDaniel) to really anchor the defence… that’s where it starts.

“I’ve always said, if you play defence and you rebound, offense is fun. I want to give the guys the freedom on that offensive end to just play instinctual, awareness type basketball.”

But after an injury-riddled 2024-25 campaign, Lash also said staying healthy was going to be a significant factor.

"We’re putting a really heavy emphasis on the mind and the body as we go into this training camp and preseason," he said.

With an MVP-calibre addition, a reshaped roster, and a steady voice stepping to the forefront, the Bullets are hoping to turn the page on years of frustration. What’s coming next has been years in the making.

“If you’re doing things and building the right way with the right people, you get a little bit of luck and a little bit of love from the health gods, then you’re in the fight... and once you’re in the fight, anything can happen," Lash said.

Brisbane Bullets

Head Coach: Stu Lash

Potential Line-up

1. ‍PG: Jaylen Adams (IP) | Mitch Norton‍
2. SG: Javon Freeman-Liberty |Sam McDaniel | Taine Murray | Tristan Devers (DP)‍
3. SF: Alex Ducas‍
4. PF: Casey Prather (IP) | Tohi Smith-Milner | Jensen Bradtke (DP)‍
5. C: Tyrell Harrison | Jacob Holt

Contracted Players

• Casey Prather (Import)
• Mitch Norton
• Sam McDaniel
• Tohi Smith-Milner
• Tristan Devers (Development Player)
• Tyrell Harrison

Incoming Players

• Javon Freeman-Liberty (from Windy City Bulls)
• Jaylen Adams (from Sydney Kings – Import)
• Alex Ducas (from Oklahoma City Thunder – NBA)
• Taine Murray (from University of Virginia – NCAA)
• Jacob Holt (from Sacramento State University – NCAA)
• Jensen Bradtke (from University of Montana – NCAA)

Departed Players

• Isaac White (to Adelaide 36ers)
• James Batemon (to Hiopos Lleida – Spain)
• Josh Bannan (to Tasmania JackJumpers)
• Keandre Cook (to CB Breogán – Spain)
• Kye Savage
• Rocco Zikarsky (to Minnesota Timberwolves – NBA)

Free Agents

• Deng Adel
• Emmett Naar
• Jarred Bairstow
• Josh Adams
• Josh Kunen

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