Ingles on Goorjian: 'Nice to see him ... we want to kick his ass'

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Melbourne United NBA guard Cole Anthony ($300,000) was just eight years old when Joe Ingles ($300,000) and Brian Goorjian hoisted the 2008-09 NBL championship at Hisense Arena – now John Cain Arena – on March 13, 2009.

A lot has happened in the 6,436 days since South Dragons claimed their first and only NBL championship.

Ingles, then 21, went to Europe and then the NBA for 12 years, and Goorjian, then 55, went to China, returned to the NBL, and is now a seven-time NBL Coach of the Year and seven-time NBL champion.

They will be forever linked after leading the Australian men’s national team to its first Olympic Games medal in Tokyo.

Fast forward to Round 6 of NBL27 on Sunday, October 25, 2026, and they were on opposite benches in John Cain Arena as the now 26-year-old Anthony dropped a 30-piece on the defending champions to secure a much-needed 105-95 win.

“I’ve seen him a lot in the off-seasons and had some success there too,” Ingles said of Goorjian.

“I hadn’t seen him for a little while, so it was nice to see him. Obviously you’re on the other end, so we want to kick his ass, but obviously a hell of a coach with the career he’s had.

“We’re in that same locker room from whatever it was, 17 years ago. Same building and probably some similar fans. There’s a bit of history in here.

“It’s nice for us to be back as a family in Melbourne, with family and friends. I get to play with my kids sitting three or four rows behind the bench, which is pretty special for our family.

“I’m lucky to do it with an awesome club and team. Hopefully we can get a few more wins in front of our home fans.”

Ingles, 39, finished with two points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 23 minutes.

“There have been highs and lows, but I hold Joe in high regard as a person and a player, and for all he’s accomplished,” Goorjian said.

“The championship was unbelievably special, coming from last to first here in a franchise that was one of the better franchises I’ve ever been involved in in Australia.

“Then the Rose Gold piece. All those guys who were part of that team, it’s something that – I said when it happened – not just Australia, but Asia-Pacific, it had never been done before. Never a medal.

“Whenever I look there, it’s pretty special. It’s amazing what he’s doing for this team at his age, with his background, and what he’s doing for our league.

“He’s bringing a lot of growth and opening doors for other guys to come back. Full credit to him.”

United is now 4-5 in seventh, but three of those five losses have been by two points and another by one. The Kings are now 5-3.

“We’ve won in Melbourne, but obviously not in front of our home fans,” Ingles said.

“We’ve done a lot of good over this early part of the year. It hasn’t all shown up in results, but we’ve done a lot of good things, and we’ve been close. Obviously, those three or four games came down to last possessions.

“We’ve been pretty consistent with what we’ve been working on, what we’ve been talking about and how we’ve been talking about it.

“If you do that for a long period of time, the results are going to fall that way. We’d rather have our record flipped, but we’ve done a lot of good stuff.

“It was nice for that to play out a bit better on our side in front of our home fans.

“Now we’ve got the challenge of getting ready and doing it again next weekend.”

Ingles is averaging 10.3 points on an insane 60.4 clip, 4.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists off the bench in nine games. But it’s his poise and the speed he plays at – his own – after 750 NBA games that separates him.

“I haven’t really sat back and assessed myself personally,” he said.

“Maybe unlike a lot of people, I was pretty confident in what I was going to be able to bring.

“The last couple of years in Minnesota were tough, not playing. I was lucky – Finchy was awesome, the team was awesome, obviously a successful group – but I missed playing. I missed that part of it a lot.

“I’m very lucky to have a supportive wife who follows me around the world and has my back in those decisions.

“Regardless of basketball, the family part of coming home was big. We wanted to do that for our kids. Basketball is the cherry on top. I get to play for an awesome club, awesome coach and awesome group of guys.

“I didn’t come in having goals about what I wanted to do. I hadn’t played for two years. I had to work my way back into game shape.

“I worked my ass off and wanted to put my best foot forward. The rest is up to the coaching staff. We’re a deep team, and I’m old enough to be aware of that. There’ll be nights I play less or more.

“I’m really enjoying it. I enjoy competing. I enjoy yelling at practice when he’s refereeing – the competitive stuff you miss when you’re not playing.

“Being able to go to my kids’ sport on the weekend and pick them up from school when we’re not practising too late has been awesome too.

“At the end of the year, I’ll probably assess it more. I’m at the age where every year there’s a decision to make.

“I came into this year open-minded. I feel good. Playing two games in 36 hours, or whatever it was, I feel really good.

“A couple of days off, thanks to coach, and we’ll get ready to go again this weekend.”

Watch

NBL27

Melbourne United vs Sydney Kings | Round 6 Highlights

Watch the highlights as Melbourne United take on the Sydney Kings in Round 6 of NBL27 on October 25, 2026.

What you need to know

• Melbourne United beat the Sydney Kings 105-95 at John Cain Arena in Round 6 of NBL27.
• United won three of the four quarters, 32-31, 24-20 and 21-13, to lead 77-64 at the last change, and led for the rest of the game after a 47-47 tie late in the second quarter. Sydney won the fourth 31-28 but got no closer than nine.
• Cole Anthony ($300,000) scored 30 points with nine assists on 10-from-22, and Josh Oduro ($277,000) added 27 off the bench on 10-from-16. Torrey Craig ($290,400) led Sydney with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
• Sydney turned the ball over 16 times and United six. United had eight steals to two and took 79 shots to Sydney's 65.
• Sydney won the boards 48-35, with 15 offensive rebounds, and made 24 of 33 free throws to United's 17 of 22, but Kendric Davis ($436,000) shot 3-from-16 with five turnovers.

Melbourne United

• Cole Anthony ($300,000) top-scored with 30 points, nine assists, six rebounds and two blocks on 10-from-22, including 7-from-9 at the line, with one turnover.
• Josh Oduro ($277,000) added 27 off the bench on 10-from-16, with 6-from-6 at the line and a game-high plus-22 in 33 minutes.
• Luke Travers ($292,900) scored 19 on 8-from-16 with three assists and no turnovers in 32 minutes.
• Sam Waardenburg ($277,500) scored 10 on 4-from-5, including 2-from-3 from three, with six rebounds in 13 minutes.
• Shea Ili ($175,300) had eight points, two steals and a block off the bench, including 2-from-4 from three.
• Joe Ingles ($300,000) had two points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 23 minutes off the bench.
• Malith Machar ($69,000) made two of his three three-pointers for six points in 18 minutes.
• United shot 38-from-79 from the field, 12-from-27 from three and 17-from-22 at the line, with 35 rebounds, 21 assists, eight steals and six turnovers.

Sydney Kings

• Torrey Craig ($290,400) top-scored with 22 points, 13 rebounds and two steals on 8-from-14, including 4-from-8 from three.
• Andrew Carr ($277,000) added 18 points and 11 rebounds off the bench on 3-from-9, including 3-from-5 from three, and made 9-from-12 at the line.
• Xavier Cooks ($308,000) had 14 points, 10 rebounds and six assists on 6-from-7.
• Kendric Davis ($436,000) scored 12 on 3-from-16, including 1-from-5 from three, with five assists and five turnovers.
• Makuach Maluach ($134,500) scored nine on 3-from-4 in 24 minutes.
• Jayden Stone ($100,000) scored nine off the bench, including 2-from-6 from three.
• Harry Wessels ($100,000) made all three of his shots for six points in nine minutes.
• Sydney shot 30-from-65 from the field, 11-from-29 from three and 24-from-33 at the line, with 48 rebounds, 22 assists and 16 turnovers.