Skylar the Creator: Playmaking boost for King's men

• Inside Anthony Dell'Orso's Perth Wildcats signing
• Middle management: Blitz will unearth bargains
• 'Boom goes the dynamite': SuperCoach NBL classic is BACK

An MVP candidate from last season may finally have the playmaking help he needed as the South East Melbourne Phoenix showed they might have the necessary pieces to be legitimate contenders in NBL27.

While teams announced many front-line stars would miss the NBL Blitz in Bendigo this week, night one didn't disappoint as the Cairns Taipans toppled the Perth Wildcats and the Phoenix dominated an undermanned Sydney Kings at Red Energy Arena.

While night two is set to heat up the competition even more, as Bryce Cotton and the Adelaide 36ers take centre stage in country Victoria, we take a look at the three things which stood out from opening night of the event.

MAYS A BIG BOOST FOR KING'S MEN

Nathan Sobey had a career-year for the Phoenix in NBL26, almost carrying them to a spot in the Championship Series, before losing in a deciding game three in the semi-finals to the Adelaide 36ers.

But the message in what would be Phoenix's weakness was evident at the biggest moments - Sobey needed help. And that help was needed in another playmaker/creator who could take the load off the veteran.

Well, South East Melbourne went out and got that help in signing former NBA guard Skylar Mays.

And while their opening Blitz win over the KIngs wasn't the prettiest of games, it did show that Mays would provide a massive boost for Josh King.

As NBLPleb put it, there will be some teething issues between the pair, but once they sort that out they will be tough to stop. Actually, the Phoenix are my darkhorses to take out the title in NBL27.

You add the shooting they have around Sobey and Mays in Angus Glover, Tanner Krebs and more - alongside more defence in NBL Next Star Dash Daniels, who Jason Cadee believes is set for a breakout season, this year may be the year Josh's men become Kings of the NBL.

BRUCEY'S STILL GOT IT

There's no doubt the current Cairns Taipans roster fits the mould of coach Adam Forde perfectly.

Cairns will play uptempo, boast a lot of athleticism and even more importantly, a lot of perimeter shooting.

But a signing that might be just as important as any of their stars, including Jaylin Galloway who moved from the Sydney Kings, is the recruitment of veteran point guard Shaun Bruce.

After winning three titles with the Kings, Bruce has made the move up north on a two-year deal and just might be the calming influence this, at times kamikaze team, needs.

That was more than evident in game one of the Blitz, where he helped the Taipans beat the Perth Wildcats, and showed he'd be an important pick-up for this season's NBL SuperCoach as well.

A sneaky under-the-radar signing which may provide the Taipans with a boost to be a play-in contender in NBL27.

DELL'ORSO: A CATS UPGRADE

We always love to see our college stars return home to play in the NBL or WNBL and what a coup it was for the Perth Wildcats to get the signature of former Arizona Wildcat Anthony Dell'Orso.

Yes, the Wildcats still have a massive point guard hole to fill, but Dell'Orso is a massive upgrade on Ben Henshall.

The second Aussie basketball 'Delly' can do damage from the perimeter, shooting around 40% in two of his four seasons in the US, but different to Henshall he showed he can attack the basket without needed many dribbles to do so.

However, the biggest plus he provides Perth is his ability to defend and compete on the defensive end of the floor - an area Henshall struggled with during his time with the Wildcats.

You partner Dell'Orso alongside a quality point guard, Kristian Doolittle, Jo Lual-Acuil and the sharpshooting of Elijah Pepper and the Red Army once again have a team that contend for another championship.