The 2022-23 NBL season continues on Sunday night with a blockbuster clash between Melbourne United and the Sydney Kings. As always, we preview the game and brings you our best bets right here!
Also, make sure to check out our NBL tips page where you’ll find our best bets for every game of the 2022-23 NBL season!
Melbourne United vs Sydney Kings Preview & Betting Tips
Sunday 4pm AEDT, John Cain Arena
Melbourne United
There was no easing into NBL23 for United fans who witnessed a thrilling overtime win in their team’s season-opener. United’s edge in experience over the Breakers was noticeable in overtime and saw them pull off a 101-97 victory. Starting point guard Shea Ili was unavailable in their opener due to concussion protocols, as was Ariel Hukporti who will miss the entire season after injuring his Achilles in the pre-season.
Xavier Rathan-Mayes stepped into the starting point guard role against the Breakers and delivered a mouth-watering 33/5/9 stat line. Chris Goulding also lit it up with 24 points on 13 shots, while the new import duo of Rayjon Tucker and Jordan Caroline were disappointing with just 18 points combined on 6-26 from the field.
Sydney Kings
The defending champions got their season off to a winning start when they took care of the Hawks in the first game of the Freeway Series. They backed up that performance with an easy 100-90 win over the Bullets on Friday night and look to be in really good shape at 2-0. The Kings don’t have much to worry about on the injury front either, which will give them a great opportunity to cash-in on some wins against some teams that aren’t so fortunate early in the season.
Derrick Walton Jr is the early clubhouse leader for MVP honours after two amazing performances to start his NBL career. He’s averaging 26.5/4/8 to date and is shooting an outrageous 63% clip. Xavier Cooks also looks to be improving further after taking home the Grand Final MVP last season, while Dejan Vasiljevic still has plenty of improvement in him after a modest start to his campaign.
Match Prediction
Although they were clearly the best team last season and were crowned champions, the Kings still struggled in this matchup. United won the season series 2-1, winning the last two matchups, and one was an absolute rout (89-47). Importantly, both wins for United were on their home floor, which they’ve performed far better on in this matchup compared to games at Qudos Bank Arena.
On paper, you could argue that the Kings look the better outfit and are the deserving favourites, however, Chris Goulding and Melbourne United have a habit up stepping up in big rivalry games and this will be no exception. I expect the home side to put in a big shift and come away with a strong win in front of a raucous crowd.
Melbourne United H2H
$2.20 (1.5 Units)
