The NBL run home and we predict the final six, no stopping Illawarra Hawks, Melbourne United's stagnant offence, unpredictable Adelaide 36ers, decimated Tasmania JackJumpers/Brisbane Bullets, could be brutal Cairns Taipans finish, on fire Perth Wildcats/South East Melbourne Phoenix.

Cody Ellis is back for Hoops Heaven's Basketball Hustle and we start off with a follow up on the passing of Darryl Pearce with Mike Ellis passing on a tribute and his shock at the passing of his long-time rival.

We open up this week's show wrapping up all the happenings in the last week of the NBL including the hot Hawks, struggling United, Phoenix continuing their charge, Kouat Noi sparking the Sydney Kings, the Wildcats enjoying their home coming, not knowing what to get from the 36ers, injuries hitting the Bullets and JackJumpers, and the fun race to come in the run home.

We get an update on our awards with Bryce Cotton still leading Simon Mitchell's Sports Card World Player of the Year but Kendric Davis still in contention while Wani Swaka Lo Buluk still leading #TheDamo Best Defensive Player despite Dylan Windler's three votes.

This week's dissection begins at the Taipans who put in a fifth straight poor home performance against Adelaide with Adam Forde letting his players know about it afterwards. Cody's not sure if he will stay in Cairns beyond this season and sees Sam Waardenburg as being a hot target.

The Bullets are dealing with a brutal injury run and trying to win without their best two players, Casey Prather and Tyrell Harrison, was a bridge too far in Illawarra and it might have been enough to put them out of genuine top six contention.

The 36ers lost in Perth and won big in Cairns after another dramatic week but they do appear to be a playing group enjoying playing together and who are dangerous even if their defence still needs some work.

The JackJumpers have been struck with three season-ending injuries they could least afford and while it's hard to still see them holding onto sixth spot, you never want to write them off.

South East Melbourne are fun to watch, they are playing well at both ends of the floor and covering well without Derrick Walton Jr with captain Nathan Sobey playing some of the best team basketball of his career.

Melbourne is struggling offensively and they need to find another genuine offensive weapon to take the pressure off Chris Goulding, and Ian Clark does need to be that person but he needs help to get some better shots.

With three rounds to go, we take a look at the run home for all the teams left in contention to make the top six with Cody settling on Illawarra, Perth, South East Melbourne, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide.

We then preview a monster Wednesday night double-header with the Phoenix hosting the Kings, and then the Wildcats at home to United before the TABtouch Round 18 Preview highlighted by Sydney playing Adelaide on Friday in a must-watch affair.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

Darryl Pearce tribute as Simon Mitchell returns to discuss all things South East Melbourne Phoenix, why Perth Wildcats are elite & Adelaide 36ers aren’t, breaking down Sydney Kings, Melbourne United, TABtouch NBL Preview & plenty more.

We start and finish this week's show with a tribute to two-time NBL champion and Hall of Famer Darryl Pearce with Simon Mitchell declaring him one of the best three-point shooters he's ever seen.

Latest on the Player of the Year and Best Defensive Player award voting and a wrap of what's been another dramatic week in the NBL with games every single day.

There's plenty South East Melbourne to discuss including Derrick Walton Jr injury and who needs to step up, why they can still significantly improve, why Matt Hurt deserves more recognition, Nathan Sobey's leadership and why Simon might have cost them a chance at $50,000.

The new import at the Sydney Kings didn’t eventuate but Simon doesn’t necessarily feel it hurts their season prospects while admiring the way Cam Oliver has conducted himself.

Simon gives Melbourne United credit for winning their last two games on well executed last plays but doesn’t feel they are passing the eye test with how they are playing right now despite about to play for top spot.

There's always plenty of drama surrounding the Adelaide 36ers and while they have just beaten the Illawarra Hawks for a third time, Simon is not sold on them and not willing to put them in the elite category even if NBL Media loves them and Montrezl Harrell.

One team that Simon does feel deserves to be put in the elite category is the Perth Wildcats who not only are riding Bryce Cotton's MVP form, but Dylan Windler's delivering, they are tracking well as they head home and have plenty of improvement still left.

We then turn our attention to the TABtouch Round 17 Preview highlighted by the Perth Wildcats returning home to host the Adelaide 36ers, and then the Illawarra Hawks and Melbourne United battling over top spot.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

Cairns Taipans miracle, Sydney Kings welcome import as fourth quarter specialists/MVP's firing, Josh King perfect for South East Melbourne Phoenix, Adelaide 36ers back it up, NZ Breakers playing for Tacko Fall, Melbourne United woes, TABtouch NBL Preview.

We open up Hoops Heaven's Basketball Hustle by reflecting on the last week with that remarkable Taipans upset over the Hawks, the Breakers impressing missing their MVP candidate, the 36ers backing it up and the Kings standing out in fourth quarters with their new import having now arrived.

We update our awards for NBL25 with Bryce Cotton still leading Simon Mitchell's Sports Card World Player of the Year but Kendric Davis hot on his hammer, and Jaylen Adams, Derrick Walton Jr and Dylan Windler impressing.

Wani Swaka Lo Buluk is still leading Damian Martin's Best Defensive Player award but it was Windler, Marcus Lee and Mojave King in the votes this week.

We break down the Cairns Taipans snapping of their 15-game losing streak in remarkable fashion against the league-leading Hawks on the back of showing great heart with Taran Armstrong and Rob Edwards standing up, and Alex Higgins-Titsha shining.

There's lots to talk about with the Sydney Kings with former MVP's Xavier Cooks and Jaylen Adams in top form, Cam Oliver playing well but in limited minutes and now they bring in Lamonte Turner on the back of two standout fourth quarter performances.

The Adelaide 36ers backed up their win in Sydney by beating Melbourne at home and they loom as a real threat if they can keep the momentum rolling.

Melbourne United is heading in the opposite direction struggling to find that go to scorer and not getting enough defensive stops to help them run, but they can't be written off.

Their crosstown rivals the South East Melbourne Phoenix went 2 of 3 on the road, playing 11 of 12 strong quarters and with Josh King's style perfectly suiting their players, they are also looming as genuine contenders.

The New Zealand Breakers have played their first two games without Parker Jackson-Cartwright and should have had two wins with Matt Mooney and Tacko Fall benefitting from the different game style.

The Perth Wildcats made it four wins from five games in this road stretch with another 41 points from Bryce Cotton while Dylan Windler is firing in the absence of Kristian Doolittle.

We talk about the Summer Shootout and then turn our attention to the TABtouch Preview for Round 16 highlighted by Melbourne United v Sydney Kings on Thursday, Tasmania JackJumpers v Adelaide 36ers on Friday, and then the 36ers v Illawarra Hawks on Monday.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

The bipolar Adelaide 36ers, Josh Adams to Brisbane Bullets, Cam Oliver on the outs but Sydney Kings new import, self-inflicted Parker Jackson-Cartwright blow but NZ Breakers win, Illawarra Hawks, South East Melbourne Phoenix & Casey Prather all shining in NBL25.

There's no shortage of topics for us to catch up on in the NBL on Hoops Heaven's Basketball Hustle with Cody Ellis back after spending a week in Melbourne, a week in Sydney and reporting back from what he saw from two games he attended in each city.

We open up by talking the big talking points including Parker Jackson-Cartwright's suspension, the Cam Oliver drama at the Sydney Kings as they prepare to bring in a new import, Josh Adams has joined the Brisbane Bullets and then the Adelaide 36ers going from imploding to best win of the season.

The best way for us to catch up on everything that has been happening is to run through team by team beginning with the Illawarra Hawks who Cody sees as the team to beat right now with their consistency and having all the pieces.

Then there's Melbourne United who are still second but have been a bit all over the place lately but are still legit and have put themselves in a good position.

The Tasmania JackJumpers have now won eight straight to be up into third but to be genuine threats of defending their championship they do need to get Will Magnay back.

Focus then is on the Sydney Kings who appear to be fractured as a group, Cam Oliver isn’t being given a chance to contribute and now they are about to bring in a new import guard at the last possible moment.

The Perth Wildcats have done well to win three of four games so far on the road with Keanu Pinder making such a difference when aggressive and Izan Almansa and Dylan Windler are coming up big.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix round out the top six and are emerging as genuine contenders with a roster perfectly fit to play the pace that Josh King now has them playing at.

The Brisbane Bullets have been playing some impressive basketball as well despite never being full strength with Casey Prather putting himself in the MVP hunt and now with Josh Adams about to join.

The Adelaide 36ers lost three straight games by 20-plus points and looked set to completely implode before hitting back for a big win in Sydney but now the key is to show that wasn’t just a one off.

The NZ Breakers have now played their first of five games without Parker Jackson-Cartwright and won for the first time with Tacko Fall but face an uphill battle to keep themselves in the mix.

Then there's the Cairns Taipans who have lost 15 straight and Cody can't see where they get another win for the rest of the NBL season.

We wrap things up with a TABtouch Preview of Round 15 highlighted by the highly anticipated first rematch between the Adelaide 36ers and Melbourne United after their scuffle got out of hand last time.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

Well done Scott Ninnis but why not more female WNBL coaches? Can Adelaide 36ers and Montrezl Harrell defend? Can Bryce Cotton keep it up? Love for Jordan Hunter, not giving up on NZ Breakers, Melbourne United concerns and more from South East Melbourne Phoenix GM Simon Mitchell.

With Cotton putting up another 44 points, Simon takes a look at what is making him so unstoppable right now with his mid-range and floater game making the difference while as far as his future goes, he thinks it's whatever he wants it to be.

As inaugural South East Melbourne coach and current GM, Simon gives a good insight into life at the Phoenix right now under the coaching of Josh King and he talks about why he's so high on the future of Jordan Hunter along with Derrick Walton Jr, Nathan Sobey and Matt Hurt.

The NZ Breakers have lost six straight and haven’t figured things out with Tacko Fall, but Simon isn't ready to give up on them yet but he saw danger signs from the Cairns Taipans in their fadeout against the Wildcats.

The Tasmania JackJumpers continue to prove that they can't be written off having won five straight and now adding in Ian Hummer as the new import to replace Craig Sword giving them a genuine four man.

While the Adelaide 36ers have Kendric Davis and Montrezl Harrell back and they got a win, Simon is concerned over their defensive abilities especially on the road and with Harrell needing to try to defend Matt Hurt and Casey Prather this week.

Melbourne United has now lost three straight games for the first time in more than two years and Simon is seeing some things within their group that coach Dean Vickerman would be livid about, and expects them to fix that up moving forward.

We wrap up this week's show with the TABtouch Preview highlighted by the two open-air John Cain Arena games firstly with the Phoenix hosting the 36ers on Saturday and United playing the JackJumpers on Monday while the Hawks are also at home to the Wildcats on Sunday.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

No reason Bryce Cotton can't keep going in NBL25 for Perth Wildcats, his future, scoring explosion in NBL, Brisbane Bullets, Sydney Kings, Tasmania JackJumpers, South East Melbourne Phoenix all building, NZ Breakers not so much, excitement for Montrezl Harrell return.

We open up with a discussion about NBL Heritage Round and the fun uniforms all round along with the scoring we saw across the league with the winning average score of over 106 points with every team seemingly wanting to now pay at a fast pace.

We then get our votes for Round 11 with Will Magnay from Tasmania JackJumpers the new leader in Damian Martin's Best Defensive Player award while no surprise that Bryce Cotton is now the clear leader from Simon Mitchell in the Sports Card World Player of the Year.

It's then time to discuss Bryce Cotton's remarkable form with another 89 points across two games in Round 11 while only taking 44 shots with that efficiency impressing Cody more than anything else that he is doing right now and he sees no reason for his form to continue.

We also look at the future for Bryce and if it's in the NBL it's hard to see him playing anywhere but the NBL but Japan and China will come with big offers, and the NBA might even still be a chance as he looks to make the most of the biggest payday of his career.

We also talk about the weekend the Wildcats had losing to the Illawarra Hawks and beating the Adelaide 36ers while scoring 226 points but conceding 226 and why to be a real contender their defence and rebounding does need to improve.

Rob Loe had another tremendous weekend for Melbourne United including celebrating like a big kid after a dunk but his former college teammate couldn't be happier to see what he's doing and how well he continues to play.

The Brisbane Bullets had a statement two wins two scoring 224 points against Adelaide and Melbourne with Casey Prather firing, Tyrell Harrison dominant inside and Mitch Norton bringing it all together even if they rightfully rode their starters heavily.

Things aren’t going as well for the New Zealand Breakers ever since they replaced Freddie Gillespie with Tacko Fall with them having now lost four straight but even if the players weren't happy with that, it's no excuse for a lack of effort.

The Sydney Kings have played 11 of 16 games on the road already and with 9 of 13 left at home, they are well placed to still make a run with Cody liking playing Jaylen Adams more off the ball and why the rest of the league can't afford to write them off.

The Cairns Taipans might be out of the finals hunt but Cody expects them to cause some havoc in the run home and could potentially ruin some seasons because now that they have their preferred starting five available, they are going to be dangerous.

Cody then talks about how expects at least two of the South East Melbourne Phoenix, Tasmania JackJumpers and Brisbane Bullets to end up making the top six before we get stuck into the TABtouch Round 12 Preview highlighted by Melbourne v Illawarra on Friday with Cody to be in attendance of.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

Bryce Cotton's 59 best ever Perth Wildcats performance, proven right on Tacko Fall at NZ Breakers, can South East Melbourne Phoenix/Tasmania JackJumpers continue momentum, absurd Sydney Kings mistake, NBL schedule discussion, TABtouch Preview.

Before we get to the NBL talk, Cody talks about his son Chase making a winning start to his life in a Warwick Senators WABL uniform as he becomes the fourth generation of the Ellis family to do so.

We then look at the Round 10 awards with Will Magnay the standout defensively in Damian Martin's #TheDamo Best Defensive Player even with one block not counted, while Bryce Cotton and Parker Jackson-Cartwright are joint leaders in Simon Mitchell's Player of the Year from Sports Card World.

Speaking of Cotton, we then discuss his record setting 59-point performance for the Perth Wildcats with Cody feeling it's only fitting he now holds the club's scoring record and that it's the best ever performance by a Wildcats player.

The only thing missing was Bryce hitting the game winner but it did make the win mean more because they were able to get the win against the New Zealand Breakers.

We also talk about the hot shooting form of Chris Goulding who hit another six threes for Melbourne United before he hurt a calf which might stop him being put in the MVP discussion.

We then get to Tacko Fall and all our worst fears were realised with the New Zealand Breakers losing both games with him playing and then with him now also being injured, and the potential of their season unravelling.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix continued their emergence even with Nathan Sobey and Derrick Walton Jr struggling, but Owen Foxwell and Jordan Hunter came up huge in win over Illawarra Hawks.

Then there's the defending champion Tasmania JackJumpers who made it three straight wins with Will Magnay and Sean Macdonald outstanding in ending Adelaide 36ers home streak.

Cody expects at least one of the JackJumpers and/or Phoenix to end up in the top six by the end of the NBL season.

We're still no sure what is going on at the Sydney Kings and if they are going to figure things out or not, but they do appear to have figured that they need one of Shaun Bruce or Izayah Le'afa on court at all times with Jaylen Adams while Cam Oliver is showing better signs.

However, for Brian Goorjian and Jaylen Adams to get caught up talking for an eight-second violation with 24 seconds left in the game is one of the more absurd and baffling things that Cody Ellis has ever seen in basketball.

Before we get to the TABtouch Preview for Round 11, we talk about the NBL scheduling and why one day in between games for them to travel in the same weekend isn't fair, but a way around that might be getting back to playing midweek games.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

All the fall out of Adelaide 36ers-Melbourne United-courtside fans from every angle and why NBL has to get better, Tacko Fall joins NZ Breakers, concerns for Perth Wildcats & Sydney Kings, Melbourne United a cut above, world class Chris Goulding, TABtouch preview.

Before we get down to business, we talk about Cody's son Chase now beginning to play his basketball at the Warwick Senators to become the fourth generation of the Ellis family to do so.

We then run through the start to the NBL season and how Melbourne United look a cut above right now, the Sydney Kings and Perth Wildcats have plenty to figure out, and Cody sees the South East Melbourne Phoenix as the best chance to break into a top six spot from here.

We wrap up our awards from the opening nine rounds with Wani Swaka Lo Buluk leading #TheDamo Best Defensive Player while it's Kendric Davis in front in voting from Simon Mitchell in the Player of the Year, but Cody has Parker Jackson-Cartwright ahead in the MVP race right now.

The big drama across the NBL has been all the fallout from the Adelaide 36ers-Melbourne United melee that ended up involving courtside fans.

Cody gives his thoughts on why he didn’t like the single member tribunal, while he understands why Montrezl Harrell and Kendric Davis were suspended, he doesn't necessarily like it and saw it as something that was always going to end up in a lose-lose situation.

Talk then turns to the spectators with one receiving a lifetime ban and the other one for 10 years, and Cody wants those privileged courtside fans to pull their heads in moving forward and stop treating players like zoo animals.

To wrap up things up, Cody wants the spectators who have been banned to have their names made public just like Montrezl Harrell and Kendric Davis have had their names dragged through the mud.

During the FIBA break the Australian Boomers had two big FIBA Asia Cup qualifying wins against Thailand and Korea where Chris Goulding displayed more world-class three-point shooting going 19/30 from three-point land in the two games.

We then discuss the New Zealand Breakers releasing Freddie Gillespie and replacing him with 7'6 giant Tacko Fall for the next two NBL seasons, and how much of a different look it gives them with the biggest player in NBL history.

We wrap up the show with a full preview of the Round 10 action thanks to TABtouch highlighting by a home double for the Perth Wildcats against the Brisbane Bullets and New Zealand Breakers.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

Horrors of social media exposed with Cody Ellis adding insights as an NBL player along with Chris Goulding's 46, Rob Loe's 30, Melbourne United's offence, South East Melbourne Phoenix's defence, can Adelaide 36ers hit the road, Jaylen Adams/Cam Oliver at Sydney Kings and TABtouch Preview.

The unfortunate dark side of social media was brought to light by both Scott Roth and Keanu Pinder last week. Clearly something needs to be done but there are no easy answers as to how to put the worst of society back in the hole they crawled out of, and Cody Ellis draws on his own experiences as a player on social media.

Melbourne United dominated the Sports Card World Player of the Year votes this week from Simon Mitchell with Cody Ellis offering insights as to why he wanted Chris Goulding to get to 50 and then what made him so happy to see Rob Loe put up 30 to set a career high.

Melbourne United's offence was mighty impressive with 226 in wins against the Brisbane Bullets and the Perth Wildcats, but conceding 200 at the same time means that despite sitting in top spot, they have plenty of work to do at that end of the floor.

The Adelaide 36ers continue to play almost unstoppable and insatiable basketball at home but now their big test is to take that energy with them especially defensively onto the road and Cody sees no reason why they can't do it.

The Cairns Taipans continue to have a horror injury run, but have self-inflected wounds too after both Rob Edwards and Jonah Antonio have lost their cool with the officials to end up costing their team.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix defence again gave up 74 points in both their Round 8 games and with their full court pressure, they are doing it in a very different way that has Cody super excited for along with the impressive Josh King even if some questioned his instructions to not foul in the dying seconds when down five.

The Sydney Kings look so much better with Jaylen Adams as their point guard and he makes everyone around him better, but things don't seem to be working out with Cam Oliver with Cody thinking he's either given a clearly defined role or maybe it's time to move on.

The Tasmania JackJumpers had an emotional week, but rediscovered some freedom offensively and it all came down to loosening up and now they can look forward to continuing to rise with the pending returns of Will Magnay and Sean Macdonald.

We wrap up the show with the TABtouch Preview that includes Cody's two former teams the Illawarra Hawks and Sydney Kings locking horns and then including a fascinating Sunday battle between Melbourne United and the Adelaide 36ers.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).

NZ Breakers and South East Melbourne Phoenix demand respect, Parker Jackson-Cartwright is the NBL's best, coaches must be put back in their box, Jaylen Adams' impact at Sydney Kings, TABtouch #NBL25 Preview and Mitch Norton's 350th milestone.

We begin this week's show with Cody Ellis reflecting on one of his great opponents from his NBL career, Jesse Wagstaff, who has now overtaken Ricky Grace to be the games record holder at the club his dad is such a legend at, the Perth Wildcats.

The votes are then in from Damian Martin in the Best Defensive Player and from Simon Mitchell in the Sports Card World Player of the Year, and both couldn't go past performances from NZ Breakers and South East Melbourne Phoenix players.

We then get stuck into talking about just how impressive it is what the New Zealand Breakers are doing right now and how it all starts with the man who is the best player in the NBL, Parker Jackson-Cartwright.

We also discuss why Sam Mennenga is the Kiwi local to build around and why it's super impressive what the Breakers are doing despite having all the excuses in the world they could fall back on.

The South East Melbourne Phoenix have spectacularly turned their season around firstly under Sam Mackinnon and now Josh King, and it's all coming from the defensive end and if they keep it up, there's no reason they can't be a contender.

The Tasmania JackJumpers are still struggling to score and with so much pressure for Milton Doyle and Jordon Crawford to carry the scoring load, Cody Ellis feels it's time they get them some help before it's too late.

The Sydney Kings had a better weekend and it's no coincidence it went hand in hand with the return of Jaylen Adams even if he's still well short of 100 per cent while Melbourne United had a shocker at home to the Breakers, and it was a wildly contrasting round for the Perth Wildcats.

It was more like the Sunshine Slog in Cairns but the Taipans showed heart despite being so shorthanded while the Brisbane Bullets won a game they needed to ahead of captain Mitch Norton now celebrating his 350th NBL game with a former teammate paying tribute to him.

We then preview Round 8 thanks to TABtouch highlighted by the Adelaide 36ers-Illawarra Hawks Sunday match up before we discuss why it's time the referees put the NBL coaches back in their box, and why celebrating a dunk when your team is down 30 is a bad idea.

All made possible thanks to the support of Hoops Heaven (www.hoopsheaven.com.au) and TABtouch (www.tabtouch.com.au).