Brett Wheeler
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Brett Wheeler (born 21 November 1971 in
Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
,
South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
) is a former professional basketball player in the National Basketball League. A 6'10" (208 cm) tall
Centre Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentricity ...
or
Power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers. When on Of ...
, Wheeler played for the
Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...
,
South East Melbourne Magic The South East Melbourne Magic was an Australian basketball team based in Melbourne. The Magic competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) between 1992 and 1998, and played their home games at Rod Laver Arena. In their seven seasons, the ...
,
Victoria Titans The Victoria Titans (known in its final two seasons as the Victoria Giants), were an Australian professional basketball team that competed in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL). The club was based in Me ...
,
Perth Wildcats The Perth Wildcats are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Wildcats compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at RAC Arena, known colloquially as "The Jungle". Afte ...
and the
Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...
during his 17 year career, appearing in a record 8
NBL Grand Final The NBL Grand Final is the championship series of the National Basketball League (NBL). The entrants are determined by the victors of the two Semi Finals series, who engage in a best-of-five game series to determine the league champion. The win ...
s (at least once with each team) and won the 2003–04 and 2004–05 NBL championship with the Kings. He also represented
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
at international level during his career.


Career

Wheeler played his junior basketball with the Noarlunga Tigers in southern Adelaide, began his NBL career as a lanky 19 year old with the
Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...
in
1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...
as backup to the team's Boomers centre
Mark Bradtke Mark Robert Bradtke (born 27 September 1969) is an Australian retired professional basketball player who played mainly in Australia's National Basketball League, but also had a single stint in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the ...
. He made his NBL debut for Adelaide, playing 7:46 and scoring 1 point in a 93–90 loss to the
Perth Wildcats The Perth Wildcats are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Wildcats compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at RAC Arena, known colloquially as "The Jungle". Afte ...
at the
Perth Entertainment Centre The Perth Entertainment Centre was an indoor arena and cinema complex in Perth, Western Australia, located on Wellington Street at the northern edge of the Perth central business district. It was demolished as part of the Perth City Link projec ...
on 29 June 1991. His first season saw the 36ers reach the Semi-Finals where they were defeated by Perth Wildcats who would go on to win their first NBL title that season. 1991 was also the 36ers final season at the 3,000 seat
Apollo Stadium Apollo Stadium (officially called the Apollo Entertainment Centre) was a multi-purpose indoor arena located at 41 Kingston Avenue, Richmond, South Australia, just 5 minutes from the Adelaide city centre. The stadium had an original seating capac ...
before moving into the 8,000 seat
Clipsal Powerhouse Adelaide Arena (known commercially as Adelaide 36ers Arena) is a multipurpose indoor sports stadium located in Findon, an inner western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is the former home arena for the Adelaide 36ers of the NBL and th ...
in
1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
. Wheeler became the first choice centre for the 36ers in
1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
when Bradtke moved to the
Melbourne Tigers Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at John Cain Arena. The team made their debut in the NBL in 1984 as ...
. Brett Wheeler played in his only Grand Final series for the 36ers under the coaching of
Mike Dunlap Michael Gregory Dunlap (born May 27, 1957) is an American professional basketball coach who serves as assistant coach for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association. Dunlap is the former head coach of the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats. ...
in
1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which Sinking of the MS Estonia, sank in ...
. Unfortunately though in what would be a pattern through his career, the 1994 36ers, including players such as
Mark Davis Mark Davis may refer to: Entertainers *Mark Davis (talk show host), American radio talk show host * Mark Jonathan Davis (born 1965), American actor/singer and creator of Richard Cheese *Mark Davis, American bassist and founding member for the band ...
, Robert Rose,
Phil Smyth Philip John Smyth AM (born 11 May 1958) is an Australian former professional basketball player and coach. He won three National Basketball League (NBL) championships with the Canberra Cannons before going on to be a three-time championship-wi ...
, Mike McKay, Scott Ninnis and Brett Maher, went down 2-0 in the GF to the
North Melbourne Giants The North Melbourne Giants, previously known as the Coburg Giants, were an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of ...
. After moving to a bench role in 1994, Wheeler again became the 36ers starting centre in
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
and remained there until the end of
1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...
. He actually became the starting centre almost by accident. In 1995 he was set to play centre and power forward off the bench with 6'11" Willie Simmons to be the starting centre. However, only a couple of games into the season Mike McKay took a charge and when falling back, fell on Simmons' leg which forced him out for the season after needing a knee reconstruction. Wheeler then moved into the starting role and began to play some of the best basketball of his career to that point. He stayed with the 36ers until moving to the
Brian Goorjian Brian Warwick Goorjian (born 28 July 1953) is an American-Australian professional basketball coach and former player served as the head coach of the Bay Area Dragons of the East Asia Super League (EASL). He is also currently the head coach of th ...
coached
South East Melbourne Magic The South East Melbourne Magic was an Australian basketball team based in Melbourne. The Magic competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) between 1992 and 1998, and played their home games at Rod Laver Arena. In their seven seasons, the ...
in
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
to replace 7'0" (213 cm) tall centre
Chris Anstey Christopher John Anstey (born 1 January 1975) is an Australian former professional basketball player. His career included stints in the National Basketball Association (NBA), Russia and Spain. Anstey was selected by the Portland Trail Blazers i ...
who had left to join the
Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...
in the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
. Unfortunately for Wheeler who never won a championship in his time with Adelaide (losing the 1994 GF and two semi-final series in 1991 and
1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...
), while the Magic made it to the 1998 Grand Final series, they were defeated 2-0 in the best of three series by none other than the Adelaide 36ers. Following the merger of the Magic and their cross-
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
rivals the
North Melbourne Giants The North Melbourne Giants, previously known as the Coburg Giants, were an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of ...
at the end of the 1998 season, the
Victoria Titans The Victoria Titans (known in its final two seasons as the Victoria Giants), were an Australian professional basketball team that competed in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL). The club was based in Me ...
were born and due to the presence of 7'0" (213 cm) tall centre
Ben Pepper Ben Pepper (born 15 July 1975) is a retired Australian basketball player, who played twelve seasons in the National Basketball League. Professional career Ben Pepper, a center began his pro career in the NBL with the Newcastle Falcons in the ...
who came from the Giants, Wheeler often started at
power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to center (basketball), centers. When on Of ...
giving the Titans arguably the largest front court in the league at the time. He would stay with the Titans until the end of 2002, helping the club to the NBL grand final series in both the 1998–99 and 1999–2000 seasons. The 1998–99 title loss was again to the 36ers while in the 1999–2000 season, the Titans lost to the
Perth Wildcats The Perth Wildcats are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Wildcats compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at RAC Arena, known colloquially as "The Jungle". Afte ...
. As a measure of his development as a player at the time, Wheeler (now a 10 year veteran of the league) kept his starting spot for the Titans in 2000–01 despite the team signing Chris Anstey upon his return to the NBL after three seasons in the NBA with the Dallas Mavericks and
Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...
. Following the 2001-02 season, Wheeler was on the move again, this time joining the Perth Wildcats for the 2002–03 season where he would play in his 4th losing grand final series, this time going down to the
Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...
. He would finally get to win the NBL championship after moving to the defending champion Kings the next season, winning both the 2003–04 and 2004–05 championships with the Kings under the coaching of his former Magic and Titans coach
Brian Goorjian Brian Warwick Goorjian (born 28 July 1953) is an American-Australian professional basketball coach and former player served as the head coach of the Bay Area Dragons of the East Asia Super League (EASL). He is also currently the head coach of th ...
. After losing his 5th grand final series to the
Melbourne Tigers Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at John Cain Arena. The team made their debut in the NBL in 1984 as ...
in 2005–06, Wheeler moved back to Adelaide for the 2006–07 season before retiring from the NBL at age 36 having played 448 games over 17 seasons. Brett Wheeler holds the record for most points in an NBL game ''without'' scoring a field goal. He scored 9 points on 9-of-10 free throws for the Magic against
Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...
on 27 February 1998. He also holds the record for the most appearances in the NBL Grand Final with 8.


International

Wheeler's play in the NBL also saw him selected to play for the Australian Boomers 19 times. He made his Australian team debut at the
Clipsal Powerhouse Adelaide Arena (known commercially as Adelaide 36ers Arena) is a multipurpose indoor sports stadium located in Findon, an inner western suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is the former home arena for the Adelaide 36ers of the NBL and th ...
in Adelaide on 7 March 1995 in Game 1 of a 5 games series between the Boomers and the visiting Magic Johnson All-Stars.1995 Australian Boomers vs Magic Johnson's All Stars - Adelaide
/ref>


Personal


Honour roll


NBL career stats


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, Brett 1971 births Living people Australian men's basketball players Adelaide 36ers players Centers (basketball) Perth Wildcats players Power forwards (basketball) South East Melbourne Magic players Basketball players from Adelaide Sydney Kings players Victoria Titans players