This Taipan’s tale is far from over

Expectations can be a funny thing.

Your own expectations, your friends’ or family’s expectations, your coaches’ or teammates’ expectations, or outside expectations; maybe to meet a particular narrative, usually media-driven.

Those different sources of expectations are not always aligned, and when the expected narrative isn’t met, it is natural for people to question why.

Expectations around Jonah Bolden’s promise as a basketball player started at a young age.

The son of an NBL legend who grew up around the game, gifted with an incredible six-foot-eight frame and every opportunity to succeed.

Bolden was destined for greatness.

And for a moment, he thought he’d found it.

Before he quickly changed the course of his life completely.

The 36th overall pick by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2017 NBA Draft, Bolden averaged 15 minutes as a rookie and was in their Playoff rotation that season, before being waived in February of his second season.

He quickly signed a 10-day contract with the Phoenix Suns as injury cover, but was not retained.

As the world was descending into chaos with the onset of COVID-19, Bolden unexpectedly retired from professional basketball to pursue outside interests in technology and cryptocurrency.

He then returned to professional basketball in 2023, signing with the Sydney Kings and has since had stops in New Zealand and Illawarra before joining the Cairns Taipans for the Hungry Jack’s NBL27 Season.

Bolden has shown flashes of the talent he had before his time away from basketball but never looked completely comfortable back on the court, until this season.

There is something different about the way he’s playing, his level of engagement, his effort and, in turn, his production.

And from the outside looking in, it seems he’s enjoying his basketball as much as he has since his return three years ago.

Speaking with NBL Media, Bolden agreed.

“Yeah, no doubt,” he said.

“I’m definitely enjoying being out there with the guys, just being out there myself, and just playing hoops again, for sure.

“I think to a certain extent it’s just, I’ve put more overall energy allocation to hoops.”

He acknowledged that since his return in 2023, he hasn’t been fully invested in dedicating himself to being a professional player.

He was still spending time on his outside business interests, and using his downtime to think more about that than about what he needs to do to maximise his on-court talent.

He wasn’t prioritising watching film or spending enough time on recovery or all the little things that help to keep your mind and body as sharp as they need to be.

He called it a “discredit” to his potential.

Bolden suffered a major injury blow last season when with the Illawarra Hawks, rupturing his Achilles tendon in November 2025 after just eight games.

It forced him to re-evaluate things in a major way.

He realised that this lack of investment in himself as a professional wasn’t something new these last few years.

This was happening even when he was beginning his NBA career.

“At that time, the goal and the dream were the NBA,” he added.

“That happened, and maybe [I] got a little bit too satisfied with achieving the dream and not realising the other side of it.

“Now, what I’ve come to realise is obviously respecting the game.

“The injury for me was a big eye-opener. It gave me a little bit of time to re-evaluate the game itself, and from a more mature standpoint.

“People talk about the basketball gods or whatever you want to call it, but just give your all to it, and it’ll give you that in return.

“Whereas [if] you’re not giving your all to it and kind of taking it for granted, it doesn’t give you that.

“Maybe that was where I was at before, and [it] took some time to get the itch back for hoops.

“But re-evaluating gave me the fuel to realise what I wasn’t doing, which was giving my all to the game, and the game will kind of reciprocate that back.”

Read more >> Team-By-Team: Hooyah & Harden Up

Bolden admitted that his decision to walk away from professional basketball in 2020 was related to losing his joy for the game.

He was immature at the time in that he didn’t want to “man up” to put in the work needed as a professional athlete to get back what he wanted from the game.

It had turned into a daily grind that he wasn’t getting joy from.

In some ways, he’d fallen out of love with basketball.

But he doesn’t regret anything about that decision.

“I think this process has gotten me to where I am today and my story is still heavily being written; I’m excited for what’s to come.”

During his time away from basketball, Bolden spent time travelling; seeing the world properly as a tourist.

He read a lot.

He got into things like psychotherapy and different aspects of life far away from the day-to-day grind of basketball.

Of course, his passion for technology led him to forward-looking opportunities, like blockchain and cryptocurrency, as he began building a business and growing his network outside of basketball.

He went back to UCLA to meet with old professors; he spent time in San Francisco, and he learned a lot.

Bolden has maintained some of those business interests, and at times, they conflicted with basketball over the last three years as he was trying to establish himself in the NBL.

“My base reality was hoops,” he said.

“I was back hooping in Sydney, with Breakers, with Illawarra, and I was trying to maintain those connections but also delve into those realities which slip away from my reality.

“So, this year has probably been the least I’ve done in terms of that.

“When we have an off day or after practice, not really focusing on that, but more so focusing on going to the recovery HQ here at Cairns.

“And watching games, watching all these NBL games that are on now.

“Obviously, the NBA has started back up, and it’s my first proper year really diving in and watching hoops, and appreciating a good game of hoops.”

Since his return for NBL24, his own expectations focused on finding his love for the game again and “being able to hoop again”.

It was a slower trajectory than he’d expected, and he’s honest with himself in that he hasn’t really hit the mark during his first three seasons back.

It took him a few years and the injury setback to be able to properly re-evaluate what it would really take to meet his expectations.

He’d heard the outside voices, but those didn’t do anything for him or get to him.

“It was more so intrinsically, being honest with myself and asking myself, ‘what is it that actually is needed, to not only meet those expectations but exceed those expectations and get back to playing how I want?’

“And so, the first thing was to obviously get the body right, dealing with the injury.

“But then once I was good to go, it was like, okay, now doing things that I wasn’t doing past off-seasons and really getting back to what I was doing pre-NBA.

“Just a bunch of shots, a bunch of workouts and being consistent, stacking days. It’s not like a one-day or two-days-a-week workout.

“It’s like, you got to be in there pretty much every single chance you have. And that’s what I was focused on this last off-season.

“But yeah, it was definitely hard, but also it was a revelation that was needed.”

In addition to attacking his rehab this past year, Bolden spent a lot of time reflecting.

His wife was back in the United States for a few months, and he used that alone time to really ask himself a lot of questions, watch film from when he was younger – at UCLA, in Serbia – and then figure out how to put things into action.

But he thinks that period of self-reflection was necessary.

Joining Cairns and Adam Forde was an important step for him.

It was a new era in Cairns, and Bolden said that Forde and the Taipans have ‘an edge’ this season, which he liked, but also that the head coach would provide him a space to flourish.

They discussed how he wanted to contribute despite coming off the injury, and Bolden kept reiterating that this was the best off-season he’s had since his comeback.

Bolden liked how Forde has given opportunities to others in the past, and while their expectations of him were limited, he would have the right environment to meet his own expectations.

“The biggest thing was that he’s obviously, as a coach, coming with an edge and that I’m obviously coming with an edge as well; the edge of getting back to where I wanna be personally,” he added.

Read more >> Starting 5: Elite guards, bounce-back wins & memorable returns

Bolden is still in what he calls “return to performance” mode after being cleared to return to play for the start of the season following his Achilles injury.

And he’s definitely noticed the difference between practicing well and being able to perform in games.

He admits that fouling out in five minutes in his Blitz debut this year was a “wake-up call”, but with the way he’s playing now, that will quickly be forgotten if it hasn’t already.

Bolden is averaging 10.3 points on 57/50/73 shooting splits, 8.3 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 1.1 blocks through the first nine games of NBL27.

He’s clearly playing at a higher level than he has in the last three seasons, and while the numbers are great, he’s more proud of how he’s playing and helping his teammates, especially defensively.

“My biggest thing is just I’m getting my hands and my reaction time back, that I didn’t feel were there the past two years,” he said.

“I mean, my shot has always been there.

“I’ve been shooting it really well.

“I think I hold myself to that because that’s my bread and butter.

“But I think the biggest thing is just knowing my reaction time and guarding the pick-and-rolls pretty well, which comes with the reaction time.

“But being able to have my teammates count on me when they’re getting hit off a screen … and being the guy that’s having to pretty much guard two guys at once, the big guy rolling and the guard coming downhill, has been the biggest thing where I’ve honed in on and embraced as something to add to my game as a big.

“[Knowing] that coach can put me in, and I’m gonna be able to guard that however they play, and it also helps with the guards trusting that if they get hit, they know that I’m there,” he added.

It’s been working.

Bolden is playing his best basketball since he returned to the game in 2023, and it’s being noticed.

Even Forde called his elevated and consistent level of play a ‘pleasant surprise’ after the Taipans' recent game against the Phoenix in Round 5.

And while Bolden thinks that’s great, he’s not as surprised by his play.

“For me it’s more a validation and confirmation of what I kind of realised during this re-evaluation period,” he explained.

“[That] was that the work needs to be done for you to see results, and the confidence comes as a result.

“All of it comes as a result of the work.

“So, it’s surprising maybe to some, but for myself I’m [just] thankful to Fordey and the team for trusting in that [work].”

Against New Zealand on Sunday, Bolden again made strong contributions with 5 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, as the Taipans moved into the top four with an 86-84 win and a 5-4 record.

He’s seeing the game very well as a now 31-year-old veteran, and is certainly making reads like he’s finally figured out how to be most effective, but he genuinely believes his best basketball is still ahead of him.

He has a lot of experience now but believes he has more to give both in terms of improving his body and his performance.

“I think of this year being validation of, like, a stepping stone or a springboard to me knowing that, ‘okay, yeah, now you’ve found your feet again and you realise that it is the work’,” he added.

“‘Now let’s have a great season this year, but then double down on that.’

“God willing, body-wise and everything is good, double down on that work in the off-season and take another step forward and, as I said, I believe my story is still being written, and I have a lot more to give. A lot more to give for myself and to the team.”

That includes passing on some wisdom to his teammates, especially the younger ones, about what it takes to develop.

Through the ups and downs, the daily grind, when you’re not getting the minutes you would like, you have to keep on working.

Keep coming in early and see the long-term vision.

And if he could sit down with 22-year-old Jonah starting his rookie season in Philadelphia, he’d convey a very similar message about what really matters.

“I would tell him just to f***ing keep working,” said Bolden.

“Work as much as you can. I would tell him that sure you made the NBA, but it’s not really about making the NBA.

“Sure, it’s like, point five per cent or point one per cent – whatever the number is – of guys that get there, but it’s even smaller for the guys that last.

“I definitely don’t have any regrets on my journey.

“It’s brought me to where I am today, and there’s still a long way to go.

“But yeah, the only thing I would say, with that in mind, go and make sure you just keep working. Don’t let anything get in the way of that.

“And buy more Bitcoin!”

And while that Bitcoin advice may have been very handy eight years ago, Bolden is comfortable with the path he’s taken.

He’s been to the NBA, he’s been away from basketball entirely, and now he’s fought his way all the way back to an impactful pro career.

A journey with many bumps in the road, but one that is probably even more satisfying now than if it had been a smooth one.

Is this the happiest Bolden has ever been playing basketball?

“I would say it’s up there, for sure,” he said.

“Performance-wise and actually playing hoops, yeah, it’s up there with the happiest I’ve been playing.

“I still think there are greater days ahead.

“And even this season, I think there are greater days ahead cos it’s still kind of early.

“But, I’m definitely happy and can say that I’ve fallen back in love with hoops.

“[My] energy allocation is a hundred per cent if not more, and so it’s definitely happy days – and happy days to come.”

He’s all the way back in, and he’s starting to meet the only expectations that matter – his own.

But his story is still being written.