Reunion looms as "massive" key for United recruit

Sean Macdonald’s rise from development player to key championship contributor is already one of the NBL’s great development stories.

That was highlighted when the guard won the NBL24 Most Improved Player award during the JackJumpers’ run to their maiden title.

A big part of his improvement was Tasmania’s coaching staff, which included now-United head coach Jacob Chance.

Now a Melbourne recruit, Macdonald believes he can continue to get better, albeit with a patient approach returning from injury, as he teams up with Chance once again.

“Having Chancey as my head coach is a huge benefit for me,” Macdonald said to United Media.

“He was massive in my development in Tassie. He's got an excellent player-coach relationship; he does that at the top tier.

“That's just who he is as a person and those sort of values make it easy to play for someone when you know they're such a good person.

“I'm just excited to be part of his journey as well as he takes his first step as a head coach in the NBL.

“I think that's really exciting and obviously something he's been working towards for a while, so being there for when it comes to fruition is going to be really cool.”

Macdonald joins a revamped United outfit, which now also includes fellow recruits Joe Ingles and Sam Waardenburg, as Melbourne aims to bounce back during the Hungry Jack’s NBL27 Season.

“Ingles’ experience in the NBA and national teams is huge to have at the club,” Macdonald said.

“I think the demeanour he brings and the confidence he'll give the rest of the group is super special, and obviously Waardenburg, what he was able to do at Cairns was pretty special.

“He's a unique talent; the way he moves at his size, it's really exciting to play with someone like that.

“Knowing that I'll get a full season with both of those guys, regardless of what happens next season, is really exciting for me.”

That trio will join returning players Chris Goulding, Shea Ili, Kyle Bowen, Christian D'Angelo, Fabijan Krslovic and Malith Machar.

Read the full story here >> Macdonald eager to continue growing at United