Dean Vickerman to stand United for a further four years

Written by Melbourne United Media

Melbourne United is overjoyed to announce that three-time Championship winning Head Coach Dean Vickerman has extended his contract with the club for a further four years.

This will keep Vickerman in Melbourne through until the end of the NBL28 season.

Having led United to a pair of NBL Championships and five post-season appearances throughout his first six seasons with the club, the decision to extend Vickerman should come as no surprise.

Speaking to MU Media, the longest tenured coach within the league voiced his excitement about the extension, and touched upon the full-circle feeling leading United has provided him with.

“It’s amazing. As a professional coach, it doesn’t come around that often to be locked into a great club that you’ve been a part of for six years already,” he said.

“Melbourne United is always where I wanted my basketball journey to end up.

“Coming full circle after playing for the Tigers back in the day before travelling around and getting the experience I did in New Zealand and Sydney, I wanted to come back here and coach and I wanted to coach for as long as I can.

“Being able to see my kids finish school while I’m the Head Coach of this club, it’s an amazing feeling.”

Vickerman’s 182 wins, 130 of which have come with United, are the 14th most in league history. His 62.3% winning percentage is also the highest of any coach to have coached as many games as him, other than Brian Goorjian.

With such a strong track record, combined with his intense connection to the culture of this club, Melbourne United CEO Nick Truelson is confident Vickerman is the perfect man to lead the team back into the postseason.

“Dean is a career coach and with one season left on his contract we proactively worked with him and his agent Bruce Kaider on what an extension could look like.” he said.

“What we’ve put together is what we believe to be the best move for Melbourne United as well as for Dean and his family.

“Outside of what he does on court, Dean works tirelessly off it, driving our Melbourne United Basketball Academy and community programs while engaging with our corporate partners, members and fans.

“Our club ownership is delighted with the opportunity to lock Dean in long term as our Head Coach knowing we have one of the best coaches in Australia leading us forward as we look to chase down another NBL championship.”

With the next five years ahead of him, Vickerman is excited to begin building his roster with an eye to the future, while still competing for titles consistently.

“This is a unique opportunity for us to plan and get deep into the scouting of local talent,” he continued.

“Really look at the best kids and how they’re going to develop and how their careers could play out, which hopefully aligns with Melbourne United.

“We’re about trying to win every year. We’re not just building a team for three years down the track, we’re about winning Championships and contending for a title every year.”

Having so far secured the signatures of Luke Travers, Jo Lual-Acuil Jr, Tanner Krebs and Flynn Cameron to join Chris Goulding, Ariel Hukporti and Shea Ili, the future looks bright for Vickerman and his group heading into NBL24.

If you want to lock in your seat to watch Vickerman continue to lead this United group, get a hold of a membership today!

NBL24 Memberships are ON SALE NOW. As well as saving up to 40% on the price of walk-up tickets, members will receive exclusive merch discounts, access to Melbourne United Super Clinics, priority access to John Cain Arena for home games, access to member functions, post-game meet and greets and much more.