Kiwi forward Finn Delany has signed a two-year deal with Melbourne United, sources told ESPN.
The second year of the deal is a mutual option, sources said, with United reloading at the forward position after Jack White opted to explore his international market.
Delany, who'll turn 30 in August, just completed a season with Veltex Shizuoka in the second division of Japan's B League, where he averaged 14.6 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. Prior to that, Delany played for Casademont Zaragoza in Spain's Liga ACB, averaging 7.0 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.
The 6'7 forward will join a United team under head coach Dean Vickerman that's coming off a second straight NBL Championship Series appearance where they fell short in a Game 5. United has finished with a top-two regular season record in the NBL in four of the last five years.
It's a return to the NBL for Delany, who spent eight seasons with his hometown New Zealand Breakers, most recently over the 2023-24 campaign. Delany's best season with the Breakers came during the 2020-21 campaign, where he averaged 16.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, and was ultimately named to the All-NBL Second Team.
The forward spent the 2022-23 season with Telekom Baskets Bonn in the Basketball Bundesliga, helping the team to second place in the German league, as well as the 2023 Basketball Champions League title.
Delany has been a consistent feature on the New Zealand Tall Blacks - the New Zealand men's national team - starring at the 2023 FIBA World Cup, where he averaged 16.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.
Delany joins Chris Goulding, Shea Ili, Kyle Bowen, Tanner Krebs, Fabijan Krslovic, Tom Wilson, and Dash Daniels (Next Star) on United's roster for the 2025-26 NBL season.
The signing of Delany is an example of United continuing their recent track record of luring high-level local talent to Melbourne, rebounding in a notable way after parting ways with both Matthew Dellavedova and White this off-season.
The plan for United is to add three imports to their roster, sources said, with the team currently targeting two guards and one big-man. It's a change from the teams Vickerman and United's front office have assembled over the past few seasons, which have been primarily local-heavy.