WOLLONGONG, NSW -- The atmosphere in the Illawarra was electric all week.
The beach town of Wollongong was painted red and black, and the WIN Entertainment Centre was abuzz hours before the biggest game in the history of the Illawarra Hawks: a Game 5 against Melbourne United, with the winner taking home the 2025 NBL Championship.
"From warmups, we could feel it," Hawks guard Will Hickey told ESPN.
A small sea of United fans entered the arena chanting loudly about an hour before tip-off, giving the Hawks fans license to increase their volume even more. Famously rowdy, like the third stop of a pub crawl, the crowd was invincible; throughout the game, the reactions often reserved for just important moments were offered to every beat of the contest.
They didn't let up all the way to the final buzzer, and the Hawks were better for it, one of the league's foundation franchises completing a 114-104 victory to win the championship series 3-2, overcoming a mountain of adversity to win the team's second title and first in 24 years.
"It's so special," Hawks big-man Sam Froling told ESPN. "It's everything."
For the second straight season, United has fallen in Game 5 of a championship series at the hands of a small town team; this one, led by someone who's effectively a rookie head coach in Justin Tatum, and had enviable youth, depth, and offensive firepower.
Here's how it happened, what went down in the aftermath and celebrations, and everything in between.
What flipped the series
The Hawks figured some stuff out in Game 4 of this series.
There was an added physicality and intensity defensively, particularly on United's ball-carriers. Up until that point, United was able to pick up a 2-1 lead in the series because, while the Hawks did a great job containing the likes of Chris Goulding and Ian Clark, their point guards were able to get them through offence unmolested, creating relatively quality looks on that end.
Game 4 was different. Dellavedova was hounded up the floor -- credit to Hickey and Dan Grida for that effort -- and played extremely tightly in the half-court. There was a clear intent to limit Dellavedova's creation by playing more physically, which would also tire the United guard as games came to a close. With no Shea Ili (concussion) in Game 4, United's creation really only came from one place, so the Hawks worked extremely hard to plug that.
The Hawks continued that in Game 5, and then it only seemed a matter of time before the plethora of offensive pieces on the team clicked at once. Even with Sam Froling sidelined, the Hawks were able to find mismatches and advantages with their one-on-one talent -- and United's inability, or lack of desire, to guard one-on-one -- to put together their signature offensive bursts.
The Hawks' offence clicking in Game 5 was ultimately what separated them from United. Tyler Harvey was being overplayed the entire series, and he finally made United pay with his back-cutting in this game; and the Hawks' bigs and creators did a great job of finding him for those open layups. Lachlan Olbrich was seemingly unguardable down low and made really good reads out of the block -- either finishing around the paint or kicking out to shooters when the defence collapsed -- while Will Hickey showed off a much-improved in-between game to exploit the coverage United head coach Dean Vickerman threw at him.
Throw in Trey Kell III's elite advantage creation and shot-making, combined with Harvey's general gravity, and the Hawks' offence was free-flowing for the last 35 minutes of the game.
The Illawarra Hawks are you NBL25 Champions and ESPN Basketball Insider Olgun Uluc spoke to the team post winning game five.
Hawks' young stars stepped up
The story of the Hawks' series was never really about the stars.
Harvey received the bulk of United's attention, Froling went down with an Achilles injury, and Kell III was also largely contained throughout the series and then got hurt ahead of Game 4.
Enter Hickey and Olbrich, who we all knew were talented, but would they be able to carry a team in the highest of stakes? That was the question.
The answer ended up being an unequivocal yes. The Hawks' superpower was always their depth, and, not only did it keep their series alive, it also lifted them in Sunday's do-or-die Game 5.
"It's the beauty of our team," Froling told ESPN of the Hawks' depth.
Going into Sunday, Froling was obviously out and there was still a question of how much Kell III could give, but Tatum had trust in those who would have to step up and fill the gaps.
"It's what we've been doing in practice for the past seven, eight months, giving everybody an opportunity to be in a position to help us if they need to," Tatum told ESPN.
"It wasn't out of sort for somebody to step in for somebody... we've been doing it the whole year, we've been practicing well, and they stepped up when it was time to go."
Hickey was particularly exceptional, finishing Game 5 with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and eight assists, showing off his touch in and around the paint, and using his athletic point of difference and twitchiness to bend United's defence. United continued to guard Hickey with their bigs, and he found ways to exploit that as the series progressed, using his athleticism to get by the defender, then either showing off a soft touch or finding teammates on the move.
"Davo (William Hickey) led those boys," Harvey told ESPN.
"Davo had an unbelievable series, man. I'm so proud of him and what he's brought to the 'Gong. His energy is so contagious for us. It's special."
It was a far cry from last season's playoffs, where United largely ignored Hickey, which effectively took the athletic guard out of the game.
"Self belief," Hickey told ESPN after the win.
"That's just who I am. If nobody else is gonna believe in me, I'm gonna believe. Obviously, they tried to do something they thought would work like last year, and it just didn't work out. That's basketball sometimes, right? I feel like I came in a bit more prepared and used that to my advantage."
Then, there was Olbrich, who was a problem for United; not just on the low block, but creating advantages off the dribble from just in front of the three-point line. United's bigs had issues containing Olbrich in the last two games of the series, and the 21-year-old -- who Tatum described as a "firecracker" -- did an elite job finishing over contests, as well as finding shooters when he drew multiple defenders.
"He's such a talented player," Froling said.
"He's been talented since he got here. He keeps getting better. He works hard. To have his reward for this, and to have such an impact on the game, is so important. It shows the quality of player and how ready he was for this level. He's got a great future ahead of him, it's really special to watch."
Will 'Davo' Hickey's continues to be one of the great stories of the NBL Championship series, with 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Delly's gracious act + explaining the MVP situation
When Dellavedova was announced as the Larry Sengstock medallist for the 2025 Championship Series MVP, it didn't come as much of a surprise for those who were aware of the process. With a 3-2-1 game-by-game voting system, Dellavedova had more-than-likely locked up the award going into Game 5 because of his impressive individual performances over the course of the series; he finished with 34 votes -- accruing them largely over Games 1, 3, and 4 -- to lead the pack, followed by Hickey's 31 votes.
Still, when he was announced as the series' MVP, the Wollongong crowd showered him with boos in a show of irritation of the outcome more than the player.
Dellavedova then committed one of the most gracious acts you'll ever see in Australian sport, calling for Will 'Davo' Hickey -- the Hawks' hero over the team's last two wins, in particular -- to take the award off his hands.
"Davo, this really belongs to you," Dellavedova said. "You had a hell of a series."
Hickey was reluctant to accept the award, so Dellavedova walked off the stage toward the Hawks guard and handed it to him.
"That's all class from Delly," Hickey told ESPN on that moment.
"That's who Delly is. I can just sit here and take in that moment and keep it with me."
Dellavedova's gesture will remain simply ceremonial, though; the United guard will remain the official Championship Series MVP of 2025.
"That's one of the classiest things I've ever seen in an award ceremony," Vickerman said. "Delly had an amazing series himself, but for him to go and do that was exceptional."
INCREDIBLE MOMENT! 🥹
— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) March 23, 2025
Matthew Dellavedova wins the NBL Finals MVP, but hands it to Will 'Davo' Hickey in a remarkable gesture! 🥇#NBL pic.twitter.com/EBNE2NrtUu
Trey's motivation
Kell III was such an enigma for the Hawks.
He's the team's most talented player and, when he's at his best, the Hawks are practically unstoppable. He has such a unique size and scoring ability for a ball-carrying advantage creator in the NBL, and was a big reason why the Hawks were the league's No. 1 team all season long.
He was also largely taken out of the series over the first few games, because United paid a lot of attention to the talented American. Then, he suffered a knee injury at the end of Game 3, which ruled him out of Game 4.
He was questionable going into Game 5, and word even spread around the arena of how much he'd actually be able to provide physically. United attacked him the first few possessions, with some success, so those questions continued.
Then, he took over.
Kell III would finish the game with 26 points -- 9-of-14 from the field -- 11 rebounds, and seven assists, which included some back-breaking shots to halt United momentum toward the end of the third and start of the fourth quarters. It was a much-needed performance from Kell III, who's putting together an impressive resume around world basketball -- he's won four championships now, across Europe, Canada, and now Australia -- and said it came with an added layer of motivation.
"That was a little bit of motivation for me with South East," Kell III told ESPN, when asked what it's like to finally find a natural home in his third NBL team in three years.
"I kind of took it as a slap in the face when they brought back two imports, and I was the one they kind of pushed to the side, like I was the reason. That was some motivation for me, for that series.
"Last year is last year, I moved on from it; I was just glad to be on a team like this, that's super unselfish, and JT gave me that chance to lead from the front. I knew I was capable of doing something like this, but I just needed a team to believe in me in the same way. I found that match with the Illawarra Hawks."
Jayson's message
It's, of course, difficult to talk about Justin Tatum without bringing up his NBA superstar son, Jayson, and the Hawks head coach spoke of a moment his team got to experience ahead of Game 5.
"This morning, I woke up to a video," Tatum began.
"It was really to my team. [Jayson] sent a video to my team. He was like, 'pops, send this to your group'. What it was, was a reassurance to what they potentially should feel, and how to win a Game 7 for them; a Game 5 for us. He sent a support message to my group, which I think enlightened them a lot.
"The whole 2023-24 Boston Celtics are about to watch our game right now. Those guys say, hey, if they can do it, we can do it. Hearing from him, sending that message, on his own, was unbelievable, and it was meaningful with our players as well."
Sam Froling preparing for surgery
Wollongong is probably one of the only cities in Australia that can house a professional basketball team that can win a title, but also comes with a guarantee that you'll see at least one of those championship-winning players the next day around town.
Froling was one of the players ESPN bumped into at a café that's a local favourite of the Hawks, with the big-man still donning his 'NBL Champions' snapback.
Froling, of course, went down with an Achilles injury early in Game 4, that would rule him out for the remainder of the series. The 25-year-old told ESPN that he suffered a partial tear of his right Achilles, and would undergo surgery on Tuesday in Sydney. He's been told he should expect a recovery time of six-to-nine months, but is preparing for the latter end of that timeline.
As for his impending free agency, the nature of the injury naturally complicates things; as does the Hawks winning a title.
"[The championship] is certainly making it harder [to leave the Hawks]," Froling told ESPN.
"Right now, I'm focused on getting this surgery and getting this Achilles right. Heading into free agency, we'll see what happens."
Larry vs. Jared
A narrative that had real potential to derail Game 5 was the ongoing corporate war between Hawks owner Jared Novelly and NBL owner Larry Kestelman. On Thursday, Novelly sent an email -- obtained and reported by ESPN -- to other team owners, proposing they oust Kestelman as NBL owner by purchasing the league. The timing was naturally awkward, with all involved set to descend onto Wollongong and attend the league's final game at the WIN Entertainment Centre.
Kestelman arrived about 20 minutes before tip-off, did a lap of the court and greeted those sitting courtside, and offered a brief handshake with Novelly, which the American accepted. The two would then go their separate ways ahead of the opening tip.
ESPN approached both parties.
Novelly chose not to speak about the matter.
Kestelman offered a re-iteration of his position: "I'm here to stay," he told ESPN. "The NBL is not for sale... Jared already knows."