The NBA and Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL) announced that the New Orleans Pelicans will play two preseason games against NBL teams in Melbourne this October, marking the first NBA games in Australia. The Pelicans will play Melbourne United and South East Melbourne Phoenix in Melbourne Park on Friday Oct. 3 and Sunday Oct. 5, 2025, with the NBL serving as the official promoter and organizer of the Melbourne Series.
The announcement was made in Melbourne by New Orleans Pelicans Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations David Griffin, NBL Executive Director & Owner Larry Kestelman, and NBA Asia Head of Strategy Rajah Chaudhry.
The announcement builds on the NBA and NBL’s prior collaborations that began in 2016. Seven NBL teams have traveled to the U.S. to play 24 preseason games against NBA teams. The NBA twice collaborated with the NBL to host Basketball Without Borders, the NBA and FIBA’s global basketball development and community outreach program, in Australia (2016 in Melbourne and 2024 in Perth). To date, nine players from the NBL’s Next Stars program have been drafted directly from the NBL into the NBA, including Ousmane Dieng (Oklahoma City Thunder), Josh Giddey (Chicago Bulls), LaMelo Ball (Charlotte Hornets), and 2024 No. 2 overall pick Alex Sarr (Washington Wizards). A record four Next Stars were selected in the 2024 NBA Draft: Sarr, AJ Johnson (Wizards), Bobi Klintman (Detroit Pistons) and Ariel Hukporti (New York Knicks).