Taipans complete roster with Scott Machado

The CQUniversity Cairns Taipans are pleased to confirm that Scott Machado has re-signed on a two-year deal, with the phenomenal point guard returning with a view to commit to Cairns in the long term. Machado enjoyed one of the most brilliant debuts in NBL history, breaking league records and spearheading the Taipans’ thrilling semi-finals campaign.
 
While rumours circulated in May regarding Machado’s potential return, the front office can now reveal that Machado actually committed to the club at least six months prior – however, the playing contract was only able to be recently finalised due to a number of subsequent delays as a result of COVID-19, including the Convention Centre displacement and moving NBL season dates (now mid-January 2021).
 
Machado finished his stellar 2019-20 campaign with an average of 16.6 points, 7.7 assists and 3.9 rebounds across his 31 games, and narrowly missed out on being named NBL MVP but took home Australia’s vote, winning Fan’s MVP before unsurprisingly being crowned club MVP for the Taipans.
 
The 30-year old joins reigning NBL Coach of the Year Mike Kelly, who said retaining his floor general was a priority well before last season even ended.
 
“Scott was big for us on every level last year. He was just so important off the court, on the court, in training and just everywhere with the club. It’s really special to have him back.
 
“He’s so important to our club, both in his basketball abilities and his leadership abilities, but also in his personality and how he deals with everybody in the club. We love that.”
 
In addition to his impressive stat lines, Machado lit the league on fire and was a huge component of the Taipans’ success, bringing his NBA-calibre prowess and brilliant basketball IQ to the new-look team.
 
He managed to crush the NBL’s assist record (in the 40-minute era) – registering 220 assists across the 28 regular season games. The previous record was 200 assists, held by Cedric Jackson during his championship-winning run with the Breakers.
 
“He's been really good for a long time, throughout his time in college as well as a pro. So, I definitely had an idea that he would be good in our league, but I didn't realise just how good he would be,” admitted Kelly.
 
“I knew that he would find his teammates and give them good looks, easy shots, dunks, layups and all that, but I didn't know how creative he was with the ball to get himself open looks as well.
 
“We were also told about just how much of a professional he was, and it's easy to hear about. But, to actually see it every day in-person last season was a revelation.”
 
Machado has found a new home in Far North Queensland after spending the last decade playing all over the world, including France, Estonia, Germany, Spain, Brazil and extensively in the US. His long-term commitment to the Taipans is the first two-year contract in his credentialed career, that has also featured three NBA 10-day contracts.
 
“Even when we were 2-6 and looking down the barrel – it’s always been positive with Scott. It was, ‘what can we do to get better?’ and that’s what it continued to be throughout the season as we talked about this team, this city and the whole club,” said Kelly.
 
“I think Scott has fallen in love with Cairns, the city and the people. I think from his point of view, he’s enjoyed his time and sees the possibility of what this team can be.”
 
During the NBL off-season, Machado remained in Cairns before heading back to the States. In July, he played in The Basketball Tournament for Armored Athlete alongside John Roberson (Phoenix) and averaged 17 points across their two games.
 
Scott Machado completes the Taipans roster alongside Cam Oliver, Mojave King, Kouat Noi, Majok Deng, Nate Jawai, Mirko Djeric, Fabijan Krslovic, Jarrod Kenny, Jordan Ngatai and George Blagojevic.