Free agent point guard Cole Anthony has signed a one-year contract with Melbourne United and will spend the 2026/27 season in Australia’s National Basketball League, the team announced in a press release. Within that release, the club refers to Anthony as “one of the most athletic and dynamic guards the NBL will have ever seen.”
The 15th overall pick in the 2020 draft, Anthony was a regular part of the Magic’s rotation in his first five seasons in the NBA, signing a three-year, $39MM rookie scale extension with the team prior to his fourth year. During his time in Orlando, the former UNC star averaged 12.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 24.8 minutes per game, posting a shooting line of .419/.345/.847.
However, the emergence of Jalen Suggs and Anthony Black made Anthony expendable for the Magic, and he was dealt – along with Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and several draft assets – to Memphis last summer in the trade that sent Desmond Bane to Orlando. After being bought out by the Grizzlies, the 26-year-old signed a minimum-salary contract with the Bucks for 2025/26.
Anthony’s 6.7 PPG and .306 3PT% with Milwaukee represented career-worst marks, and he was traded again in February to the Suns, who waived him later that month. The veteran guard had been a free agent until striking a deal to play in Australia with Melbourne United.
The signing of Anthony will complete Melbourne’s roster for the 2026/27 season, notes Olgun Uluc of ESPN.
“In this last spot, we wanted an elite guard with the ability to help lead our offense with his scoring ability, who makes his teammates better, while also being a really good person off the court, and Cole Anthony checks every one of those boxes,” head coach Jacob Chance said in a statement. “His pace of play, his strength finishing around the rim, his vision, his versatility playing off the ball as a shooter, his willingness to get down in a stance and defend, all of that makes him the perfect guard for this team.
“In my conversations with him, it’s been very clear that his primary focus is winning, and I’m confident that his best basketball is still ahead of him so coming to the NBL we expect him to elevate his game to a new level, in turn lifting everyone around him. This is a huge moment for our club. I already can’t wait to see him in a United jersey inside John Cain Arena.”
The United advanced to the NBL Finals in 2024 and 2025 but fell short of a championship both times and are coming off a disappointing fifth-place finish this past season. The team has made significant roster changes over the summer, adding NBA veterans like Joe Ingles, Luke Travers, Josh Oduro, and now Anthony.
Ingles, who played with Anthony in Orlando in 2023/24, issued his own statement within Melbourne’s announcement suggesting that he expects his former Magic team to have “a big impact” in the NBL.
“He’s a great guy, he’s got a big personality, and I think United fans are going to love him,” Ingles said.