Sunday Dech

Sunday Dech (born 1 January 1994) is a South Sudanese-Australian professional basketball player for the Adelaide 36ers of the National Basketball League (NBL). He is a two-time NBL champion with the Perth Wildcats, having won in 2014 and 2019. Dech played NCAA Division II college basketball for the Metro State Roadrunners and Barry Buccaneers.

Sunday Dech
No. 44 – Adelaide 36ers
PositionShooting guard
LeagueNBL
Personal information
Born (1994-01-01) 1 January 1994
Gambela, Ethiopia
NationalitySouth Sudanese / Australian
Listed height195 cm (6 ft 5 in)
Listed weight93 kg (205 lb)
Career information
High schoolChurchlands
(Perth, Western Australia)
College
NBA draft2018 / Undrafted
Playing career2013–present
Career history
2013–2016East Perth Eagles
2013–2015Perth Wildcats
2018Rockingham Flames
2018–2019Perth Wildcats
2019East Perth Eagles
2019Wellington Saints
2019–2020Illawarra Hawks
2020–presentAdelaide 36ers
Career highlights and awards

Early life

Dech was born in Gambela, Ethiopia,[1][2] as one of seven children to South Sudanese parents Abraham Dech and Aret Ochala.[3][4][5] He moved to Perth, Western Australia, at the age of six.[6] Dech participated in a variety of sports growing up – including Australian rules football, soccer and skateboarding – that he credits as helping him to acclimatise to Australian life. He began playing basketball at the age of 16.[7] Dech attended Churchlands Senior High School and graduated in 2012.[5]

Basketball career

Early years

Dech debuted in the State Basketball League (SBL) with the East Perth Eagles in 2013. For the 2013–14 NBL season, he joined the Perth Wildcats as a development player and was a member of the championship-winning team in April 2014. That year, he was named the SBL's Most Improved Player[8] and helped the Eagles win the championship. He then continued on with the Wildcats as a development player in 2014–15 before playing a third season with East Perth in 2015.

College

The 2015–16 season saw Dech redshirt with the Metro State Roadrunners. He returned to the Eagles for the 2016 season and then made his college debut with the Roadrunners in the 2016–17 season. In 28 games for the Roadrunners, he averaged 13.0 points and a team-high 6.9 rebounds per game.[9] Dech transferred to Barry University and joined the Buccaneers for the 2017–18 season to play his final season of eligibility. In 32 games, he averaged 13.3 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds per game. He earned SSC All-Newcomer Team honours and was named in the SSC All-Tournament Team.[5]

Professional

Following the 2017–18 U.S. college season, Dech returned to Australia to train with the Cairns Taipans and Brisbane Bullets.[4] After a three-game stint with the Rockingham Flames at the back-end of the 2018 SBL season,[10] Dech re-joined the Perth Wildcats for the 2018–19 NBL season as a training player.[11] He was later designated as Perth's nominated replacement player and filled in for the injured Damian Martin and Mitch Norton throughout the season.[4][12] In March 2019, he was crowned a champion for the second time when the Wildcats defeated Melbourne United in the 2019 NBL Finals. Dech was subsequently awarded the Coaches' Award by head coach Trevor Gleeson.[13][14] He went on to play in New Zealand during the off-season, where he helped the Wellington Saints win the NZNBL championship.

On 9 April 2019, Dech signed a two-year deal with the Illawarra Hawks after being highly sought after as a free agent.[13] The 2019–20 NBL season saw Dech earn nominations for both the league's Most Improved Player and Best Defensive Player.[15] His remaining contract with the Hawks was voided when the club was liquidated on 18 May 2020.[16]

Dech initially signed with the Southland Sharks before they withdrew prior to the start of the 2020 New Zealand NBL season.[15][17][18]

On 22 July 2020, Dech signed a three-year deal with the Adelaide 36ers.[6]

References
  1. "Adelaide 36ers Sign Sunday Dech". Adelaide 36ers. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
  2. "Sunday Dech". Southland Sharks. Retrieved 31 October 2020.
  3. Jimma, Natal; Huntsdale, Justin (14 February 2020). "Australian basketball diversifies as 'tsunami' of African players hits NBL". ABC. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
  4. O'Donoghue, Craig (2 March 2019). "Sunday Dech stepping up in Perth Wildcats' title push". thewest.com.au. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  5. "Sunday Dech Bio". Barry University. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  6. "Sixers Land Sunday Dech". NBL.com.au. 22 July 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  7. "Sunday Dech". Perth African Nations Sports Association. Retrieved 7 January 2021.
  8. "2014 Basketball WA Award Winners". Basketball Western Australia. 9 September 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  9. "Sunday Dech Bio". Metropolitan State University of Denver Athletics. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  10. Horton, Stuart (24 July 2018). "Rockingham Flames secure SBL play-off spot". The West Australian. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  11. "Young guns to get their chance at pre-season games". Perth Wildcats. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  12. O'Donoghue, Craig (3 November 2018). "Perth Wildcats look for lift without inspirational skipper Damian Martin against New Zealand". The West Australian. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  13. "Illawarra Sign Sunday Dech for NBL20". NBL. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  14. Perth Wildcats (6 April 2019). "Sunday Dech has been awarded the Coaches' Award..." twitter.com. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  15. "Southland Sharks' ready for Sunday best in 2020 National Basketball League". stuff.co.nz. 18 February 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  16. Hope, Shayne (18 May 2020). "NBL's Hawks liquidated amid huge debt". Illawarra Mercury. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  17. Jeffrey, Nick (18 February 2020). "Sunday best! Dech signs with Sharks". Sharks Basketball. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  18. "2020 Update - Sharks confirm NBL plans". Southland Sharks. 16 May 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
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