Dillon Stith Explained

Dillon Stith
Position:Power forward
Height Ft:6
Height In:7
Weight Lb:215
League:NBL1 South
Team:Casey Cavaliers
Number:7
Birth Date:1992 2, mf=yes
Birth Place:Bedford, Virginia, U.S.
Nationality:American / Australian
High School:Liberty High School (Bealeton, Virginia)
College:Saint Vincent (2010–2014)
Draft Year:2014
Career Start:2015
Years1:2015
Team1:Melbourne Tigers
Years2:2016–2019
Team2:McKinnon Cougars
Years3:2016–2017
Team3:Belfast Star
Years4:2019–2021
Team4:Melbourne United
Years5:2021–2022
Team5:Frankston Blues
Years6:2023
Team6:Waverley Falcons
Years7:2023–2024
Team7:BBC Arantia Larochette
Years8:2024–present
Team8:Casey Cavaliers
Years9:2024–present
Team9:Cairns Taipans
Highlights:
  • Big V champion (2019)
  • 2× Big V MVP (2017, 2019)
  • 4× Big V All-Star Five (2015, 2017–2019)
  • Irish Super League All-Star Second Team (2017)
  • Irish Super League scoring champion (2017)
  • PAC Player of the Year (2014)
  • First-team All-PAC (2014)
  • Second-team All-PAC (2013)

Dillon Stith (born February 20, 1992) is an American-Australian professional basketball player for the Casey Cavaliers of the NBL1 South. He is also contracted with the Cairns Taipans of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for Saint Vincent College before moving to Australia in 2015 to play in the Big V. After one season with the Melbourne Tigers, he played four seasons for the McKinnon Cougars between 2016 and 2019, winning Big V MVPs in 2017 and 2019 and leading the Cougars to the championship in 2019. He played two seasons with Melbourne United of the NBL between 2019 and 2021.

Early life

Stith was born in Bedford, Virginia.[1] He attended Liberty High School in Bealeton, Virginia, where he was a two-time letterman and Senior Captain while earning First Team All-District and Second Team All-Area honors.[2]

College career

Stith played four seasons of college basketball for the Saint Vincent College Bearcats in the NCAA Division III between 2010 and 2014. As a freshman in 2010–11, he appeared in all 27 games and made one start while averaging 5.2 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. As a sophomore in 2011–12, he appeared in all 27 games with 13 starts and averaged 9.8 points and a team-leading 5.6 rebounds per game. He also blocked a team-high 35 shots. As a junior in 2012–13, he was named to All-PAC Second Team after averaging 11.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. He appeared in all 29 games with 14 starts. As a senior in 2013–14, he was named the PAC Player of the Year after being the only player in the conference to average a double-double with 19.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game.[3]

Professional career

Stith arrived in Australia with a touring team.[4] After playing well in front of the Australian teams, he was offered a contract to play for the Melbourne Tigers in the Big V.[5] He averaged 22.3 points and 10.2 rebounds per game in the 2015 season and earned Big V All-Star Five honors.[6]

For the 2016 Big V season, Stith joined the McKinnon Cougars. He averaged 21.8 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.

In November 2016, Stith moved to Ireland to play for Belfast Star in the Super League.[7] He was named Player of the Month for December.[8] He left the team in February 2017.[9] He was named to the league's All-Star Second Team for the 2016–17 season[10] and was the league's scoring champion with 27.4 points per game.[11] [12]

Stith returned to the McKinnon Cougars for the 2017 season. He was named co-MVP of the Big V and earned All-Star Five honors.[13]

In October 2017, Stith joined Melbourne United of the National Basketball League (NBL) for their trip to the United States to play an NBA preseason exhibition game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.[14] [15]

With the Cougars in 2018, Stith was again named to the All-Star Five[16] while averaging 19.96 points per game.

In 2019, Stith led the Cougars to the Big V grand final series, where they defeated the Hume City Broncos 2–0 to win the championship.[17] He had 37 points and 14 rebounds in the game two victory. He averaged 26.5 points and 11.2 rebounds for the season[18] while earning league MVP honors and All-Star Five.[19]

On October 2, 2019, Stith joined the roster of Melbourne United as an injury replacement for Casey Prather.[20] [21] He made his NBL debut the following day against the South East Melbourne Phoenix.[22] He travelled to the United States with Melbourne later that month to play two NBA preseason games.[23] As a result of an injury setback to Prather in both November and December, Stith remained in the line-up.[24] [25] In eight games during the 2019–20 NBL season, Stith averaged 2.0 points per game.[26]

Stith had signed with the Knox Raiders of the NBL1 for the 2020 season,[27] but the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[28]

In February 2021, Stith re-joined Melbourne United as an injury replacement.[29] In seven games during the 2020–21 NBL season, he averaged 1.4 points per game.

Stith joined the Frankston Blues of the NBL1 South for the 2021 season.[30] [31] He scored double digits in all fifteen games for the Blues while averaging 22.1 points and 8.7 rebounds per game.[32]

Stith re-joined the Frankston Blues for the 2022 NBL1 South season. In 24 games, he averaged 15.83 points, 6.83 rebounds, 1.54 assists and 1.17 steals per game.[33]

Stith joined the Waverley Falcons for the 2023 NBL1 South season.[34] He averaged 22 points and nine rebounds per game.[35]

For the 2023–24 season, Stith joined BBC Arantia Larochette of the Luxembourg Basketball League.

Stith joined the Casey Cavaliers for the 2024 NBL1 South season.[36]

On July 2, 2024, Stith signed with the Cairns Taipans for the 2024–25 NBL season.[37]

Personal life

Stith's older brother, Jeff Mallory, also played professional basketball.

Stith obtained Australian citizenship in February 2023.[38]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Dillon Stith. espn.com. February 10, 2021.
  2. Web site: Dillon Stith - Men's Basketball . 2021-01-28. Saint Vincent College. en.
  3. Web site: D'Abruzzo. John. Dillon Stith, Isaac Turner Look To Slam It Down Under. pacstream.net. January 19, 2015. February 10, 2021.
  4. Web site: 2019-11-21. From SVC Basketball to Australian Pro. 2021-01-29. The Review. en.
  5. Web site: Cougars Sign Dillon Stith - McKinnon Basketball Association. 2021-01-29. SportsTG. en.
  6. Web site: 2015 Big V Awards Winners! . BigV.com.au . September 20, 2015 . January 17, 2023 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20151017040019/http://bigv.com.au/index.php?id=755&tx_ttnews%5Byear%5D=2015&tx_ttnews%5Bmonth%5D=09&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=4618&cHash=a7284177db48d93591422fd15e9be256 . October 17, 2015.
  7. Web site: Coughlan. John. Basketball: Unbeaten Glanmire on Mercy mission. irishexaminer.com. November 11, 2016. February 10, 2021.
  8. Web site: PLAYERS AND COACHES OF THE MONTH FOR DECEMBER ANNOUNCED. BasketballIreland.ie. January 11, 2017. January 12, 2017.
  9. Web site: Kelly. David. Dillon Stith's departure is a hammer blow for Star. belfasttelegraph.co.uk. February 13, 2017. February 10, 2021.
  10. Web site: BASKETBALL IRELAND 2017 ALL STARS AND PLAYERS OF THE YEAR. BasketballIreland.ie. April 12, 2017. April 12, 2017. April 12, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170412190042/http://www.basketballireland.ie/news-detail/10022343/. dead.
  11. Web site: Basketball Ireland – Player Stats . BasketballIreland.ie . March 23, 2017 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170323121918/http://www.basketballireland.ie/stats-tables/ . March 23, 2017.
  12. Web site: Basketball Ireland – League Stats . BasketballIreland.ie . March 23, 2017 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170323121718/http://www.basketballireland.ie/stats-leaders/ . March 23, 2017.
  13. Web site: 2017 Big V Award Winners. bigv.com.au. February 10, 2021. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20180623025248/https://bigv.com.au/2017-big-v-award-winners/. June 23, 2018.
  14. Web site: Uluc. Olgun. Oklahoma City Thunder v Melbourne United: Westbrook trashes NBL team, live scores, blog, updates, results, preview. foxsports.com.au. October 8, 2017. dead. https://archive.today/20171008173611/https://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/nbl/oklahoma-city-thunder-v-melbourne-united-westbrook-trashes-nbl-team-live-scores-blog-updates-results-preview/news-story/11fee8c4c1793151df8d29514109e1b8. October 8, 2017. February 10, 2021.
  15. Web site: Big V's MVP hits the NBA. bigv.com.au. February 10, 2021. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20190406214109/http://bigv.com.au/big-vs-mvp-hits-the-nba/. April 6, 2019.
  16. Web site: 2018 Big V Awards winners announced. bigv.com.au. February 10, 2021. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20190402075058/https://bigv.com.au/2018-big-v-awards-winners/. April 2, 2019.
  17. Web site: Murray. Tara. Hume City Broncos go down fighting. northern.starweekly.com.au. August 26, 2019. February 10, 2021.
  18. Web site: Dillon Stith - Player Statistics. 2021-01-29. SportsTG. en.
  19. Web site: 2019 Award Winners announced at Big V Awards Night. bigv.com.au. September 14, 2019. February 10, 2021. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20191002091314/http://bigv.com.au/2019-award-winners-announced-at-big-v-awards-night/. October 2, 2019.
  20. Web site: Casey Prather injury update. melbourneutd.com.au. October 2, 2019. February 10, 2021. September 20, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200920081956/https://www.melbourneutd.com.au/news/article/casey-prather-injury-update-round-1. dead.
  21. Web site: Prather Out Of Throwdown As Injuries Hit United, Phoenix. nbl.com.au. October 2, 2019. February 10, 2021.
  22. Web site: United vs Phoenix. fibalivestats.com. October 3, 2019. February 10, 2021.
  23. Web site: Ward. Roy. 2019-10-20. Stith turns training chance into NBL, NBA opportunity with Melbourne United. 2021-01-29. The Sydney Morning Herald. en.
  24. Web site: Gardiner. Gilbert. Melbourne United to face Brisbane without import Casey Prather. news.com.au. November 24, 2019. February 10, 2021. Athletic wing Dillon Stith will remain in the line-up as a result of Prather's latest setback..
  25. Web site: Casey Prather hamstring injury update. melbourneutd.com.au. December 15, 2019. February 10, 2021. As a result, Dillon Stith will return to the line-up..
  26. Web site: Dillon Stith. realgm.com. February 10, 2021.
  27. Web site: Dillon Stith Joins the Raiders for NBL1 – Knox Basketball. 2021-01-29. en-US.
  28. Web site: NBL1 Season Cancelled. NBL.com.au. March 24, 2020. March 24, 2020. March 9, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220309024535/https://nbl.com.au/news/nbl1-season-cancelled. dead.
  29. Web site: Melbourne United grind out impressive win over Illawarra. melbourneutd.com.au. February 10, 2021. February 10, 2021. United injury replacement player Dillon Stith checked in late in the quarter and had an immediate impact, scoring five quick points....
  30. Web site: FDBA. DILLON STITH JOINS THE FRANKSTON BLUES – Frankston & District Basketball Association. 2021-01-29. en-AU.
  31. Web site: Williams. Peter. NBL1 South Men's: Round 2 wrap – Miners split results on Apple Isle. basketball.draftcentral.com.au. April 28, 2021. April 28, 2021.
  32. Web site: DILLON STITH RE-SIGNS FOR TWO YEARS. fdba.com.au. February 24, 2022. March 10, 2022.
  33. Web site: Dillon Stith. nbl1.com.au. December 16, 2022.
  34. Web site: Dillon Stith Signs for NBL1 2023. waverleybasketball.com. October 27, 2022. December 16, 2022.
  35. Web site: NBL1 South superstar changes teams for 2024. NBL1.com.au. December 1, 2023. December 1, 2023.
  36. Web site: Casey Cavaliers NBL1 Player Announcement. facebook.com/CaseyBasketball. December 1, 2023. December 1, 2023.
  37. Web site: New Snake Stith passes ultimate test. NBL.com.au. July 2, 2024. July 2, 2024.
  38. Web site: Uluc . Olgun . ESPN's Ultimate Guide to NBL Free Agency . ESPN . March 23, 2023 . March 13, 2023.