Matthew Dellavedova grew up watching Chicago Bulls highlights on VHS and dreaming of pulling on a green and gold uniform to represent Australia. Fast forward 20 years and Delly is now in his seventh NBA season and even shares a secret handshake with LeBron James.
While Delly's been on highlight reels shutting down some of the world's best in the NBA finals, his basketball career has been full of intense highs and extreme lows. Through it all, Delly says that keeping a level head is his key to success in the NBA.
"Something that you have to learn early on is to try to stay level. If you're riding the ups and downs, it's going to be a roller coaster ride. So, you want to try to keep an even keel and not get too excited when things are going well, and not get too down if things aren't panning out how you want them to," says Delly.
At 6 foot 3 inches tall, small in the basketball world, Delly has faced many 'David & Goliath' moments on the court, taking on players significantly bigger, and in true Aussie underdog style, never backing down.
"I think as Australians you're taught to never back down, never take a step backwards. It's just the Australian way of doing things," explains Delly.
Delly's grit and resilience were demonstrated when he was tasked with guarding the NBA's Most Valuable Player, Steph Curry, during the 2015 NBA finals. Delly's hard-nosed defence successfully limited the performance of one of the best players in the world on the biggest stage in basketball.
While the highlight reels were on repeat, both in Australia and in the U.S, few knew that after Game 3, Delly immediately went to hospital to be treated for exhaustion.
"Moments like those prepared me to play a lot of minutes against some of the best guys. Those guys gave me the play-off intensity and conditioning that I needed."
Moments like these are the perfect example of why Delly's Aussie teammates love him.
"Delly is a professional. I think that's where it all kind of starts and finishes really. He leaves it all out there on the court and plays every possession. He does whatever he has to do out there for his team, and I don't think he'll ever change," says Joe Ingles of his Australian teammate.
Over the past few years, Delly has been rubbing shoulders with the world's best players and solidifying his reputation as a defensive force in the NBA. But off the court, as his teammate Joe Ingles so poetically puts it...
"He's just a boring old country guy from Maryborough."
Signet loves backing the humble Aussie underdog, and Delly represents the same spirit as so many of our customers.
We spent some downtime with Delly and spoke about everything from his match highlights, to the meaning behind Delly's secret handshake with LeBron James, and how an iconic Aussie snack powers his on-court performance. Read on to find out more about Delly.
Signet: Do you remember the moment growing up that you knew basketball could become a career for you?
Delly: I always dreamed that basketball would be my career, but I never knew it was a realistic option until I got a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra at the age of 16. That's where a lot of guys have launched their careers, and that was probably the moment where I knew I had a realistic chance of making a career out of basketball.
Signet: You went undrafted from university, not getting a spot in the NBA and were left having to prove yourself all over again. How did that feel at the time?
Delly: Going undrafted was tough. I had about 15 pre-draft workouts flying around the various teams, and there were only six people in a workout, so it was extremely competitive. Everyone was fighting to try and get picked. I was sitting there, on draft night at my college coach's house and seeing the names keep coming, it was bitterly disappointing because I'd received good feedback from the teams. I spoke to my agent and would have to go to the NBA's Summer League to prove myself all over again. Then I got to a training camp, and I had to prove myself all over again there as well.
Signet: Take us through what it was like when you finally made the NBA?
Delly: I got told that I'd made the team straight after training camp. I think for the first five games, I was in a suit sitting at the end of the bench. So, I didn't even get to pull on the uniform until there were a couple of injuries or guys missing games. Then slowly, I worked my way into the rotation by the end of the season. I had to keep proving myself in the Summer League to make the team again the following year. So, you never really stop having to prove yourself.
Signet: Did you ever talk about another career or consider that your basketball career had come to an end?
Delly: There's a lot of leagues around the world. Australia definitely has a good league in the NBL, and I had a pretty good offer from Russia in the pre-draft process. I had to commit to that before going through the draft. So, I definitely would've had options on the table, but it just makes it that much harder to make the NBA if you go undrafted.
Signet: The Boomers obviously have unfinished business going into the Olympic Games after losing the bronze medal match at Rio in the dying seconds. Going into Tokyo, what's the general feeling around camp and between the players?
Delly: Coming into this Boomers camp, there's a lot of excitement to get the whole group back together. Coming up short at the Olympics in Rio and the World Cup in China still hurts everyone to this day. For all of us, there's nothing better than pulling on the green and gold. A lot of us have grown up playing together or been in the Boomers team together for over ten years now. So, just getting back on the court together, there's a lot of excitement, and we know what we have to do, and are capable of doing, to get the job done. I'm just looking forward to getting started.
Signet: The camaraderie looks different when you compare Boomers teams to other teams in the NBA and around the world. Does it feel different for you?
Delly: Yeah, I think the togetherness of this group is something that's very special, and definitely something that I don't take for granted because it's rare that everyone can get along so well both on and off the court. I think that plays a big role in the kind of basketball we've played over the last few years. I think it's one of our huge advantages as a country having the Institute of Sport. We've grown up playing juniors, under 19's and living together before we go all over the world to play either in college or Europe, NBL or NBA. Still, every off-season when we come back to pull on the Green and Gold, there's nothing better.
Signet: How does it feel to hear LeBron say "Delly's my guy" in defence of you when some were saying you had dirty tactics?
Delly: It always feels good when your teammates have your back, and especially when that teammate is LeBron James, and he's standing up for you.
Signet: That aside, do you wish you'd made a better secret handshake with LeBron? (Delly went viral for his very "Aussie" handshake with Lebron in comparison to his teammates' flashy versions).
Delly: (Smiling) Ah no, that was our handshake, just you know, Aussie. Solid handshake. All business (laughs).
Signet: How does your championship ring and your success in the NBA compare to pulling on the Green and Gold.
Delly: It was an amazing feeling winning a ring with Cleveland and breaking a 52-year drought. So that one is always going to mean a lot and Cleveland's always going to be a special place. But pulling on the Australian jersey is the ultimate for me. It's something I've dreamed of since I was a little kid growing up in Maryborough and our goal is to win a gold medal, I believe we can do it.
Signet: You're known for your commitment and toughness on the defensive end. Is that from just ridiculous amounts of hard work, or is it because you grew up drinking lots of Milo?
Delly: I guess defensive work just comes from being competitive and wanting to win. Defence isn't the most glamorous thing to do on a basketball court. It definitely helps you win and winning is fun, so I'm willing to do anything to help the team.
Signet: Do you feel you've been a bit misunderstood in your ability to get under people's skin during games or do you think some of your reputation is warranted?
Delly: I think that's just how Australians play. It's tough and physical; it doesn't matter what sport it is. I think over in the NBA guys are used to just catching the ball exactly where they want to catch it. So, if you try to deny them the ball or blow up a play by denying somebody, they can get frustrated.
Signet: What have been some of the 'pinch yourself' moments of your career?
Delly: Stepping on the court for the first time at the London Olympics was pretty special. It was always a dream of mine to represent Australia at an Olympic Games and to make it was an unbelievable feeling. I remember watching the Sydney Olympics when I was nine or ten years old and writing down on a school project that I wanted to represent Australia at the Olympic Games. I wanted it to be basketball. I didn't know how realistic that was going to be back then so I would have tried to find another sport if it didn't work out in basketball.
Signet: How does it feel to have Signet supporting the Boomers ahead of a massive 2020?
Delly: I think it's awesome that we've got Signet on board. It's not just the 12 guys on the team, it's the coaching staff, the fans and especially the sponsors. You guys are helping us achieve our dream of winning a gold medal!
Signet: Does it feel like a fairy-tale seeing Aussies from small towns make the NBA?
Delly: I think we definitely punch above our weight in terms of how many guys we have in the NBA compared to our population, but I think that's going to continue to happen.
Signet: What would you say is your proudest moment so far?
Delly: Every moment is a proud moment. Anytime you can pull on the Green and Gold, but I'm hoping and planning to have my proudest moment yet to come.
Signet: Us too Delly!
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