Angus Glover: Water level rising

If you caught the last five minutes of the second quarter of South East Melbourne's game versus Tasmania last Monday, you would have seen the very best of Angus Glover. He scored 13 points in less than three minutes of action, played solid defence, moved the ball, acted as a leader and helped his team turn a 4-point lead into a 14-point lead by halftime.

It is why the two-time NBL Champion and NBL26 Sixth Man of the Year is so beloved by the Heartland faithful and such an important piece for the Phoenix's title aspirations this season.

His career has had its challenges. Serious injuries, inconsistent roles, outsiders talking about unfulfilled potential – he's endured a lot. But Glover, who recently turned 28, is objectively playing the best basketball of his career and still getting better.

This past week was a contrast of the highs and lows of not only Glover's game, but also his team's fortunes.

After a convincing win in Perth and then a narrow loss against Tasmania in Round 1, the Phoenix got blown out in the 33rd edition of the Throwdown last Thursday.

Glover, who went 5-11 on threes on Monday in Hobart, then went 0-6 from deep on Thursday on a night his team made just 4 of 41 attempts from long range. But he knows that's basketball and things can change quickly.

The 13 points in three minutes was a glimpse of a player at his peak, but also a team that knows how to utilise the guy who has it going on a particular night.

"It's pretty fun to be in the zone [and] have a feeling like that," he told NBL Media.

"When you're in the zone like that, if they want to keep giving me the ball and I keep going to work, that's cool. But if someone wants to try and take me out of a rhythm by not letting me catch, then it's going to be someone else's turn.

"And I think that's the perks of playing on a team like this. It's funny, like it's clichéd to say it, but it can be anyone's night on any given night, especially with the group that we have. And we've proven that."

Water always finds its level

Of course, the opposite can be true and when a team has a night like they did against Melbourne on Thursday, you just have to accept that it may happen occasionally and move on.

"We have a little bit of a saying called 'water always finds its level'," explained Glover.

"You're not going to shoot like that every night obviously, and there's nights where we've shot the ball at an unbelievable clip as well. The team shot 41 [three-point attempts] and the majority of them were open looks – they weren't bad looks. You win some, you lose some. That's just how it goes, but when it's on it's a nice feeling."

'Water always finds its level' is not something that Glover came up with. It is something the Phoenix live by. Head Coach Josh King used that phrase in his post-game press conference on Thursday as did lead assistant Luke Brennan in a post-game interview.

It basically means that on average, you'll perform as you're supposed to. And Glover's level has been rising the last couple of years because of the work that has been put in.

More to life than basketball

But there will still be difficult games occasionally. And those can affect a player if they do not have the right support system or strategies in place.

Glover is lucky that his wife, Kiera, is a former WNBL player. The two have been together for a long time and she understands the highs and lows of the game. So, he has a ready-made support system at home.

But he has also learned, with Kiera's help, that there is more to life than how well you played in your most recent game.

"I used to be really bad at this, like really poor," Glover said.

"I think that the older I've gotten, the more you realise that there are more important things than basketball, and that's family and friends and things like that. And being healthy as well, I guess with my history.

"Obviously, I don't think about that anymore, but we get to play basketball for a living – it's a pretty cool job to have, right?

"So, you definitely look at the game and review it, but I think for me, as soon as I see my wife and my dog, Ollie – he's helped me massively on that side as well – just coming home and having fun with them, I can move on. Just understanding that there is more to life and that tends to actually help me."

A mental refresh

For the first time in a few years, Glover took time this off-season to switch off and really get some rest to refresh. He'd played in the NBL1 the previous three years but decided to take a break this year.

He had a little bit of a back issue at the end of the NBL26 finals that needed some rest and also went away for what he calls a 'mental refresh' with Kiera to Japan.

"That was awesome," he said of his trip.

"From there, basically just started to get back in the gym and fell in love with the daily grind of getting better. Body felt refreshed, mind felt refreshed."

The next evolution

Despite the success he had in NBL26, Glover wants to get better every season and believes his game is far from complete.

He is impactful defensively, he's become one of the elite three-point shooters in the League and last year, he set career highs in points, three-pointers made, offensive rating and defensive rating.

But in the off-season he'll look to make small improvements or tweaks, which all help to ensure he gets the most out of himself.

"I think as a shooter especially, you're always trying to find little things," Glover explained.

"Obviously, the base is there in terms of what you've done leading into that, but you can find ways to get your shot off a little quicker or add certain moves into your repertoire.

"I think in previous years I've kind of limited myself a little bit. I think I've fallen in love with the three ball over the last couple of years, which when you shoot it at a high clip, it's okay, but I think the next evolution is getting downhill [more]. I think that makes me harder to guard and puts defenders in two minds also.

"Confidence comes from being in the gym and doing the reps. Being in the gym every day in the off-season, both on the floor and in the weight room has instilled so much confidence in me to understand that I can do this at a higher level than I've ever done before."

Glover eventually did play some NBL1 this off-season, suiting up for nine games with Kilsyth, as well as representing Australia again in FIBA World Cup qualifiers in early July and late August.

"I think you could see why I was playing some pretty good basketball when I came back; like just having that little bit of a break, just helped me freshen up mentally, physically, emotionally, all that," he acknowledged.

The work in the off-season is not new for Glover. Earlier in his career, he had to put in work to strengthen his body post his injuries and also because he felt like he had to make up for lost time.

Not wired to be satisfied

But at this stage of his career, even after being acknowledged as the NBL's best sixth man, that just gives him more fuel to keep getting better. He could easily be satisfied with where he's at given his injury history and coming so close to retiring about six years ago.

To go on and win two championships as well as the individual award would satisfy a lot of people. But Glover isn't wired that way.

He feels like he can get a lot better and has learnt to only worry about what he can control. He knows that if he puts in the work, success will continue to find him – and his teams.

"It's not about those individual awards. To me, it's about if you can win championships," Glover said.

"Like, you look at the Damian Martins of the world and look at Wagstaff and all those kind of guys, they've won multiple, multiple championships. Obviously, they've won some individual awards along the way. I mean, Damo's got an award named after him.

"All these guys, they're known for their greatness, but they're also known for being a great teammate, winning championships. And that's the legacy that I think every player wants to be known for.

"So, that's my motivation, and I feel like if I'm getting better, then that's helping my team as well."

Getting over the hump

The Phoenix have come into NBL27 with only one thing on their minds. To win the championship. After losing in game three of the Playoffs the last two seasons, this team is aiming to take that next step and win the first title in franchise history.

With continuity in their coaching staff, style of play and local core, plus some injection of new local talent and three new imports, there is a belief that this group has the depth and the experience to get over that hump.

The focus from Josh King this pre-season was about trusting how they play and making sure they can sustain that style for a full 40 minutes each game.

"We've been close the last couple of years," Glover said.

"We were a quarter away in game one in Adelaide this year. And the year before, we arguably could have won the first game against Illawarra. And obviously, hindsight's a beautiful thing. But then if you win at home, you go into a grand final.

"So for us, it's just about trusting our stuff. I don't think we need to reinvent the wheel at all. It's just trust what we do, buy into whatever it is the coaches are asking for, and do it for longer periods.

"You've got to apply yourself for 40 minutes in a finals game. We've got it in us because we've shown that. It's just doing it for longer stretches and doing it more consistently in the finals. We're right there."

We saw that play out against Perth in their season opener, as they eventually wore the Wildcats down and cruised to a comfortable win in the fourth quarter. It worked in stretches against Tasmania, but they didn't get over the hump in the end.

And then of course against Melbourne, their shooting let them down and so they were the ones under pressure to score, rather than their opponents. But the blueprint is there for this team and Glover believes they have the roster to execute what is needed more often than not.

"Everyone wants to win every single game, which I know is impossible," he acknowledged.

"But for us, obviously we have a very distinct style of playing. No one can play 35, 40 minutes in our system just because of how we play. We're not necessarily a team that's going to blow you out in the first quarter, second quarter. But where we really do our damage is we wear you down over four quarters.

"So, by the time the fourth quarter comes, we're fresher than the opposition. Obviously, our depth this year, we can play a bunch of bodies. And I feel like that's our strength."

From chirper to leader

For the second straight year, Glover has been named in the Phoenix's leadership group. It's given him an opportunity to really reflect on how he can best help his team, on and off the court.

And Glover realised that he can do that most effectively by being the best version of himself.

"Any player wants to be the best version of themselves and strives to be great," Glover said.

"I think any player that plays the game wants to win championships but also wants to be great and continue to get better. That's the beautiful thing about our sport, about any sport, is 'what can I do to get better?'

"And I think the big difference for me is, since joining the leadership group, is how do I make myself better, which is going to help everyone else? I still can get fiery from time to time, but I feel like my strength is pulling people together and trying to keep them off the refs.

"Surprisingly, it's a strength of mine now, and I guess people wouldn't have said that a couple of years ago about me. I'd always be chirping away. But I understand I've got to put my energy towards others now and get guys in the right frame of mind to move on to the next play."

Chasing the green and gold

As much as Glover knows that his personal success will lead to team success, there is one personal goal that he is openly chasing. And that is making the Boomers for a major tournament, starting with the 2027 FIBA World Cup in Qatar.

Glover has played for the Boomers in several qualifying windows and was selected for the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup, before missing out at the last minute with a shoulder injury. But he would love an opportunity to play at a World Cup or an Olympics.

And he knows exactly what he'd be signing up for. As much as it would tick off a personal goal, it would be more about the team's success and doing what he could to help chase a medal.

"Obviously, I know what I'm signing up for if I was to make one of those teams," he admitted.

"I'd be there to be the back end of a bench and come in and bring some energy, high level energy, be a great teammate, shoot the open shot when I've got it and play some good defence – which I feel like at the FIBA level, because you get away with so much more with grabbing and holding, suits me a bit better.

"I couldn't care less if I didn't play a single second at a major tournament. I'll happily wave the towel, be the best teammate ever, so I feel like that can also separate me. I just know what I can bring to the back end of that roster.

"Regardless, I just feel like I'm in a good spot and continue to enjoy those Boomers windows that I get the opportunity to play in. It's such a good environment to be a part of too. That's always spoken about for anyone that steps foot inside the Boomers program, but it's the best basketball and the best time you have as a group."

Glover knows that to have a shot at making that team, he has to continue to produce at NBL level and that means contributing to winning, but also getting better.

Despite the championships and the award, he isn't even close to satisfied with his career achievements. Glover has been playing the best basketball of his career over the last year or two and continues to be on an upward trajectory.

And while he loves the 'daily grind' of working on his game in the off-season, and the process of building as a team through pre-season and the early parts of the regular season, you can tell that he craves more.

Just scratching the surface

As a 17-year-old, Glover had the basketball world in his palm. He was destined for international success and was very much on an NBA trajectory, until that was cruelly taken away with his repeated knee injuries. And while he feels very fortunate to have carved out the successful NBL career that he's had to date, he firmly believes he can, and will, continue to get better.

"I feel like I still haven't scratched the surface," he said.

"That's just how I feel. I do have big games from time to time, but I feel like if I can be more consistent there, then that shows that there's that leap.

"Obviously a lot of people think it's crazy, but I think any player that you ask that question to will say the same thing. We are all kind of delirious in our own ways of thinking how good we can get to, which is a part of why we play at such a high level as an athlete.

"But for me, I still feel like I'm just scratching the surface."

Water always finds its level, but for Glover, that level continues to rise.