<\/div>\nFor NBL fans who may not know much about the 17-year-old Next Star, Paul offered some insight into what they can expect from him this season as he makes the significant jump from junior basketball to competing against seasoned professionals.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, get my teammates better, get them involved, make their lives easy, get them good shots.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Luke Paul of the NBL poses during a NBL and WNBL partnership with Optus announcement at HoopsCapital East on June 12, 2026 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Mark Metcalfe\/Getty Images for NBL)<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cAnd then for me, get downhill, get on the rim and shoot. I think my three point shots being coming along, so I\u2019ve been able to shoot it off screens, off catch and shoots. But yeah, definitely get my teammates involved to make it easy for them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Ever since Paul was introduced at HoopsFest last season, comparisons have been drawn between the young guard and Chicago Bulls star Josh Giddey.<\/p>\n
On paper, it is easy to understand why.<\/p>\n
Giddey is still just 23 years old and, to the eye, there are similarities between the way the two play the game, particularly with their size and ability to create for others.<\/p>\n
But while Paul appreciates the comparison, his ultimate goal is to become the first Luke Paul.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Luke Paul will follow in Josh Giddey’s footsteps as part of the Next Star program.<\/span>Source: Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\u201cPeople will say that we play the same, but at the same time, there\u2019s things that we do the same and then there\u2019s things that we are completely different about,\u201d Paul said.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I think it\u2019s a pretty cool comparison to have. But at the same time, I want to be my own person, be my own player, create a name for myself and bring my name up in the basketball world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
For someone so young, Paul is also honest about the reality of what awaits him in the NBL.<\/p>\n
Playing in front of rowdy crowds, dealing with heckling and lining up against experienced professionals will be a significant change from competing against players his own age.<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>Luke Paul NBL Next Star watches on during the round 17 NBL match between Adelaide 36ers and South East Melbourne Phoenix at RAC Arena, on January 18, 2026, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by James Worsfold\/Getty Images)<\/span>Source: getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nThere will naturally be some nerves, but Paul is embracing the prospect of making mistakes and learning from them.<\/p>\n
\u201cA little bit, but you know, I think my teammates trust me in who I am and what I am. But it\u2019s always going to be about learning at such a young age to come into the league as 17-year-old.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s going to be some nervous moments and then there\u2019s going to be some moments where I\u2019m saying \u2018I\u2019ve got this, this is me.\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it\u2019s all about learning and there\u2019s going to be moments throughout the season where I get bumped off my line or I get dunked on, so there\u2019s going to be so many different things, but it\u2019s all about learning.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/amp-img>NBL Next Stars Luke Paul joins Cairns. Picture: NBL<\/span>Source: News Sport Network<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\nPaul is set to make his NBL debut this season, although it remains unclear whether he will be ready for Round 1 against the Sydney Kings after suffering an ankle injury last month.<\/p>\n
One thing is certain, there is plenty to like about the potential of the 17-year-old, and as he prepares to take his first steps into professional basketball, Paul is ready to learn from the mistakes, embrace the challenges and, most importantly, make a name for himself.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"He is coming fresh off a bronze medal at the U17 FIBA World Cup in T\u00fcrkiye and is preparing for the next chapter of his career as he embarks on his NBL Next Star journey with the Cairns Taipans. But for Luke Paul, the focus is on growing as a player through trial and error, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":262524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6807],"tags":[156],"class_list":{"0":"post-262523","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-leagues-cups","8":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=262523"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262523\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/262524"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=262523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=262523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=262523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}