Position Power forward / Center Listed height 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) Name Vince Kelley | NBA draft 1984 / Undrafted Role Basketball Player Pro career 1985–2002 Height 2.01 m | |
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High school Inglewood (Inglewood, California) College Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball | ||
Nationality American / Australian | ||
Vince Kelley (born c. 1962) is an American-Australian former professional basketball player who played the majority of his career in Australia, which included three seasons in the National Basketball League (NBL) and 13 seasons in the State Basketball League (SBL). He played four years of college basketball for the Colorado Buffaloes before playing professionally in Australia and Portugal.
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High school and college career
Kelley played on the top-ranked high school basketball team in the country in 1980. Inglewood High School went undefeated with the help of Kelley, off guard Jay Humphries, point guard Ralph Jackson, and wing man Angelo Robinson, as they went on to win the national championship that year.
Both Kelley and Humphries came to Colorado from Inglewood and played four years as Buffaloes. Kelley, a 6'7" forward-center, often played the low post for an undersized Colorado team, finishing his four-year career ranking fifth all-time in rebounds at CU with 730. He also scored 1,180 career points in 112 games.
After graduating from Colorado in 1984, Kelley had try-outs with a number of CBA teams and even the Denver Nuggets, but after hearing good things about Australia's league, he pursued a career overseas and moved to Australia to begin his professional career.
NBL
In 1985, Kelley joined the Bankstown Bruins of the National Basketball League (NBL). In his first professional season, he averaged 31.6 points and 12.6 rebounds in 25 games. In April 1986, Kelley helped the Bruins defeat the Sydney Supersonics in the final of the New South Wales basketball championships. Kelley finished the match with 28 points as the Bruins stormed to a convincing 78–62 victory. He also had 27 points in the Bruins' semi-final win over the Newcastle Falcons, leading to him being voted Most Valuable Player of the tournament. The Bruins were rebranded as the West Sydney Westars for 1986 NBL season. Kelley continued on with the team in 1986 and 1987, averaging 26.6 points in 52 games over the two seasons.
Portugal
Kelley's next two years were spent in Portugal with Ginásio, where he experienced much more volatile crowds and fans in what was a different playing environment. However, he grew as a player in Portugal and was given the freedom to do a lot more things on the court. In his first season, he helped Ginásio win the second division title and they subsequently moved up to the first division for his second season.
SBL
In 1990, Kelley returned to Australia and began a very successful State Basketball League (SBL) career. In his first SBL season, he helped the Kanyana Kings finish their inaugural season in second place with a 20–6 record. Over 29 games, he averaged 36.6 points per game.
In 1991, Kelley moved north and joined the Wanneroo Wolves, where he spent the next seven seasons amassing 5,377 points in 196 games. His best season came in 1992 when he was named the SBL Most Valuable Player.
In 1998, Kelley joined the Rockingham Flames. In 59 games for the Flames over two seasons, he averaged 22.7 points per game. In 2000, he re-joined the Kanyana Kings, now known as the Mandurah Magic, where he spent another two seasons averaging 23.8 points in 44 games. Kelley's final season came in 2002 playing for the East Perth Eagles. In 23 games for the Eagles, he averaged 26.3 points per game.
In 351 career games in the SBL, Kelley averaged 26.9 points per game.
In September 2013, Kelley was named in the MSBL 25th Year All Star Team.
Personal
Kelley and his Australian wife, Debbie, have a daughter named Desiree. Kelley's nephew, Ryan, also played college basketball for Colorado.