The Team Behind the Team

The Illawarra Hawks recently announced their coaching staff for the upcoming Hungry Jack’s NBL24 season, and it’s the talented team’s mission to get the Hawks back on top.  

Head Coach: Jacob Jackomas  

Jacob Jackomas is the Hawks 14th Head Coach and will take on the role for a second season after his debut in NBL23.  

Prior to this role, Jackomas served as the Hawks assistant coach for two seasons to then Head Coach Brian Goorjian.  

NBL23 wasn’t the first time Jackomas has taken to the NBL court as a head coach though; stepping in for then head coach Brian Goorjian in round 18 of NBL22, leading the Hawks to a win against Melbourne United.  

Jackomas has a long and successful coaching history, having spent time in both Australia and China during his 11 years as the long-time assistant coach to Goorjian.  

Jackomas has worked tirelessly to get to where he is today, only five years ago during his time with the Sydney Kings, Jackomas was working 19-hour days.  

“From 4-8am I would clean planes, practice with the Kings from 8:30am-1pm, head to one of the private schools to coach in the afternoon around 3pm, and then help one of my close friends close and clean one of his pizza stores each night. I didn’t get to sleep until about 11:30pm before I had to get up and do it all over again.” 

If there’s one thing this tells Hawks fans about their head coach, is that he isn’t afraid of hard work and is willing to put in the hours it takes to be successful in his role.  

Assistant Coach: Paul Mellett 

Paul Mellett will enter his second season as an assistant coach for the Hawks in NBL24 but is no stranger to the game.  

Mellett’s seasoned coaching history more than qualifies him for his role with the Hawks, having served as the director of coaching for City of Sydney Basketball for 17 years.  

While there, he worked with Jackomas and Roger and assisted the Comets in winning the 2016 under-14 National title. He also worked as the Australian Emus (under 19’s men) network coach (2009), the Sydney Kings assistant coach (2006) and contributed to the 2006 and 2007 NSW Youth League Men's titles.  

Mellett’s coaching experience doesn’t end there though, with him having coached numerous NSW Metropolitan teams at National Championships, winning one silver and two bronze medals in the process. 

He also spent four seasons as a Brisbane Bullets assistant coach (2000-2004) while simultaneously serving as a coach for the senior Southern Districts Spartans (champions in 2001 and 2003) and the Queensland South under-18 men's team.  

Assistant Coach: Shaun Roger  

Roger is entering his fourth season as an assistant coach with the Hawks, after serving in the role under Brian Goorjian for two seasons and Jacob Jackomas for one.  

Before working with the club, Roger worked with the City of Sydney Basketball Association, during this time he held multiple Division 1 head coaching positions and gained much of his experience working with the Sydney Comets alongside Jackomas. 

Roger also previously coached the Many-Warringah Sea Eagles and North Sydney Bears, along with multiple NSW Metropolitan state teams.  

Last year Roger’s coaching skills were recognised when he and fellow Hawks assistant coach Lachlan Lonergan were asked to appear as guest coaches for the Basketball NSW State Performance Program (SSP) 2022 Graduation Camp.  

Here Roger and Lonergan were invited alongside 54 other high-calibre coaches to pour their basketball knowledge into the SSP participants. 

Currently, Roger has taken on the role of head coach for the Illawarra Hawks Youth League men’s team during the NBL off season.  

Assistant Coach: Lachlan Lonergan  

Lonergan will enter his second season as a Hawks assistant coach after being recruited by Jackomas following the Sydney Kings Championship win in NBL22.  

Another product of the Sydney Comets, where Lonergan began his coaching career and over his seven years with the organisation coached numerous junior and senior Division 1 teams, including the 2019 State Championship under 16 girls.  

Following this, Lonergan secured an intern coaching position with the Sydney Kings during NBL20, after which he transitioned into the team’s video coordinator role for NBL21 and lead video coordinator/special assistant to the head coach in NBL22.  

Lonergan has a strong background in using basketball software, and due to the new technologies continually coming into play his expertise in this area plays a critical role in the development of the team.  

Assistant Coach: Justin Tatum 

Justin Tatum joins the Hawks as assistant coach following several seasons as Head Coach of the boys' basketball program at his alma mater, Christian Brothers College High School. 

Tatum was a decorated collegiate basketballer and pro player before joining the coaching ranks. Justin helped lead the SLU Billikens to a Conference Championship and, in March of 2000, made an NCAA Tournament appearance. 

In his home State of Missouri, Tatum has coached high school teams to multiple state championships, developing the skills of renowned players such as current North Carolina star Caleb Love and current Duke contributor Kale Catchings. 

Tatum visited the Snakepit in March for his role as North American Scout and Special Advisor to Basketball Operations before deciding to join the Hawks in NBL24 in a player development and assistant coaching capacity. 

High Performance Manager: Alex Moore  

NBL24 will mark Alex Moore’s third season with the club in the role of high-performance manager. 

Moore has an extensive resume which includes seasons with the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers as their High-Performance Director where he oversaw the Cavaliers Performance Team, managing the team’s rehabilitation, physiotherapy, nutrition, strength and conditioning, and athletic training areas.  

During his time with the Cavaliers Moore worked with star players Lebron James and Kyrie Irving, contributing to the team’s finals runs between 2014 and 2018 and their first-ever championship win in 2016.  

Moore also spent six years as the United States Ski Team’s strength and conditioning coach (2008-2013), during which time the athletes he worked with achieved seven Olympic medals (2 Gold, 3 Silver and 2 Bronze) and over 50 World Cup podiums.  

After his stint in the US Moore returned to Australia and served as the head of high performance for the North Melbourne Football Club for three seasons.  

Named as the Hawks NBL23 Club Person of the Year, the Wollongong native contributes highly to the team and club environment.