Headline: Defending champion Saints reset the roster after a dominant 2025, but expectations remain sky-high in the capital
At a Glance:
Head Coach: Aaron Young (2nd year)
Home Venue: TSB Arena
2025 Regular Season Finish: 16-4 (2-0 post season, 2025 Champions)
Key Returnee: Izayah Le’afa
Key Signing: Carlin Davison
Player to Watch: Jordan Hunt
Snapshot:
The Mills Albert Wellington Saints head into the 2026 Sal’s NBL season from a position very few teams can claim. Last year’s side went 18-4, owned the league’s best record, and paired elite offense with one of the stingiest defenses in the competition. But while this year’s version will look very different the squad is hoping the results will be the same. With a huge amount of top-end production has moving on, the announced roster so far points to a group built around a smaller returning core, led by Izayah Le’afa, and a wave of new additions spearheaded by Carlin Davison. While the Saints are never in rebuild mode this is a new collection of players that will need to come together with pace to keep the Saints where they want to be at the top of the mountain.
Wellington Saints 2026 Roster as of this printing (New arrivals in bold):
Carlin Davison
Sam Gold
Jordan Hunt
Akech Aliir
Aubrey Chunga
Hassan Munir
Izayah Le’afa
Arthur Pilcher
Arana Robertson
Keelan Magalogo
Alex Blackmore
Ryder Moore
2025 Saints Stats Snapshot:
The Saints do not bring back a huge slice of last season’s headline production, but what they do retain is still potent. Izayah Le’afa is the standout returner after averaging 15.6 points, 5.9 assists and 1.9 steals per game in 2025, while Sam Gold, Hassan Munir, Arthur Pilcher and Keelan Magalogo also return from last year’s squad, though with smaller statistical roles. Most of Wellington’s major 2025 production is gone, including the majority of the finishing group that won a title in '26 - Nick Marshall, Hyrum Harris, Nick Muszynski, Shaun Bruce, Shea Ili and Jordan Ngatai - all not currently with the team.
Team-wise, Wellington was outstanding. The Saints averaged 94.8 points per game, allowed just 82.9, posted a +11.9 scoring margin, shot 47 percent from the field, and averaged 44.9 rebounds and 20.8 assists per game. They were one of the most complete teams in the league on both ends of the floor.
| Category | 2025 Team Leader | Top Returning Saint | 2025 Team / League Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoring | Nicholas Marshall, 19.8 ppg | Izayah Le’afa, 15.6 ppg | 94.8 ppg, top tier |
| Rebounding | Hyrum Harris, 10.5 rpg | Izayah Le’afa, 3.3 rpg | 44.9 rpg, elite |
| Assists | Izayah Le’afa, 5.9 apg | Izayah Le’afa, 5.9 apg | 20.8 apg, top tier |
| Steals | Izayah Le’afa, 1.9 spg | Izayah Le’afa, 1.9 spg | 8.0 spg, strong |
| Blocks | Nicholas Muszynski, 2.55 bpg | Sam Gold, 0.3 bpg | 4.9 bpg, elite |
| Field Goal % | Nicholas Muszynski, 64% | Arthur Pilcher / Hassan Munir, 50% | 47%, strong |
| 3-Point % | Shaun Bruce, 49% | Keelan Magalogo, 100% | 34%, solid |
| Free Throw % | Rangimarie Dougall-Mita, 100% | Izayah Le’afa, 75% | 74%, strong |
2025 Stats League Ranks:
| Team Stat | 2025 Number |
|---|---|
| Scoring offense | 94.8 ppg |
| Scoring defense | 82.9 ppg allowed |
| Scoring margin | +11.9 |
| Rebounds per game | 44.9 |
| Rebounding margin | +4.1 |
| Field goal percentage | 47% |
| 3-point percentage | 34% |
| Free throw percentage | 74% |
| Assists per game | 20.8 |
| Steals per game | 8.0 |
| Blocks per game | 4.9 |
| Turnovers per game | 11.6 |
Projected Identity:
The 2026 Saints look like a team that will still want to play fast, attack in space and keep pressure on defenses, but they will likely need to do it with a different shape than last year’s side. The 2025 group had established stars at nearly every level of the floor. This year’s announced roster may be a bit lighter on proven top-end Saints production, but it does have enough talent to remain a favourite every time they step on the floor. Le’afa gives Wellington a proven lead guard, Davison arrives after his best professional season yet, and Jordan Hunt and Akech Aliir add size and versatility to the frontcourt mix. The key will be whether the new pieces can recreate the balance that made last year’s Saints so hard to defend and even harder to score on.
Key Offseason Moves:
This is where the scale of the change is most obvious as the Saints return just two players who saw the court in the 2025 title game. Nick Marshall led the Saints in scoring at 19.8 points per game. Shea Ili averaged 17.8 points and 6.5 assists in his six appearances before being shelved and Shaun Bruce came in to them 16.2 points and 5.0 assists in his stead, Jordan Ngatai added 15.7 points, Hyrum Harris produced 14.5 points and 10.5 rebounds before taking out the Grand Final MVP, and Nick Muszynski chipped in 14.4 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.55 blocks per game as the backline of a smothering defense. That is a huge amount of experience, production and structure leaving the roster.
The biggest announced addition is Carlin Davison, who comes in after an All-Star Five 2025 season with the Airs and gives the Saints a proven two-way piece on the wing who's creation with the ball in hand is blossoming. Jordan Hunt comes home and adds spacing and size to the frontcourt, while Akech Aliir gives Wellington another athletic option and length around the rim. Aubrey Chunga and Arana Robertson round out a group of fresh faces that will all be pushing to establish roles in a reshaped team. This looks to be a roster being rebuilt around a balance once again, but it will feature a new style rather than simply trying to mirror last year’s side.
The returning group is small but significant for Saints team coming off a championship season Izayah Le’afa remains the key piece and gives Wellington a mercurial offensive weapon from deep combined with elite defence, not to mention that hometown championship knowhow. Sam Gold, Hassan Munir, Arthur Pilcher and Keelan Magalogo all return from the 2025 roster and provide continuity in the wider group and will likely feature in the Rapid League.
X-Factors:
Izayah Le’afa
Le’afa is the obvious tone-setter. He averaged 15.6 points, 5.9 assists and 1.9 steals in 2025 but with an even longer history of contributing to Saints basketball on his resume. With so much of last year’s scoring and creation gone, his role now becomes even more important on the offensive end, but his greatest value comes on the defensive end where he will look to snuff out the production of opposition wings. If Wellington is going to stay among the contenders, it will start with his ability to control games on both ends of the court.
Carlin Davison
The signing of Davison was a coup for the Saints. He arrives coming off his best Sal’s NBL season and is still just in the infancy of his professional career. His unique skill set that offers pluses in so many categories will enable the Saints to slide him into multiple rolls. If he fits quickly, Wellington gets another player who can impact both ends as the Saints push towards another postseason.
Jordan Hunt
Hunt could be one of the most important pieces in shaping the Saints’ frontcourt identity. Wellington lost major rebounding and interior production, so his ability to stabilize that area will matter. He comes back to a team with which he has a ton of familiarity and his unique style will carry a big load on the interior.
Biggest Question: Can the Saints replace their elite 2025 defensive efforts?
Yes the Saints lose a heap of offensive production, but scoring can be manufactured in different ways, defense is different. Will the new pieces be able to control the paint like Muszynski or impact wing activity like Nick Marshall or the all court hustle of Harris? Coach Young will back himself to get the production needed from the new personnel but that is always an easier task said than done.
What Success Looks Like:
Is there any question what success looks like for a team that will soon have 13 banners hung in the rafters? This is a franchise than hangs it's hat on championship excellence and the 2026 season will be no different.
Final Word:
