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Melbourne United’s Grassroots Game couldn’t have been a bigger hit with Victorian basketball fans, as over 10,000 supporters from all over the state filled John Cain Arena for the sell-out clash with the Sydney Kings on Sunday.
As part of the elebration of all things grassroots basketball, United asked organisations tonominate a ‘local hero’ from their club who deserved to be spotlighted fortheir extraordinary effort and dedication to growing the sport locally.
Melbourne United is thrilled to announce that Northside Thunder Basketball Club’s Club President and Coach Jonni Ananiadis has won the search!
Having started coaching at the Darebin Giants at the age of 13, Ananiadis worked tirelessly to help propel the sport in his area, before ultimately acting as a major driving force in the foundation of the Northside Thunder in 2021.
Eventually working his way up to the presidency at Northside, Jonni has seen the club’s junior registration double since their debut season.
Despite coaching multiple teams, Ananiadis’s focus has always remained locked ongetting more people involved in the game he loves, which has seen him volunteer at school basketball tournaments as well as using Auslan to work with deaf children.
Join us in congratulating Jonni, who has taking home four box tickets to United’s home clash with the Tasmania JackJumpers on November 26.
