Next chapter of Mundine: From the ring to rims

• Anthony Mundine III is a shooting guard for Sydney Comets in NBL1 East
• Mundine III is the son for former world boxing champion Anthony Mundine Jr.
• Mundine III is chasing his dream of playing in the NBL

The name Mundine is etched into Australian boxing folklore. But now, Anthony Mundine III is rewriting the script — swapping boxing rings for basketball rims.

“Basketball definitely consumes me now,” 20-year-old Mundine III said.

Anthony Mundine III is the son of Australian boxing legend and world champion middleweight Anthony Mundine Jr.

The young guard has been making his mark in his second season at the Sydney Comets, averaging 13.5 points per contest for a team sitting 3rd in the NBL1 East at 10-3.

Fork in the Road

But it wasn’t always basketball. He was introduced to rugby league by his father and unsurprisingly was a talented junior. Mundine Jr played 134 games in the NRL in the 1990s before turning to boxing.

But Mundine III, despite the pedigree, gravitated towards basketball, drawn to the sport by a deeper love for the game.

“He scored four tries in the under-eights Grand Final,” Anthony Mundine Jr. said.

“I tried to push him into footy, because I saw the talent and he had something special.”

But it was some advice from his mum Danielle that steered their son toward basketball.

“My mum, she’s my biggest supporter… she told me ‘You just do what you want, what you feel like doing, what you want to have fun in, where you feel like you can succeed,” Mundine III said.

“She had to tell him [dad] that I was doing basketball, and he was getting mad, but ever since I’ve made that decision he’s been supportive.”

Since then, Mundine III has embraced the grind, and he stands firm that his opportunities have been earned for his work ethic, not his famous name.

“I was really good at footy, like one of the best players on the team,” he said.

“But basketball, it was the fact that I wasn’t the best, it drives me to get better, that’s definitely helped me out so much.”

Like Father, Like Son

It took until Mundine III reached primary school for him to start understanding what it meant to have a famous dad in the global spotlight.

Mundine Jr. had experienced the same pressures with his father Anthony Mundine Sr. who also a champion boxer.

“I thought the same way [feeling pressure] when I was with my dad, but my goal was always to be better,” Mundine Jr. said.

It was advice Jr passed to III.

“My Dad always told me, ‘Do it for yourself, don’t do it for me, do what you want to do’,” Mundine III said.

“My Dad wanted to make a name for himself, so that’s why he had that mindset, and used that to instil it into me when I was younger.”

But now, Mundine III, said his play was doing the talking.

“There’s always going to be pressure, but I feel comfortable with the pressure,” Mundine III said.

“People expect me to play good, but because of the way I’ve been playing so I just keep my head down, keep working.”

Mundine III admitted he and his father do clash out of stubbornness, but he has benefited from it.

“He’s one of my biggest supporters, but also one of my biggest critics … if I’m messing around, he’ll tell me straight up, ‘what are you doing?’,” Mundine III revealed.

Mundine Jr. emphasised the importance of giving his son critical feedback.

“You can’t have somebody just waving the pom poms, and not keeping it real,” he said.

Mundine III recalled one example of Mundine Jr “keeping it real.”

“A long time ago, I was very sick, I got food poisoning, and I was at a basketball tournament, and he said, ‘if you’re not playing, I’m not sitting here with the team’,” he said.

“Then I ended up playing, I vomited like five times that morning… that shows the type of person he is, I think that was a moment where he was building me up to be a soldier and whatever scenario it is, fight through it.”

A Brotherly Bond

Mundine III’s love for basketball is deep-rooted. From as young as eight, he started playing with his cousins for the Redfern All-Blacks, which led to rep basketball at age 10.

He said he started to “lock in” about 13-years-old, and was drawing attention at 14 playing against adults.

“I played up in an Indigenous tournament in Cairns… it was my first time playing on the big stage at that age and I performed pretty well,” he said.

“The confidence came from just knowing what you put in… all that training, I knew it paid off, so I didn’t really feel intimidated.”

Mundine III said boxing was a part of his childhood and revealed his oldest brother was the “final boss”, as he would face off against his other brother to compete for the ultimate matchup. But the fierce nature of brotherly love came through basketball as well.

“My two brothers, we always used to play against each other,” he said.

“We used to have a mini hoop inside the house, and it used to get serious… a lot of fights started from that, who was the fastest, who was the first to dunk, and I think that’s where the competitiveness came out.”

That competitiveness was evident in his attitude now, Mundine Jr said.

“He’s a go-getter, he’s a winner,” he said.

“To pump himself up and compete at the highest level where you try and win at all costs, that’s something that you need in a team.”

Mundine III said his elder brother CJ was a large influence in his growth.

“He [CJ] helped me a lot with my game when I was young because my dad used to travel a lot with his boxing, so he wasn’t around too much… he stepped up in that role,” he said.

“CJ had more of a flashy game, he liked players like Chris Paul, Russell Westbrook, so it’s like those flashy ball handling moves, step backs, he taught me all those moves.”

Firing With No Conscience

Mundine III said his childhood idol was Damian Lillard and he had modelled parts of his game on the NBA star.

“Once I hit like 11, 12, I loved Damian Lillard, I wanted all his shoes, I just loved the way Damian Lillard played,” he said.

“I used to try to steal a lot of moves off of him, so that’s why I do like the little side-steps and step-backs.”

Much like Lillard, Mundine III has been busy from behind the arc this NBL1 season, with five matches of four+ threes made and six attempts in every match except two.

2024 Sydney Comets head coach Lachlan Lonergan and standout Comets guard Biwali Bayles, who has also been a long-time mate of Mundine’s, were two key figures responsible for his increase in shooting volume.

“Biwali [Bayles] was like, ‘Just shoot it, I’m gonna give it to you’, and speaking with my coach Lachie [Lonergan] last season, he told me ‘you got a three, you feel like that’s your shot, just take it’,” he said.

“So, the boys put a lot of confidence in me, and wherever I go I take that with me… so if I get that little bit open, I’m gonna shoot it.

This confidence has only driven Mundine III to become a better shooter.

“I’ve been working on my threes, so I feel like I deserve that green light,” he said.

“It’s not necessarily a certain amount I’m trying to take but I’ve been getting them up for sure, trying to shoot them at a high clip, when we do certain drills, I’m trying to beat the scores I was getting before — I think it’s just that consistency and just finding muscle memory when shooting that you need.”

Above the Shoulders

Mundine III has come a long way in his development, and at 20, still has a ways to go. But when he signed for the Cairns Marlins two NBL1 seasons ago, he told the National Indigenous Times: “It’ll just be a nice place for me to develop… I’m younger, just new on the scene so it’s going to be a good opportunity for me.”

Mundine III now admits he was nervous but through a combination of confidence and what he described as an evolving “maturity for the game”, he said his game has become more aggressive and assured, placing him in good stead for more minutes at NBL1.

“Knowing the right pass is the right pass, and sticking with my gut feeling, not second guessing, has been a lot better,” he said.

“The way I see the game is a lot different, it’s slowed down for me.”

Promise to Poise

Mundine III said he was focused on improving mentally but his father was adamant there was still plenty of untapped potential with his game and body.

“His shot percentage is going up, his defense is getting better, he’s getting stronger,” he said.

“He’s starting to fill out, and he’ll continue to grow… he’s just turned 20, so I think he’s got another three to four years before he becomes a man.”

After a 12-month stint at Cairns, Mundine III returned to Sydney to join the Comets. He said stability and the ability to build on some strong momentum from his first season at Sydney had allowed his game to evolve.

“I didn’t start off the season starting, I was probably getting around like 15 minutes,” he said.

“But I just kept working, and then I kept working and towards the end of the season, I had conversations with my coach, and he liked the way I was playing, so my minutes went up… and so when Sydney offered me a contract again this year, I was like ‘it’d be a good opportunity’.”

Sydney Comets head coach Will Hill has given Mundine more minutes as he has shown his worth defensively.

Gifted with speed and strength from a young age, he was dunking and guarding all positions, well ahead of most of his peers. Those attributes have moved over to his current form, leading him to a career-high 1.5 steals this season.

“I’ve always been really quick, real fast, twitchy, in juniors, I got Defensive Player of the Year a few times,” he said.

“It’s just always something I’ve always had to be good at, because it’s what separates you from the average player. You can play offense, but if you can’t play defense, you’re getting found out.”

A Humbling Abroad

Mundine as an 18-year-old went to the US to play high school basketball in Cincinnati for Withrow High School. He averaged 12 points per game on more than 50% shooting, and had 15 double-digit performances.

While some may struggle with a far quicker game against more athletic players compared to Australia, Mundine III flourished.

But he felt a “rinse and repeat” lifestyle while there, although it helped his development with a higher level of professionalism and discipline.

“We were messing around in training and then at the end of training, we had to do sprints for like 30 minutes,” he said.

“One game we won by like 40 or 50, but we didn’t keep them to the score that we said we were gonna keep them to, they got like two to three points over… and then after the game, we had to run, it was crazy… but it definitely helped with my discipline now, like when I train, I’ve gotta make sure I’m going my hardest.”

Representing his Roots

Mundine III played in the inaugural Indigenous All-Stars game between Indigenous Basketball Australia (IBA) & Poitūkohu Māori two weeks ago. In a 14-point win for IBA, the 20-year-old guard displayed his range by hitting four threes in six attempts, on his way to 12 points. But he said the game’s impact stretched far beyond his on-court performance.

“I loved every moment, it’s one thing to play basketball, another thing to represent my people, but to do both at the same time… it was one of the biggest highlights of my career and one I won’t take for granted,” he said.

“The kid in me came out again, it was serious… but I was pretty familiar with everyone on the team and the connection was unmatched… it just felt like I was at home.”

The game was the last professional appearance for Indigenous Australian basketball legend Nate Jawai, a role model for the Indigenous basketball community.

“He set the bar for us, he came from a small town and so, he showed us ‘if I can do it, you guys can do it too’,” he said.

“My Dad likes to call him a big kid, he’s a big guy, but he has his laughs, we have fun — he’s a very genuine and good person.”

Free from the Flock

Mundine III in his spare time is a heavy music listener, and loves to be with his mates, where competitiveness oozes.

However, it’s his parents who have encouraged professionalism, which has fed an independence fostered by solo leaps to Cairns and the US.

Mundine Jr. was determined to teach his sons to stay away from alcohol and cigarettes and his son listened.

“He’s [Mundine Jr.] instilled it since we were all young, like me and my siblings, pretty much none of us drink or smoke, my parents have kept us pretty on track,” he said.

“I feel like I like doing things by myself, because when you tend to be in a big group, you get influenced to do things.”

“I told them, ‘You either be the sheep and follow the herd or you be a wolf, a lion, and you lead your own path, what do you want to be?’,” Mundine Jr. said.

“‘You want to be a sheep and go into a hood that’s going down the wrong path or you want to be a lion and set your own goals and dreams to where you want to be?’”

A Healthy Obsession

While Mundine III also helps with his dad’s construction company in the offseason, basketball continues to be his focus. He has set a goal to play in the NBL.

“I’ve been really locked into trying to get into the NBL, whether it’s just a DP [development player] spot, or it’s just me getting a roster spot,” he said.

“I feel like I can play and learn a lot so that’s the ultimate goal.”

Mundine Jr is all-in but understands the task ahead.

“I want to give him a good manager,” Mundine Jr. said.

“If you’re gonna go from semi-professional to professional, you need to become more serious in that way… there’s plenty of opportunities all over and if you need to get more experience within the professional ranks, you can use the atlas.”

While some may crumble under the pressure of having a famous father, Mundine III remains bullish about what he can achieve as he forges his own path.

“I feel like everything’s going up, I want to make it to the point where I don’t even have to work, I just want to play basketball,” he said.

“He loves the game so much that he wants to dedicate his life to it,” Mundine Jr. said.

“You have to be obsessed… believe in yourself so much so that the universe has no choice but to make it happen.”

With a mindset locked on to success as he continues to thrive, Anthony Mundine III isn’t living in the shadow of his famous family name — he’s building a legacy of his own.