Mark Worthington facts for kids
| No. 33 – Willetton Tigers | |||||||||||
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| Power forward / small forward | |||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||
| Born | 8 June 1983 Bunbury, Western Australia, Australia |
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| High school | Australind Senior (Australind, Western Australia) |
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| Listed weight | 107 kg (236 lb) | ||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||
| College | Metro State (2001–2005) | ||||||||||
| NBA Draft | 2005 / Undrafted | ||||||||||
| Pro career | 1999–2017; 2023– | ||||||||||
| Coaching career | 2016–present | ||||||||||
| League | NBL1 West | ||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||
| As player: | |||||||||||
| 1999–2002 | Bunbury Slammers | ||||||||||
| 2004 | Bunbury Slammers | ||||||||||
| 2005–2008 | Sydney Kings | ||||||||||
| 2008 | Bunbury Slammers | ||||||||||
| 2008–2009 | South Dragons | ||||||||||
| 2009–2010 | Melbourne Tigers | ||||||||||
| 2010 | Brose Baskets | ||||||||||
| 2010–2012 | Gold Coast Blaze | ||||||||||
| 2011 | Mets de Guaynabo | ||||||||||
| 2011 | Piratas de Quebradillas | ||||||||||
| 2012–2013 | Radnički Kragujevac | ||||||||||
| 2013–2015 | Melbourne Tigers/United | ||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Cairns Taipans | ||||||||||
| 2023–present | Willetton Tigers | ||||||||||
| As coach: | |||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Cairns Dolphins | ||||||||||
| 2017–2018 | Loyola Marymount (assistant) | ||||||||||
| 2020–2021 | South West Slammers men's team | ||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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Medals
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Mark Worthington (born 8 June 1983) is a famous Australian basketball player. He currently plays for the Willetton Tigers in the NBL1 West league. Mark played for 11 seasons in Australia's top basketball league, the NBL.
Contents
Mark Worthington's Early Life and Basketball Start
Mark Worthington was born in Bunbury, Western Australia. He grew up in a nearby town called Australind. There, he went to Australind Primary School and Australind Senior High School. As a young player, he played for the Bunbury Slammers. He also started his professional journey as a new player for the Cairns Taipans.
College Basketball in the USA
Mark went to college in the United States. He played college basketball at Metropolitan State University of Denver. This was from 2001 to 2005, under coach Mike Dunlap. In his final year, 2004–05, he won a big award. He was named the NABC Division II Player of the Year. This shows he was one of the best college players in his division.
Mark Worthington's Professional Basketball Career
After his great college career, Mark Worthington joined the Sydney Kings. This was his first team in Australia's NBL.
Starting Strong in the NBL
In his first NBL season (2005–06), Mark won the NBL Rookie of the Year Award. This award goes to the best new player in the league. He played three seasons with the Sydney Kings.
Winning a Championship
After the Kings, Mark joined the South Dragons for the 2008–09 season. He helped the Dragons win the NBL championship that year. Sadly, the team stopped playing after their championship win in 2009.
Playing for Different Teams
After the Dragons, Mark signed with the Melbourne Tigers for the 2009–10 season. In 2010, he also played for a German team called Brose Baskets. For the 2010–11 season, Mark joined the Gold Coast Blaze. In 2011, he played for two teams in Puerto Rico: Mets de Guaynabo and Piratas de Quebradillas. He then returned to the Blaze for the 2011–12 season.
Playing in Serbia
In July 2012, Mark signed with a Serbian team, Radnički Kragujevac. He got an injury in December 2012 that ended his season. He left the team in February 2013. He played 14 games there, scoring about 10 points per game.
Returning to Melbourne and Cairns
On 18 July 2013, Mark returned to the Melbourne Tigers. In May 2014, the Tigers team changed its name to Melbourne United. On 7 July 2015, Mark signed a two-year deal with the Cairns Taipans. On 13 January 2016, he played his 300th NBL game, a big milestone!
Retirement and Comeback
On 22 January 2017, Mark announced he would retire after the 2016–17 season. His last NBL game was his 335th. It was a semi-final loss to the Perth Wildcats on 20 February 2017. Mark was honored by being named to the Sydney Kings 25th Anniversary Team in 2013. He was also added to the Basketball WA Hall of Fame in 2022.
However, Mark's story wasn't over! On 2 March 2023, at 39 years old, he came out of retirement. He signed with the Willetton Tigers of the NBL1 West for the 2023 season.
Playing for Australia's National Team
Mark Worthington also played for the Australian national team, known as the Boomers. He first played for them in 2005 at the FIBA Oceania Championship. He represented Australia at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Four years later, he played in the London Olympics. He also played in the FIBA World Championship in 2006 and 2010.
Mark Worthington's Coaching Career
After his playing career, Mark started coaching.
- In February 2016, he became the head coach for the Cairns Dolphins. This is a women's team in the QBL.
- After two seasons with the Dolphins, Mark worked as an assistant coach. He helped the Loyola Marymount Lions men's basketball team in the U.S. college season (2017–18).
- In October 2019, Mark was named head coach for the South West Slammers men's team. This was for the 2020 season in the SBL. He also coached them in the first season of the NBL1 West in 2021.
Mark Worthington's Family Life
Mark Worthington comes from a basketball family. His father, Greg, is a basketball coach who has worked with the South West Slammers. Mark's brother, Trent, also played for many years with the Slammers' SBL team. Mark has two sons, Taz and Axel, from his previous marriage. He is now married to AFLW player Dana Hooker.
Mark also considered playing Australian rules football in August 2012. His uncle, Kevin Worthington, was a famous Australian rules football player in the 1970s and 1980s.
See also
In Spanish: Mark Worthington para niños
