Illawarra will have William Hickey available for Wednesday's trip to South East Melbourne after the Hawks guard accepted a $1,550 fine instead of serving a one-game suspension. The decision settles the most immediate selection question from Saturday's heated fourth-quarter confrontation with Adelaide — and gives the Hawks one less problem to solve before Round 9.
Hickey was charged with striking after the incident involving Adelaide's Nick Rakocevic and Illawarra teammate Makur Maker. The NBL's Game Review Panel classified his conduct as intentional, medium impact and body contact, carrying a one-game suspension with an early guilty plea option. Hickey took that option, according to the NBL's confirmed pleas update.
The other two players have also accepted their penalties. Rakocevic will pay $1,165 for unsportsmanlike behaviour, while Maker will pay $585 for engaging in a melee, brawl or scuffle. The Game Review Panel determination explains that Rakocevic's amount reflects the increased penalty for a second fixed financial offence within the relevant two-season period.
The distinction between a fine and a suspension matters on a short turnaround. Illawarra faces the Phoenix on Wednesday, then travels to Perth on Saturday. Keeping Hickey available means the Hawks aren't forced into a disciplinary absence while preparing for two demanding road assignments. His role and minutes remain a coaching decision, but his eligibility for the opener is no longer hanging over the team.
Adelaide also moves into its Thursday home game against Melbourne United without a suspension arising from this incident. That's a practical outcome for the 36ers, even if the confrontation and the subsequent charges were hardly the way they wanted to finish Round 8. Rakocevic remains eligible to be selected, rather than serving time on the sidelines for the scuffle.
The incident occurred with 3:51 left in the fourth quarter of the Adelaide–Illawarra clash on 7 November. All three players received technical fouls, and Maker was also assessed a flagrant foul and ejected. The initial NBL referral notice identified the trio before Monday's determinations and accepted pleas closed the disciplinary process.
For the Hawks, the basketball question now shifts back to execution. Wednesday's opponent has already been covered as a Round 9 reset story, but Illawarra's own immediate task is straightforward: put Saturday's confrontation behind it and get through another road game with its available rotation intact. Hickey's accepted fine removes one avoidable disruption; it doesn't remove the challenge waiting on court.
The league's outcome also draws a clear line between the three charges. Maker's scuffle offence and Rakocevic's unsportsmanlike conduct were financial penalties from the outset; Hickey faced an actual suspension unless he accepted the early plea. That difference explains why the news is more than a disciplinary footnote for Illawarra fans watching the Round 9 team sheet.
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