No one knew that the last pass had already been made as the lights go dim on the professional basketball career of Mitchell McCarron who announced his retirement today at the age of 32. He was always an example of having been from a place where expectations were surpassed but then having to prove himself all over again in the next place he was to emerge. McCarron arrived into life with such necessity: he was born in Alice Springs and is seemingly the only professional basketball player to ever emerge from the centre of Australia.

McCarron stood at only 6’2″ but played taller than he was. As an aside, if he actually had been a few inches taller, he would a world class baller but he was instead confined to the expectations of a guard. McCarron’s career statistics when he played college basketball at MSU Denver are more akin to that of a small forward: 16.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists. He perhaps put together one of the most decorated collegiate careers in Australian basketball history too: he was a three-time first-team all-conference selection and was chosen as player of the year in NCAA Division II by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) as a senior in 2015 which made him only the third Australian after 2005’s winners Andrew Bogut (Division I) and Mark Worthington (Division II) to earn the award.

After NBA consideration by his local Denver Nuggets, McCarron did not start his professional career in his home country but instead in Spain where he joined Palencia of the second division. He averaged 7.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists in a reserve role as his team went on to win the league championship. McCarron was lured back to Australia by the Cairns Taipans in 2016 which was to be start of his nine-year career in the NBL.

McCarron started his Taipans career again in a reserve role during the 2016–17 season and almost recreated his Spanish output with 7.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists playing behind fellow guards Travis Trice and Cameron Gliddon. The following season, he was a benefactor of Trice’s point guard replacement, Scoochie Smith, receiving a reduced role and was thrusted into the starting line-up with the responsibility of running the team. McCarron averaged 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3 assists in 2017–18.

McCarron’s breakthrough performance earned him the attention of Melbourne United in 2018 and he was signed to a three-year contract. Playing as part of a three-guard line-up for most of his stint, his pairing with offensive talents including Chris Goulding, Casper Ware and Melo Trimble brought a defined role in running the floor with a defensive focus. It culminated for McCarron in 2021 when United won the NBL championship and he was selected to the All-NBL Second Team after averages of 10.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 5 assists.

McCarron earned the nickname “Money Makin’ Mitch” from commentator Corey Williams during his United tenure and he lived up to the name when he signed a lucrative deal to lure him to the Adelaide 36ers in the dusk of championship celebrations. It was unfortunately to be what was ultimately the beginning of the end of his career. Burdened with huge expectations, McCarron was brought in as the apparent piece to change it all when he was a better reflection of being amplified by what was around him. He signed with the expectation of playing under Conner Henry who was fired three months later and replaced by first-time head coach CJ Bruton. McCarron was partnered with the defensive-minded Sunday Dech and the alleged-shooting-messiah Dusty Hannahs for his first season with the 36ers which was shambolic as the team concluded with a 10–18 record. The 36ers brought in the defensive-minded-but-equally-offensively-gifted Antonius Cleveland for his second season which reaped rewards as the 36ers almost made it to the finals with a 13–15 record.

The wheels then fell off and the car would not start as the 36ers limped to a 4–9 record in 2023–24 until Bruton was finally fired. A bizarre saga followed as it was revealed that team ownership had attempted to force Bruton to change the team’s starting line-up: McCarron, still carrying his point guard role, was assigned part of the burden of the 36ers’ woes. Incoming head coach Scott Ninnis moved him to the bench where – ultimately – he would spend the rest of his career.

McCarron escaped the fracas of Adelaide by moving as far as humanly possible to join the New Zealand Breakers in 2024. Unfortunately, they too were to go through a disastrous season in 2024–25 and McCarron was not much of a factor as he recorded the least playing time of his entire career. He was released by the team two weeks ago and called time on his career today.

McCarron revealed in his announcement interview with Olgun Uluc on ESPN that he has played through injuries for years. He suffered from plantar fasciitis during his 36ers days and then persisted with the Breakers despite having a partially torn posterior cruciate ligament; that last injury has now completely ruptured. McCarron feared that he would not be able to enjoy a normal life with his family if his injuries were to persist and decided that any risk was not worth it.

McCarron played beyond what he was and through what could have held him back. This was a team leader whose perseverance led him past the limitations of what even he thought possible. Any opportunity was like a missed shot falling off the rim before he would be there – surpassing the confines of his height – to cradle it with his belief. There was sadly perhaps more to be secured but the consequence of decisions can only ever be approached by retrospection.

McCarron expressed his desire to remain involved in basketball. There is still money to be made with a mind like his. I hope to see him coaching on the sidelines soon.