In the legendary words of Whodini: “Vrenz / How many of us have them?” As it now stands, no team in the league possesses any after the South East Melbourne Phoenix parted ways with Vrenz Bleijenbergh.

The 6’11” playmaking forward sounded too good to be true and ended up being that. I was one particularly excited (as evidenced by my post on Bleijenbergh’s arrival) by the mere prospect of an NBL team using a player that tall to run their offence. The Phoenix signed no other true point guard to their roster and it was truly Bleijenbergh’s role for the taking. It was not that he played particularly poorly during preseason as his averages of 10.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists were remarkably similar to his 2024–24 averages of 11.6 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists. He did have a woeful performance in what was to become his last preseason appearance when he was ejected against the Ryukyu Golden Kings for insulting a referee. As opposed to underwhelming performance, the team states that it was simply not the best fit and it was better to part before getting in too deep. There is no replacement forthcoming with the Phoenix waiting to see how the season progresses and develop a realisation of what they are lacking.

Bleijenbergh’s departure now means that the Phoenix have lost two imports before the season started. Bleijenbergh was originally brought in after Omari Moore reneged on his weeks-old contract and returned to Europe without ever making the trip to Australia. Moore was the 6’6″ point guard/shooting guard who absolutely would have been the Phoenix’s main target all along; the 6’11” point guard/power forward seemingly ended up as only a mirage for them.

I believe that — more than anything — the Phoenix realised that their import recruitments were not up to par with the other additions across the league. All four of the Phoenix’s imports signed for this season — Bleijenbergh, Moore, Hunter Maldonado and John Brown — do not have NBA experience. The Phoenix are the only team in the league this season who do not have a single player who has played in the NBA. I am not saying that NBA appearances are the sole determination of success (last year’s champion Illawarra Hawks only had one!) but there has been such a concerted effort from teams across the league to bring in players who have reached the ultimate level. I presume that the Phoenix’s replacement will be such a player.

The parting of Bleijenbergh means that there will be no first ever player from Belgium making their debut in the league this season. There will be no 6’11” point guard running amok while standing an entire foot over the small guards in the league. There will be no immaculate haircut looking constantly crisp. There will be no commentators butchering a name for the entire season. There will be no referees worrying about missing a foul call. It is the end of Vrenz — even though I believed in Vrenz to the end.