‘Outgrowing the house’: The 17-year-old, 2.2m basketball who lives in a shipping container
He’s so tall his Sunshine Coast family had to build a new house, but you won’t hear Rocco Zikarsky, 17, complaining about his height. He’s shooting to be the next Aussie superstar in the NBA.
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Rocco Zikarsky is Australia’s big NBA draft prospect who was so tall growing up his mum had to build a new home out of shipping containers because he almost knocked himself out on a low-lying beam.
Life isn’t all roses when you stand over 2m – as Zikarsky discovered as a youngster in the beachside suburb of Buddina – on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.
“My siblings and I would always hit our heads – and we couldn’t really remove the pillar, so we thought maybe it’s best we move,” Zikarsky recalls, grinning.
“We were almost outgrowing the house. It was too small, so Mum came up with the idea for a shipping container house, where the ceilings are nine-foot tall and you’ve got floor-to-ceiling doors. It meant no more ducking under pillars and beams.”
Zikarsky’s mother, Kylie, has more fearful memories of the low-lying beams and the potential damage they posed.
She recalls the day he was racing his brothers down the stairs – when bang – he whacked his head so hard the family thought he’d be seriously hurt.
“I thought he is going to kill himself if he isn’t careful,” Kylie says.
“Rocco was outgrowing the house – and I thought one day he is going to come home in the dark and knock himself out.
“I knew I needed to buy a bigger house, but I couldn’t find one in my budget if you want really tall ceilings.”
Thankfully, following an extensive internet search, Kylie found shipping container homes and the family moved to a 60ha property that backs onto the Mapleton National Park in the Sunshine Coast hinterland.
The use of shipping containers isn’t common, but the specialised homes possess the size needed to cater for a 220cm (seven foot three inch) son.
Kylie jumped at the opportunity for a change of scenery, even if it meant building the container homes off the grid with no power or water.
“I decided to go with shipping containers because they are nine-foot tall, so I could make the doors fit for Rocco without whacking his head,” she says.
“It’s all bush and we have no neighbours, but it’s perfect for us, and all the kids have separate pods with their little decks.”
Zikarsky still lives at home in his shipping container, making the most of the space and his mother’s specialty, lasagna.
“It’s the best lasagna,” he says.
Home cooking and home support helped while Zikarsky found his feet as a centre at the Brisbane Bullets this season.
He displayed comfort on the professional stage beyond his 17 years, with his size, skill and poise off the bench for the Bullets.
Zikarsky held his own against seasoned campaigners – and fellow rising stars – including Perth’s potential No.1 NBA draft pick in French big man Alex Sarr.
Brisbane’s star teen still has another season in the NBL before he’ll declare for the 2025 NBA draft, but he is on the right track to achieve a long and successful career.
According to Kylie, Zikarsky is a born competitor as one of four siblings, alongside Ruben, 21, Jade, 20 and Lennox, 18.
The words “beautiful chaos” adorned the children’s playroom wall, a fitting description “because I reckon that was our house for 12 years”, she says.
Zikarsky’s older brother Ruben was a standout athlete in his own right. He excelled as a national swimmer, and later, a world champion in surf lifesaving.
Rocco was always trying to prove a point and beat Ruben.
“That’s why he isn’t afraid to take on older and stronger people, because he has done that his whole life,” Kylie says.
“He was forever challenging his older brother and he wanted to be the best.”
Zikarsky was equally competitive and energetic with his friends. He would often have mates over to play basketball or go the beach, but would run them ragged.
“The poor kids that would come up to me and say, ‘can we just stay here, we need a rest’,” Kylie recalls, grinning.
“Rocco would just go, go, go until all his little friends would be laying across the house, exhausted, and he is still ready to go.”
Kylie also remembers receiving a call from Rocco’s teacher when he was six saying he was being critical of the other kids, “because everyone got a ribbon, not just the winners”.
His parents attempted to calm the situation, demanding: “you need to accept”, but it only fuelled their ultra-competitive son.
“Rocco said, ‘well you don’t just get a prize for showing up, Mum,” she says.
“He would have been five or six and my husband and I just cracked up laughing, but that’s the mentality that Rocco has always had – and it’s just natural for him.
“He has always thought that if you want to be the best, then you’ve got to do something to earn it.
“I used to be his swimming coach – and I didn’t do that for my other kids – but Rocco was so coachable. He’d ask me what he needed to do to win the 50 freestyle – and he’d put in the work to achieve it.
“He would raise the bar and then want to go higher. He was never satisfied – and you didn’t have to tell him to do that – he just wanted it so badly.”
Zikarsky is living his professional basketball dream with the Brisbane Bullets, but he almost walked away from the sport before he even got started.
He contemplated leaving in his first season on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast with UniSC Rip City as an 11-year-old.
The budding baller became tired of travelling more than two hours to a game, only to do the jump ball (to begin or resume play) because of his height and then sit for the rest of the game.
“I nearly quit because of that,” Zikarsky says.
“That was my first year of basketball before I knew how to play at all. We’d go to the game, I’d be good for the jump ball and then I’d be sitting.”
Fortunately, he stuck solid with hoops thanks to the devoted support of his parents and coaches. He credits their backing for fuelling an unwavering belief in his ability.
It didn’t take long for Zikarsky to “fall in love” with basketball – a sport perfectly made for his seven-foot frame.
The boy from Queensland soon became a success in hoops, but it wasn’t his only passion.
Zikarsky is blessed with potent sporting genes. Mum Kylie was a champion ironwoman while dad Bjorn won an Olympic bronze medal for Germany in the 4x100m freestyle swimming at the 1996 Atlanta Games.
It’s no coincidence that Zikarsky harboured serious ambition to also become an Olympic swimmer.
He won national medals and wanted to become an “Australian Dolphin” but, in the end, basketball won over his heart.
“I was swimming for a long time because my family is full of swimmers,” he says.
“I started picking it up naturally and I really enjoyed it too, but I think there was a point where I couldn’t do both and when the NBA Global Academy (in Canberra) offered me an opportunity and I decided that was the move.”
Zikarsky was at the National School Swimming Championships – and had only just left the pool deck after winning the 50m freestyle – when the NBA Global Academy came calling via technical director Marty Clarke. It was a defining moment for the gifted Queenslander, although mum concedes she had no idea who Clarke was.
“Marty explained who he was and I was like, ‘who?’,” she says.
“Rocco was standing next to me at the time and looking at me, saying: ‘who is it?’
“I hung up and said some guy called Marty Clarke called. When I realised I thought it was quite exciting.
“I didn’t think he was going to play basketball professionally until we got (that) call … to say, ‘we’re watching Rocco’, when he was about 14.”
Zikarsky will be forever grateful he was raised in a household of high- performing athletes.
He says his parents devoted endless hours to instilling him with the right tools, insights and intelligence to excel as a professional athlete.
“They’d never push me to do anything, but they have been places where I want to go, like the Olympics and world titles,” he says.
“There were times when they were just parents and there were times when they were coaches.
“Everything that I want to do – they know how to get there, mindset and physicality wise.”
Brisbane’s original vision was to invite Zikarsky to training, but as coach Justin Schueller recalls, the plan changed in the space of one weekend at the Under 18 National Championships in Brisbane last April.
As Schueller sat courtside watching Zikarskydominate for Queensland, he quickly realised the gifted teen possessed the physical tools and smarts to excel in the NBL if given the chance.
The rising big man was averaging an impressive 23 points and 16 rebounds in 26 minutes on the court at the nationals.
Schueller had also previously coached Zikarsky in the 17s Australian side, so he knew what he was capable of achieving.
“So, I thought I’d see if Rocco wanted to join the Bullets on a contract, and our relationship made it an easier and more comfortable decision for him,” Schueller reflects.
“Then we got the NBL involved – because he was going to be a Next Star prospect – so it all happened pretty quickly.”
Just a week after the nationals in Brisbane, Zikarsky fielded a call from Schueller.
The family was expecting the Bullets to offer a development player spot, so they were blown away when the club proposed a fully rostered contract.
“It wasn’t on our radar at all, so when we hung up from the conversation, we didn’t know how to feel,” Kylie says.
“That’s when I thought, ‘this is going to be Rocco’s career’.”
Zikarsky didn’t say yes to Brisbane’s offer on the spot, preferring to take his time and weigh up the multiple options, including US college.
The family had received endless phone calls from colleges – to the point where it became overwhelming.
In the end, the lure of playing in Australia in front of family, especially his devoted grandmother Virginia Banks, was too good an opportunity to knock back for Zikarsky.
“Playing at home was a big thing for me,” he says.
“Family is so important to me, so to have my grandmother come out to every game. She has been a huge support.
“She almost cancelled a trip away for four weeks, just because she was going to miss a few home games.
“I told her she better go on the trip. She has definitely been my biggest supporter. You feel so much more comfortable on the court knowing you can see her in the stands and give her a wave pre-game.”
Zikarsky has two years in the NBL’s Next Stars program. This will give the 17-year-old more time to hone his skills and body for a legitimate shot at the NBA.
Zikarsky understands – and appreciates – the importance of having two seasons as a Next Star at the Bullets.
“Because these two years could be the biggest years in my development,” he says.
“And there is no place I’d rather be. I’m at home with my family and people I trust and I’m playing against some of the greatest players to ever play.
“To me it was a no-brainer and I wanted to be in Brisbane and at home, so I think it’s really good for my development.”
Zikarsky describes himself as a student of the game.
He isn’t the type of bloke who switches off hoops in his downtime – he likes to immerse himself in the sport to become better.
“I think a lot when I’m watching games – sort of like what I would do if I was there and playing,” he says.
“I guess it’s reading the game a different way. I also enjoy watching as well, but it is also about how I can take a facet of the game and turn it into something that I can do or our team can do.”
Zikarsky knows he is fortunate to learn every day in Brisbane from Schueller – one of the country’s best coaches with experience in the junior ranks.
Schueller has been a part of the Australian junior programs for a decade, holding the head coach position of the Australian U17 Men for their World Cup campaigns since 2017.
The former Melbourne United assistant built a close relationship with Zikarsky – a connection that has significantly helped the Next Star signing at the Bullets this season.
“It has been really good to be with a coach like Justin, who I’ve had before,” Zikarsky says.
“I know what he is like, how he operates and I think that’s important to have that trust between the coaches and the players.
“A lot of guys on this (Bullets) team have been a part of a team with Justin on it, so it’s good to have that level of understanding with each other.
“He tells me I need to earn my minutes and I like how he challenges me. That gives me the confidence because I know he is going to trust me when I’m ready.”
Zikarsky is yet to play for the senior national team, but he already has a close bond with the Boomers’ greatest big men in history.
The likes of Luc Longley, Andrew Bogut, Aron Baynes and Dave Anderson have gone out of their way to connect with the Brisbane rookie.
Longley has been the most active, with the three-time NBA championship-winner becoming one of Zikarsky’s best mentors.
It’s a budding relationship that began last May when Luc randomly reached out to Zikarsky while he was in Perth to watch the Under 16s nationals.
The legendary Boomer wanted to take Zikarsky out on his boat for the day to chat all things basketball and life – and as mum recalls – the pair had a “wonderful” day.
“Rocco came back and he was in awe and inspired,” Kylie says.
“He told me ‘it was one of the best days of my life – talking to someone who has done my whole dream’.”
Longley hasn’t stopped with one catch up. The day after their first meeting, he reached out again – but this time he invited Zikarsky’s mum to join him and his wife for coffee.
“The four of us had a fantastic time – and Longley has kept in contact with Rocco ever since,” she says.
“He is surrounded by these phenomenal mentors that you couldn’t even dream of having and they are really involved in his path.
“As a parent you sit back and think, ‘wow’, these guys actually want to take my son under their wing.
“That is also giving Rocco a lot of belief, the fact they are interested in his journey and they want to help him, saying: call me anytime if you need it. You can’t buy that and it’s special.”
Zikarsky’s Australian-based management connection is also a Boomer – Perth Wildcats legendary guard Damian Martin.
The six-time NBL championship winner and Rio Olympian is one of basketball’s most respected players and people, which is a major reason why Zikarsky wanted the Aussie icon’s co-owned agency – ProMondo Sports – to look after him.
Kylie couldn’t be happier to have Martin – who is in charge of ProMondo’s Australian arm - in her son’s corner.
“Damo reminds me of Rocco in so many ways,” she says.
“High energy and happy and I wanted that influence for him. That was a good match, I thought.”
Zikarsky has long desired to don the green and gold of Australia. He remembers watching the 2016 Rio Olympics and saying to himself: “I’d love to go to the Olympics”.
He then witnessed the Boomers win bronze at the 2021 Tokyo Games (their first medal in 15 attempts, including four fourth-place finishes), which only “solidified” his Olympic aspirations.
Zikarsky was part of Australia’s World Cup qualifying squad last year, and while he didn’t take the floor, he felt a part of the famed Boomers culture.
“There is a really big brotherhood around the Boomers – once a Boomer, always a Boomer,” he says.
“That mentality is spread out to all the rising players as well.
“I still felt part of the group, even though I never suited up or was given a number.
“That really motivates me. I’m chasing two ultimate goals. One is to play for the Boomers and the second is to make the NBA and that’s still an everyday motivator.”
Zikarsky doesn’t hesitate when asked about the NBA player he likes to emulate.
He could select a handful of stars, including LeBron James or Kevin Durant, but he lands on seven-foot four French sensation, Victor Wembanyama.
“I always catch myself watching the NBA and definitely Wemby specifically,” Zikarsky says about Wembanyama, who was the No.1 pick in the 2023 NBA draft, snapped up by Texas team the San Antonio Spurs.
“His versatility for a seven-footer, there is nothing like it, so I try and watch what he does and put it into action at training.
“It’s finishing around the rim. He is super athletic for someone his height and the way he moves with the ball in his hands, even off the ball.
“He is also active on defence, so it’s the things I want to try and replicate.
“It’s amazing to watch – there has never been a player like him.”
Zikarsky is drawn to Wembanyama as a fellow big man – a centre of similar height – but that’s where the comparisons start and finish.
The emerging Bullet understands the Frenchman nicknamed “Wemby” is a once-in-a-generation talent in a league of his own, but he isn’t worried because he is determined to be his own man.
“Everyone is chasing the goal of being the best they can – and one of the best in the world – but I’m not chasing to be Wemby,” says Zikarsky, who has added 6kg of muscle to his frame since joining the Bullets midway through last year.
“I do want to have the same impact and the pull that he has. There are so many eyes on him and he is such a big part of his team.
“The weight room has been a really big focus for me trying to work towards holding my own, get above the rim and get out of screens quicker.
“That’s something I want to be.”
Zikarsky is hoping to be selected in the 2025 NBA draft, which would help him join a long list of Australians in the world’s best league.
He grew up idolising fellow big men like Bogut and Baynes – now he gets the chance to follow in their footsteps.
“It’s great to see all the Aussie talent that is in the NBA,” he says.
“People are being able to prove that the Aussie pipeline is legitimate. That’s helping us get more looks, which is great for the future.”
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