At a time when Anthony Taylor saw his love for basketball fade, fate offered him another chance to play. Now, he's competing in Australia.

Taylor was on Moraine Valley's basketball team from 2021 to 2023, earning All-Region 4 and All-Conference honors. After graduating, he transferred to Indiana University Northwest (IUN). Last summer, he was invited to play in an exposure camp in Mexico for two days. Around Halloween, he was told he would be a good filler piece missing on some Australian basketball teams. Then the week of Thanksgiving, he was offered a contract to play with Mildura Basketball for six months with the option to renew or talk to other teams.

"I guess it was God's plan. I always dreamed of getting paid to play. I'm super excited," he noted. "I wasn't going to sign the contract at first. My mom wanted me to sign it and experience living in another country. My dad and brother said I owed it to myself after all these years of training."

Taylor flew Down Under in February and joined the Mildura Heat in the Big V senior elite program, Victoria, Australia's elite basketball league comprising of over 100 semi-professional teams in 12 competitions. This will be the first time Taylor is far from home, which he said will build character.

Prior to playing overseas, Taylor had been taking classes at IUN and working at Target on the overnight shift. Then Cyclones Head Coach Kyle Huppe asked him to join the coaching staff for the 2025-26 season, which he accepted.

"Target made me realize how important a degree is. Coaching is fine but playing is different. I'm excited to play basketball again," Taylor said. "I thought my career was over, but I got this resurgence."

While in Australia, Taylor plans to continue taking classes online to complete his bachelor's degree. He also intends to continue playing ball for a while.

"I hope this sparks the excitement I once had. I want to make it a career, have fun, live elsewhere, win defensive MVP and other awards and play as long as I can," Taylor revealed.