Elijah Pepper chats about Shepparton, his meteoric rise and plans to dominate the Australian basketball scene

He didn’t dominate the local scene as a teenager or grow up draped in the green and gold.

In fact, he barely remembers his birthplace.

Born in Shepparton, but raised in the US from the age of three, Pepper’s Australian roots were distant — familiar only through stories from his parents, whose memories of country Victoria lingered longer than his own.

Yet, somehow, through hard work, patience and a jumper that just doesn’t quit, he’s now become one of the most feared scorers on Australian hardwood.

And he’s not done yet.

After a stellar college career at UC Davis, where he rewrote record books and torched mid-major defences for four seasons, Pepper’s first professional season in the NBL with the Perth Wildcats was quieter.

At first, Pepper grappled with the Australian game, where the ball moved at a faster pace, the physicality amped up and, in his opinion, the refs “tend to let things go a little bit more”.

Oh, and one other thing — he was competing for a spot with arguably the greatest import the league has seen.

“I guess the next biggest thing is, you’re playing behind Bryce Cotton who’s the best NBL player of all time, debatably,” Pepper said.

“It’s hard to earn a bunch of minutes when you’re playing behind the best import ever and he had the best season of his career this year.

“It was a learning experience for sure and there were some games where I was able to go out there and play well and, for a rookie season, I thought it went well.

“Hopefully that transitions to next year and being able to play a lot more.”

Sensational Senator

Pepper hasn’t left his hopes of a breakout campaign to chance.

Rather than return to the US after his debut Wildcats season, he knuckled down in the lab and shifted tin, hardening the soft to transform himself into Australia’s newest scoring monster.

“I’m working out five days a week in the gym, lifting as well, and my body comp has changed a lot,” he said.

“I’ve lost four or five kilos and that was a big goal of mine, was to try and lose a little bit of weight and prep for next season and then work on my recovery as well.

“There’s obviously not one factor that fixes everything and causes me to do well, but it’s a combination of everything, my preparation and off-season work I’ve been trying to put in and use as prep for Wildcat season.”

The results have been explosive.

Playing for the Warwick Senators in the NBL1 West, Pepper produced three 50-point games out of the gate, each containing a barrage of triples that left crowds stunned and defenders spinning.

Leading the Senators to a perfect 9-0 start while averaging 43.7 points a game, Pepper is now playing with the confidence of a man who knows what he can do.

“People close to me, my parents, my trainers back home, guys from college and stuff, they all know what I’ve been capable of because I did in college,” he said.

“I guess it just feels good to get back to that aggressive form and being the main option and going out there and letting it fly — that’s all I can really say.

“There’s been some comments saying, ‘does he pass the ball?’, but part of the reason why I’m able to do what I’m doing is because there’s really good players around me. That’s an underrated piece.”

His brilliance hasn’t gone unnoticed by national selectors.

Pepper recently toured with the Boomers for the Trans Tasman Throwdown against New Zealand — a classic rivalry that meant more than just minutes on the floor.

“It meant a lot, we were playing New Zealand, who are the rivals, so that was a big deal to reignite that series,” he said.

“I was really grateful to be able to play and meet some more of the guys around the NBL and win the series against New Zealand, especially.”

Shepparton roots

Between 1999 and 2002, there was one name worth worrying about if you were about to tip off against Shepparton Gators: Ryan Pepper.

The star American was a force of nature in and out of the paint, much like his brother and fellow import superstar Jason.

More than 20 years after their last games in Gators colours, another flavour of Pepper is heating up the Australian basketball scene like no tomorrow.

Although the Wildcats, Senators and Boomers combo guard has little memory of the town he was born in, he has been fed dribs and drabs of information through dad Ryan and mum Danielle.

“He (Ryan) talked about it a little bit growing up, my mum especially, because she lived there most of her life,” Pepper said.

“I don’t really remember a single thing — I left when I was about three to move to the States.

“I got to go back and visit one time when I was 15 to go see family and stuff for a month, but other than that I haven’t had much of an experience over there so to speak.”

The next chapter

With Cotton moving on from Perth, the door is ajar for Pepper to walk through.

The NBL1 West campaign with Warwick isn’t just about highlights and heat checks and, though, he wants to win the chip, the next three months are about proving, on Australian soil, what those who watched him in the States have known for years.

Pepper belongs at the top.

“In terms of goals for 2026 with the Wildcats, I’d love to have an expanded role,” he said.

“Obviously with Bryce Cotton gone, there’s a lot of opportunity for that and we don’t really have a set roster yet, we still have a marquee spot and an import spot left.

“But being able to expand on that and then hopefully get a longer-term contract going into NBL27 — I think next year is a big year for myself and my career.”

The kid from Shepparton — or at least the memory of it — is carving out his place in Australian basketball.

He’s part of a generation reshaping the local landscape, a scoring savant with NBA range, Boomers potential and an NBL spotlight finally starting to catch up with his talent.

He left the country at three. He returned as a man.

And now, Pepper is just getting started.