Fourteen years after launching Throwback out of a 10-square-metre storeroom at a local basketball gym, founder Michael Lazaris is turning a long-held dream into reality by moving into a 2000sqm heritage warehouse at 100 William Lane, Alexandria, a space with a deeply personal history.
The property, leased with the assistance of John Skufris of RWC South Sydney, isn’t just any warehouse. It was once the training facility and head office of the Sydney Kings, the same space where Michael’s father, Andrew Lazaris, helped build one of Australian basketball’s greatest success stories in the late 1990s.
“I had my 10th birthday in this building,” Michael said. “Thirty years later, I’m moving my business into the same warehouse where my dad once ran the Kings. We walked through it together the other day, and he was pointing out where his office used to be. It’s a full-circle moment.”
Andrew, a pioneer in Australian sport and recipient of the Order of Australia Medal, was a co-founder of the Sydney Kings and part of the first private consortium to own a professional sporting team in Australia, a structure inspired by American sports ownership, particularly in basketball. His passion for grassroots development has spanned over five decades, and that influence has clearly shaped his son’s journey.
Michael’s own story began with a background in graphic design and a love for basketball.
“One day the idea just hit me, I converted an old storeroom at the gym into a little shop. It was 10 square metres,” he said.
That shop became Throwback, launched officially on 11/11/11, with his mum as his first employee. “She still runs the books 14 years later. We’ve never had investors, just reinvested every dollar and built it steadily.”
From that modest start, Throwback has grown into Australia’s leading basketball lifestyle brand and custom teamwear supplier. Its flagship 250sqm store in Darlinghurst had become a destination for hoop enthusiasts, with the company blending retail, culture, and community like few others.
“For the past decade, we’ve led basketball retail in the country,” Michael said. “We play an important role in giving brands cultural credibility. If it’s in Throwback, people know it’s cool. That stamp of approval adds serious value because we are authentic.”
The Alexandria move represents more than just a business expansion. Throwback is relocating from a 500sqm space into a purpose-built 2,000sqm headquarters that will house its retail operations, warehousing, and office functions under one roof.
“This isn’t just a workspace,” Michael said. “We’re creating an ecosystem, a fully immersive space for basketball culture. There’s going to be a café, experiential retail zones, and even a training facility.”
The centrepiece of the space is a 1990s-era basketball court, an iconic piece of Australian basketball history, once owned by NBA champion Luc Longley, who played alongside Michael Jordan on the Chicago Bulls. The court had been sitting in storage for two decades before Michael negotiated a deal with the Sydney Kings to bring it back to life. The rings, well they’re the original rings from the Sydney 2000 Olympics!
“I’m laying the court this week,” he said. “It’s the same surface the Kings trained on, and now it’s going to be seen, used, and celebrated again. There’s huge demand in Sydney for unique courts like this, we already have a dozen groups lining up to lease it.”
Michael is personally overseeing much of the fit-out using his own skills.
“I’ve done it in a really creative way, and we’re building something special, not just retail, but a destination,” he said. “We’ve even got a dedicated Jordan area. We’ve had a Nike account for eight years, and with Jordan retros being reintroduced to our assortment we were able to creative the ultimate experience.”
The timing couldn’t be better, with the NBA & NBL seasons under way. The new Alexandria headquarters is already generating buzz in the basketball community, and Michael hints at more surprises to come, including a planned Sydney Kings reunion.
“Some of the 90s legends have already dropped by. Seeing their reaction when they recognise the space, it’s been amazing,” Michael said. “They probably never thought they’d step foot in here again. And now, it’s not just about memories, it’s about building the future of the game.”
