The Bullets did a fine job on Adel, keeping the former Cleveland Cav to 1-5 from the field in 11 minutes on the floor, while Next Star Justinian Jessup was restricted to just one field goal attempt in the first half and finished with just five points.

It was the second unit that did the damage, with Justin Simon stuffing the sheet with 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists and five steals in a man-of-the-match effort.

The club's returning class of Sam Froling, who had 19 points in his first career start, and Emmett Naar (17 points) were the other standouts on a night the Hawks got 39 points from the bench.

It's an encouraging sign for Goorjian, with stars Adel and Cam Bairstow slowed up by fitness concerns through the preseason.

"The thing that excited me was that the guys that we play off in this, Cam and Justinian, were really struggling offensively," Goorjian said.

"That was the big thing out of this game and I have been saying that the strength of the team is the depth of the team. There's not one guy in my group that can't play. We do have guys that we play off and they were struggling.

"Getting that young group to step up and take the game offensively was great for us. They've been here long before the imports arrived. [Froling] had been grinding out for months before I got to Wollongong. He's been working out with our assistants and he's dedicated to having a great year.

"Adel came out [of the game] with a little injury problem and it was great to see those young guys that have been Hawks for the early part of their careers, Sam and Emmett, step up and have big games and win a close game on the road."

Read more: Hawks open season with impressive win on the road

It was an important win, the club's first in 11 outings, ahead of Monday's clash with Cairns, who snuck home against Sydney in Saturday's other fixture. A noted perfectionist, Goorjian will be looking for improvement, but is embracing the short turnaround into the second leg of a round-one double.

"Right now I wouldn't want to have a week off and train again for another week, our improvement is going to come from playing," Goorjian said.

"For the main part we got the ball to the people we wanted to, and we got the shots we wanted, we were just not as clean as you'd like. These guys haven't played, and you saw it [Friday] night with Adelaide a little bit, good players struggling.

"That part of it will come naturally... we are going to get better but I did like that [90-84] scoreline and I like the fact we played good d. Last year this was the worst team in the league defensively. To have an 90-84 game on the road is good for us. That's a better win than 124-120 on how we're trying to build this thing - defend, get some cheap baskets, keep them off the foul-line.

"It's a tough ask to back up and play another road game with a team like [Cairns] but I'm also excited about the challenge and I feel fearless. [I'm thinking] throw out what you've got and whatever comes our way, let's have a crack."

Adel, who nursed a calf injury through the preseason, didn't feature in the second half due to a quad complaint. Goorjian retains some hope of having him on deck on Monday night, but it appears at long odds with travel back to Cairns and a quick turnaround.

"He's had a bit of a quad issue and we knew we were going to play him in short blocks, sub him in and out, then at halftime he said it was really tight," Goorjian said.

"There's been no further damage but it does need rest and I don't know if two days is enough or not. It's something that will be assessed in the next 48 hours.

"A plus for us was not trying him in the second half and going into rehab in the second half of that game. That might give us more of a chance for the Cairns game."