Nick Barrow

Position: Forward

Height: 205cm

Born: 17 February, 1992

Junior Association: Counties Manukau

High School: St Kentigern College

Highest Representative Honour – Junior Tall Blacks (2011)

Previous NBL clubs – Auckland Pirates (2011 and 2012), Waikato Pistons (2013 and 2014), Super City Rangers (2015-2019), Franklin Bulls (2020), Auckland Huskies (2021)

Embarking on his 11th season in the Sal’s NBL, Barrow won an NBL Championship with the Auckland Pirates in 2012 and has since played 149 NBL Games. Played 18 games for the Tuatara last season averaging 4.4 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

Selected for the NZ Police team in 2019 that attend the Australasian Police Basketball Tournament in Canberra where he was named to the All-Star Five.

He was on the Counties Manukau team that won the U23 National Championship title in 2014 playing alongside Derone Raukawa and Shea Ili.

A Junior Tall Black in 2011.

Tom Beattie

Position: Guard

Height: 190cm

Born: 15 March, 2001

Junior Association: North Harbour

High School: Rosmini College

NBL Rookie

 A Year 13 at Rosmini College.

Attended the NZ U18 Selection Camp in April 2022.

Named to the Tournament Team at the 2021 U17 National Championships.

Charlie Dalton

Position: Guard

Height: 200cm

Born:

Junior Association: North Harbour

High School: Rosmini College

NBL Clubs – Rookie

The 2022 Rosmini College Sports Captain

Attended the NZ U18 Selection Camp in April 2022.

Also an outstanding volleyball player he has played for the NZ U19 Beach Volleyball team.

Daughter of late Tall Fern Tanya. Sister Tayla is on a basketball scholarship at St Mary’s College, California.

Takiula Fahrensohn

Position: Wing

Height: 200cm

Born: 29 January, 1999

High School: Auckland Grammar School

Junior Association: Waitakere West Auckland

Highest Representative Honour – Tall Blacks (debuted 2022)

NBL Clubs – Auckland Huskies (2021)

Played 16 games for the Huskies in 2021 averaging 5.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game.

Played for Ehingen in the German ProA League in 2021-22 – averaged 12 points and 2.7 rebounds per game as a starter.

Played NCAA Division I at the University of Portland (2018-21), playing 61 games for the Pilots.

Helped New Zealand beat Australia to win a gold medal at the 2016 FIBA U18 Oceania Championship in Fiji.

Father Jeff and brother Chris both played in the NBL.

Reuben Fitzgerald

Position: Guard

Height: 184cm

Born: 3 October, 1999

Junior Association: Tauranga City, North Harbour

High School: Aquinas College, Tauranga and Westlake Boys HS

Previous NBL Clubs –Super City Rangers (2019), Huskies (2020-21)

Fitzgerald played 12 games for the Huskies in 2021.

Named to the Tournament Team at the U23 National Championships helping Harbour to a third place finish.

A third year student at Auckland University Studying Law and Biology at Auckland University.

Fitzgerald was also a First XI cricketer at Westlake Boys.

Daniel Fotu

Position: Forward

Height: 201cm

Born: 24 July, 1999

Junior Association: North Harbour

High School: Rangitoto College

Highest Representative Honour – Tall Blacks (debuted 2018)

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Following high school played NCAA Division I at Saint Mary’s College California. He played 126 games for the Gaels in a 4-year career scoring 728 points – 9th all-time for points scored by a Kiwi in Men’s NCAA Division I basketball.

The Gaels finished runners-up in West Coast Conference in 2022 earning a ticket to the NCAA Tournament.

A member of the Rangitoto College team that won back-to back Schick Secondary Schools National Championships in 2015 and 2016.

Was a member of the Gold medal winning Junior Tall Blacks team at the 2016 FIBA U18 Oceania Championships in Fiji.

Braydon Iuli

Position: Guard

Height: 190cm

Born: 16 July, 2003

Junior Association: Tauranga City

High School: Tauranga Boys High School

Previous NBL clubs – Franklin Bulls (2021)

Iuli played 6 games for the Bulls whilst still a year 13 student at Tauranga Boys High School – scored a season high 7 points against Wellington Saints.

Chris Johnson (Tier 2)

Position: Forward/Centre

Height: 211cm

Born: 17 July, 1985

High School: Colonial Beach HS, Virginia

Previous NBL Clubs – Auckland Huskies (2021)

Led the Huskies in scoring (20.1ppg) and rebounding (11.0rpg) in NBL ’21.

Played 85 games for Louisiana State University – with 176 blocks finished his collegiate career second only to Shaquille O’Neal for blocked shots at LSU.

Played 71 NBA games between 2010-13 suiting up for the Portland Trailblazers, Boston Celtics, Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Hornets.

Has played overseas in Dominican Republic, China, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Croatia, Lebanon and Bahrain.

Wife Tammy is from Takapuna.

Kainoa Lepou

Position: Guard

Height: 186cm

Born: 15 March, 2001

Junior Association: Waikato

High School: Rosmini College/Hamilton Boys High School.

NBL Clubs – Rookie

Since high school has undertaken a two year mission in Canada with the Church of the Latter-day Saints.

The Waikato native spent his final year of high school at Rosmini College winning a Secondary Schools National Championship in 2018.

Played for New Zealand at the 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup in Argentina – averaged 7.2ppg

Father Mason is a former NBL player.

He and wife Nina both won NZ Secondary Schools National Championships while at Church College.

Rob Loe

Position: Centre

Height: 211cm

Born: 5 August, 1991

Junior Association: North Harbour

High School: Westlake Boys HS

NBL Clubs – Wellington Saints (2019)

Loe last played in the NBL in 2019 as a member of the Wellington Saints championship winning team.

In addition to playing over 100 Australian NBL games in a five year career with the New Zealand Breakers Loe has played overseas in Australia, Belgium, Greece and Japan.

Despite being the youngest member of the team he was the leading scorer (averaging 18.8ppg) for New Zealand at the 2009 FIBA U19 World Cup in Auckland.

Made his Tall Blacks debut the same year and went on to cement his place as the starting centre at both the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain and the 2019 event in China. Averaged 11.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in China where he also scored at 52% (12/23) from beyond the arc.

Was a member of the bronze medal winning team at the 2018 Commonwealth Games averaging 9.4ppg and 5.0rpg.

In 2009, in his final year at Westlake Boys, Loe performed outstandingly at the FIBA U19 World Championships in Auckland. At just 17 years – the youngest member of the team – he led the Junior Tall Blacks in scoring averaging 18.8ppg.

He debuted for the Tall Blacks when the team beat Australia to win the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championships.

Spent four years at St Louis University playing 133 games for the Billikens. After College he spent a season each at KAO Dramas (Greece) and Limburg United (Belgium)

 Spent two seasons at New Zealand Breakers before joining Cairns Taipans for the 2018/19 NBL season. Has re-signed with the Breakers for 2019/20.

Won a NZNBL title with the Wellington Saints in 2019 picking up the Stan Hill Award for Most Outstanding New Zealand Forward.

Chris McIntosh

Position: Guard

Height: 184cm

Born: 10 November, 1994

Junior Association: Hibiscus Coast

High School: Kingsway School

Previous NBL Clubs – Franklin Bulls (2020), Auckland Huskies (2021)

Played 11 games for the Huskies in 2021 averaging 3.5ppg – made 10 from 17 3-pointers at 59%.

McIntosh is a leading performer at the NZ 3×3 circuit. At the 2020 Schick 3×3 Cup he led the Huskies to a commendable third place finish. A 2022 NZ 3×3 trialist.

Having attended Kingsway School he played his early representative basketball for Hibiscus Coast before switching to North Harbour where he won an U23 National Championship title in 2016.

He works full-time as a physiotherapist.

Dontae Russo-Nance

Position: Guard

Height: 191cm

Born: 20 January, 2005

Junior Association: Waitakere West Auckland

High School: St Kentigern College

NBL Clubs – Auckland Huskies (2021)

Currently a Year 13 student at St Kentigern College enjoyed a fine rookie NBL season in 2021. Russo-Nance scored 196 points in his debut season averaging 11.5 points per game, with 2.5 assists, playing 29 minutes per game. Scored a season high 26 points against the Jets in April.

He was named MVP at the 2019 Aon U17 National Championships as Waitakere West Auckland claimed the title. Given that Russo-Nance was young enough to be playing in the U15 championships the MVP Award took on additional significance.

Russo-Nance was again named to the U17 Tournament Team at both the 2020 and 2021 championships.

Named BBNZ 2021 Young Male Player of the Year.

Received an NBA Global Academy invite, spending a week at the AIS, in Canberra, in March 2022.

Siler Schneider (Tier 2)

Position: Guard

Height: 191cm

Born: 28 August, 1995

High School: Lansing HS, Kansas

NBL Clubs – Rookie

Played NCAA Division I at UC Davis. A 4-year starter he played 126 games for the Aggies scoring 1,440 points – 5th all-time at UCD.

The Aggies were Big West Conference Champions in his sophomore year making the 2017 NCAA Championship.

Following college he played two Covid interrupted seasons in Rumania and most recently (2021-22) in the Danish League averaging 14.1 points and 4.7 assists for Horsens IC.

Luka Vea

Position: Forward

Height: 195cm

Born: 15 March, 2001

Junior Association: Auckland

High School: Auckland Grammar School

NBL Clubs – Rookie

Following high school attended Sunrise Christian Prep School, Kansas from late 2021 until early 2022.

Attended the NZ U18 Selection Camp in April 2022.

Named to the Tournament Team at the 2021 U17 National Championships.