Jayden Bezzant

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Guard
Height: 1.88m
Born: 1 September, 1996
Junior Association: Tauranga
High School: St John’s College, Hamilton
Highest Representative Honour: Junior Tall Blacks (2014)

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

After school gained a four-year scholarship at Northwest Nazarene University, graduating in 2020 after playing 91 games for the Nighthawks.
Averaged 14.0 points and 3.9 assists per game in his senior year.

Nick Fee

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Guard
Height: 1.85m
Born: 29 March, 1994
Junior Association: Manawatu
High School: Palmerston North Boys High School
Highest Representative Honour: NZ 3×3 Team (2016)

Previous NBL clubs – Hawkes Bay (2018 and 2019), Manawatu Jets (2012-15)

Last season played on the Hawks team that went all the way to the NBL Grand Final. Also worked as Community Development Officer for Basketball Hawkes Bay in 2018 and 2019.
Played for NZ at the 2016 FIBA 3×3 World Championships in Guangzhou, China.

Hyrum Harris

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 1.98m
Born: 3 June, 1996
Junior Association: Rotorua
High School: Fraser High School
Highest Representative Honour: Tall Blacks in 2019. Suited up but didn’t take the court.

Previous NBL Clubs – Super City Rangers (2016,2017), Bay Hawks (2018), Southland Sharks (2019).

Made the playing 12 against Australia in Brisbane in February 12 but did not take the court.

Played at Umpqua Community College, Oregon, 2015-16.
Following his time in the States he joined the Super City Rangers and also played for the Bay Hawks. Had a productive season for the Sharks in 2019 averaging 11 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

Played the 2019-20 Australian NBL season as a Development Player with the Illawarra Hawks appearing in 16 games.

Matangirei Hipango

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Swingman
Height: 1.93m
Born: 28 March, 1993
Junior Association: Manawatu
High School: Hata Paora College, Manawatu

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Hipango attended Manukura School in Palmerston North in his final 18 months at high school. He top scored for Manukura in their 2016 National Secondary Schools ‘A’ Grand Final loss to St Kevin’s College. He was subsequently named to the Tournament Team that year.

He now teaches at his former school Hata Paora College.

Josiah Laracy

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Guard
Height: 1.93m
Born: 7 November, 1992
Junior Association: Kapiti
High School: Kapiti College

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Played for Massey University at the 2018 Tertiary National Championships.

Kalib Mullins

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 1.98m
Born: 16 September, 2000
Junior Association:
High School: Rotorua Boys High School

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

The 198cm power forward graduated from Rotorua Boys High School in 2019 and was the final draft pick for the Jets.

Nelson Kirksey

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Guard
Height: 1.90m
Born: 18 August, 1989
Junior Association: N/A
High School: Middle Creek High School, North Carolina

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

The Pittsburgh born native originally signed to play with Hume City Broncos in the Australian Big V League in 2020. Prior to 2020 he had spent 4 years playing in the Australian State leagues most noticeably for Hawthorn Magic who he led to the Big V title in 2018.

He spent 2 years at Jacksonville College prior to 2-years at the University of Missouri – Kansas City (NCAA Division I) averaging 13.1 points, 5 rebounds and 2.2 assists in his senior year (2013-14). Kirksey then played a season in Chile for Club Osomo before heading to Australia.

Ashton McQueen

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 1.93m
Born: 21 August, 1995
Junior Association: Tauranga City
High School: Tauranga Boys High School

Previous NBL clubs – Taranaki Mountainairs (2015)

McQueen played 17 games for the Airs in 2015 after spending a year as a Development Player with the Nelson Giants.

Currently undertaking veterinary studies at Massey University.

Taane Samuel

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 2.02m
Born: 26 April, 1999
Junior Association: Wellington
High School: Scots College
Highest Representative Honour: Junior Tall Blacks (2016)

Previous NBL clubs – Manawatu Jets (2019)

Averaged 12.7 points and 6.0 rebounds for the Manawatu Jets last season.

In 2019 represented NZ at the FIBA U23 3×3 World Cup in China.
Averaged 12.1 points and 3.4 rebounds for New Zealand at the 2017 FIBA U19 World Cup in Egypt.

After high school spent a season playing in Australia and two years on a basketball scholarship in the Philippines playing for De La Salle University.

Photo: @PhotosportNZ

Tia Temata-Frost

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 1.98m
Born: 24 March, 1992
Junior Association: Manawatu
High School: Palmerston North Boys High School
Highest Representative Honour: NZ U18 Team (2009)

Previous NBL Clubs – Manawatu Jets (2012-13 and 2019)

Played 11 games for the Jets in 2019.
Teacher i/c of Basketball and Head Coach at Manukura School, Palmerston North.
Father Joe Frost is a legend of the game in the Manawatu.

Tom Vodanovich

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Forward
Height: 2.01m
Born: 28 July, 1994
Junior Association: Wellington
High School: St Pat’s Town, Wellington
Highest Representative Honour: Tall Blacks – Debut in 2018 v Jordan (Appearances 5)

Previous NBL Clubs – Wellington Saints (2012), Southland Sharks (2018 and 2019)

A member of the victorious Tall Blacks team that defeated Australia in Brisbane in February 2020.
Played three games in FIBA World Cup Asia Qualifiers after making his debut against Jordan in November , 2018.
Played NCAA Division I at James Maddison University in Virginia where he played 120 games for the Dukes.
Following his time in the States he joined the Southland Sharks team that won the 2018 New Zealand NBL championship. Averaged 12.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in the 2019 season when the Sharks were beaten semi-finalists.

In 2018 he signed as a Development Player with the NZ Breakers and was part of the full roster in the 2019/20 season making 22 appearances.

Photo: @PhotosportNZ

Haize Walker

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Guard
Height: 1.88m
Born: 4 July, 1999
Junior Association: Manawatu
High School: Palmerston North Boys High School
Highest Representative Honour: NZ U17 Team (2015)

Previous NBL Clubs – Manawatu Jets (2018 and 2019)

Walker played 18 games for the Jets last season after spending some time at Concordia University, Oregon.
Played in that historic 2016 Schick Secondary Schools Grand Final when Palmy North Boys High came back from 60-35 down at half-time against Rangitoto College. Haize scored a free-throw with 7 seconds to play to give his team an 80-79 lead only for Cameron Stone to hit a ‘Hail-Mary’ buzzer beater to deny Boys High.

Tim McTamney

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Head Coach

Chris Porteous

Club: Manawatu Jets
Position: Assistant Coach