Tysxun Aiolupotea

Position: Guard

Height: 181cm

Born: 7 August, 2001

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Nayland College

Previous NBL clubs – Nelson Giants (2019-21 & 2023)

Last played for the Giants in 2021 making 7 appearances.

Scored a career best 20 points in the final game of the 2020 season against Taranaki Airs.

Played for Nayland College at the 2019 Secondary Schools National Championships where he was 5^th on the Tournament scoring list averaging 24.9 points per game.

Adam Barton

Position: Forward

Height: 201cm

Born: 2 February, 2006

Junior Association: Nelson

High School:

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

Riley Bensemann

Position: Guard

Height: 193cm

Born: 31 March 1999

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Previous NBL clubs – Nelson Giants (2015-present)

Played 6 games for the Giants in 2021. Primary school teacher at Enner Glynn School in Nelson. Mother Julie is the Nelson Giants administrator.

Will Blight

Position: Forward

Height: 205cm

Born: 12 January, 2006

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

A Year 13 at Waimea College.

Named to the 2023 New Zealand U17 wider training squad.

A member of the Waimea College volleyball team that finished runners-up at the 2023 Secondary Schools Volleyball National Championships.

Nick Davidson

Position: Point Guard

Height: 183cm

Born: 4 April, 2005

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Nelson College

Previous NBL clubs – Giants (2022-present)

Played 1 game for the Giants in 2022 debuting against the Sharks.

Graduated from Nelson College in 2022.

Named to the NZ U17 National Team in 2022 competing at the FIBA Asia Cup.

Sam Dempster

Position: Forward

Height: 194cm

Born: 20 June, 1990

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Nayland College

Previous NBL Clubs – Nelson Giants (2008-present)

Highest Representative Honour – Tall Blacks – debut 2022

Received the NBL’s 2022 Most Improved Player Award.

Named the NBL’s Most Improved Player in 2022. Played all 19 games for the Giants averaging 12.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. His scoring average was the highest of his career and included a 3-point shooting percentage of 41%.

His outstanding club form earned dempster a call up to the Tall Blacks squad – played in the friendly international against Japan.

Missed the 2020 NBL Showdown season due to work commitments otherwise has played every season since 2008 for the Giants, closing in on 200 appearances.

Kazlo Evans Jr.

Position: Guard

Height: 183cm

Born: 23 October, 2003

Junior Association: Waikato

High School: St Kentigern College

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

A member of the St Kentigern College team that won the 2019 Secondary Schools National Championship playing alongside Giants teammate Alex McNaught.

Dropped 47 points, including 12 three-pointers, for St Kentigern College against Mt Albert Grammar in May 2021.

Named MVP at 2020 U17 National Championships after leading Waikato to the title. 

Tom Ingham

Position: Guard

Height: 192cm

Born: 19 June, 1993

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Previous NBL Clubs – Nelson Giants (2010-2011 and 2016-present), Otago Nuggets (2012-2014)

Having first played for the Giants while still at school Ingham has logged over 100 NBL appearances. In his ninth year with the club.

Missed the 2022 season due to injury. Played all 16 games for the Giants in 2021 averaging 10.9 points per game – scored a season best 17 points against the Hawks.

Also a Nelson cricket representative, Ingham has played over 100 games for the Giants. He also played for Otago Nuggets whilst studying at Otago University.

Hayden Jones

Position: Wing

Height: 197cm

Born: 9 January 2007

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Averaged 8.8 points and 5.2 rebounds for New Zealand at the 2022 FIBA U15 Oceania Championships in Guam.

Named to the Tournament Team at the 2022 NZ Secondary Schools National Championships.

Son of former Tall Black Phill Jones.

Matur Maker (Import)

Position: Centre

Height: 208cm

Born: 1 January, 1998

High School: Carlisle School, Martinsville, Virginia.

Previous NBL Clubs – Canterbury Rams (2022)

Played just 3 games for the Rams before picking up a season ending injury averaged 11.7 points and 8.7 rebounds in the three games.

Won an Australian NBL Championship with the Sydney Kings in 2021.

Of South Sudanese origin he moved to Perth with his family during his early childhood.

Attended a number of Prep Schools in America and Canada.

Has played professionally in Switzerland, Slovenia and for Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the NBA G League.

Younger brother of former NBA player Thon Maker

Tyler Marsh

Position: Guard

Height: 190cm

Born: 18 July, 2000

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Highest Representative Honour – NZ U17 Team (2019)

Previous NBL Clubs – Nelson Giants (2015-19 and 2021-present)

One of only four players to play all 19 games for the Giants in 2022 – scored a season best 11 points against the Taranaki Airs.

Marsh played a year (2019-20) at St Cloud State University (NCAA Division II) playing 13 games for the Huskies.

Played for NZ at the 2017 FIBA U17 Oceania Championships in Guam.

Alex McNaught

Position: Guard

Height: 185cm

Born: 21 June, 2002

Junior Association: Auckland

High School: St Kentigern College

Highest Representative Honour – Tall Blacks – debut in 2022

Previous NBL clubs – Nelson Giants (2020-present)

Played all 19 games for the Giants in 2022 averaging 5.5 points, 1.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

First played for the Giants in 2020 while still at Saint Kentigern College.

Played 12 games for the NZ Breakers as a Development Player in the 2022-23 ANBL season. Recently signed a 3-year contract extension.

Made his Tall Blacks debut in November 2022 against Lebanon scoring 5 points.

Played on the St Kentigern College team that won the 2019 Secondary Schools National Championship.

Callum McRae

Position: Centre

Height: 216cm (7’1”)

Born: May 18, 1999

Junior Association: Manawatu

High School: Palmerston North Boys High School

Highest Representative Honour – Junior Tall Blacks

Previous NBL clubs – Manawatu Jets (2015 & 2018)

Played 11 games for the Jets in 2018 averaging 5.3 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.

Following high school played four years at the University of California Riverside before reuniting with coach David Patrick at Sacramento State University for his final collegiate year (2022-23).

Finished his collegiate career as New Zealand’s second highest points scorer (1,265 points) in Men’s NCAA Division I basketball – only Kirk Penney (1,454) scored more points. He is the all-time leading rebounder (875 rebounds) and 9th on the appearances list (124 games with 99 starts).

At PNBH McRae had 33 points and 17 rebounds in the epic 2016 National Secondary Schools Grand Final that was won on the buzzer by Rangitoto College.

Also in 2016 McRae played for the Junior Tall Blacks team that defeated Australia 57-51 in the gold medal game at the FIBA U18 Oceania Championships in Fiji to qualify for the U19 World Cup.

That team was laced with future NBL and Tall Blacks talent boasting Sam Waardenburg, Taane Samuel, Quinn Clinton, Isaac Letoa, Tobias Cameron, Flynn Cameron, Dan Fotu, Taki Fahrensohn and Josh Aitcheson.

Brother Liam McRae played in the NBL.

Ernest Kerr

Position: Forward

Height: 200cm

Born: 2 October, 2002

Junior Association: Rotorua

High School: Rotorua Boys HS/Rotorua Lakes HS

Previous NBL Clubs – Giants (2022-present)

Played 1 game for the Giants in 2022 debuting against the Nuggets.

Nic Trathen

Position: Small Forward

Height: 200cm

Born: 12 June, 1997

Junior Association: Nelson

High School: Waimea College

Previous NBL Clubs – Nelson Giants (2015-present)

Played 17 games for the Giants in 2022 averaging 8.1 points and 3 rebounds per game.

Trathen made his NBL debut in 2015 as a 17-year old and has played over 80 games for the Giants since.

Avery Woodson (Import)

Position: Guard

Height: 188cm

Born: 15 December, 1993

High School: Wayne County High School, Mississippi

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Woodson has played professionally in Finland,  Sweden, Greece, Canada, Ukraine and most recently in Belgium where for Antwerp Giants he averaged 7.2 points and 2.7 assists across 10 games.

Played two years at University of Memphis before transferring to Butler University for his senior year (2016-17) where he helped Butler Bulldogs to the Sweet Sixteen at the NCAA Tournament. Led the team in three-pointers making 75 at 42%.

Mike Fitchett (Head Coach)

Ben Sheat (Assistant Coach)

Tom Gargiulo (Assistant Coach)