Aaron Bailey-Nowell

Position: Forward

Height: 196cm

Born: 10 July, 1981

Junior Association: Taranaki

High School: Waitara High School, Taranaki

Previous NBL Clubs – Wellington Saints (2002-03), Manawatu Jets (2006-07), Auckland Huskies (2020), Taranaki Airs (2004-05, 2008-17, 2019 and 2021-22)

Bailey-Nowell played 10 games for the Airs in 2021, his 14th season with the club – played his 300th  game for the Airs in May,2021.

Currently working as a teacher-aid and basketball coach at Waitara High School, the school he attended as a student.

Carlin Davison

Position: Forward

Height: 197cm

Born: 21 August, 2003

Junior Association: Taranaki

High School: New Plymouth Boys High School

Highest Representative Honour – Named to the NZ Team to contest the 2020 FIBA U16 Asia Cup but event cancelled.

Previous NBL clubs – Taranaki (2020-present)

Played 17 games for the Airs in 2021 averaging 8.1 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Scored a season best 16 points against the Auckland Huskies.

Named to the New Zealand team to attend the 2019 FIBA U16 Asian Championship in Beirut, Lebanon – unfortunately this tournament was subsequently cancelled.

Ben Carlile-Smith

Position: Small forward

Height: 1.95m

Born: 14 May, 2001

Junior Association: Canterbury

High School: Middleton Grange

Previous NBL clubs – Canterbury Rams (2020), Taranaki Airs (2021-present)

Played 2 games for the Airs in 2021.

Played at Colorado Christian University (NCAA Division II) in 2020-21.

Played through all junior age-group teams for Canterbury.

Javonte Douglas (Tier 2)

Position: Forward

Height: 203cm

Born: 28 November, 1992

High School: Kennedy Charter, Charlotte, North Carolina

Previous NBL Clubs – Taranaki Airs (2018)

Played 17 games for the Airs in 2018 averaging 21.6 points and 10.8 rebounds per game.

Since 2018 he has played in the Czech Republic and in the Russian Superleague (2020-22).

Played three a year at Old Dominion University and two years at Montevallo University (both NCAA Division II schools) before graduating in 2017.

Benji Freeman

Position: Guard

Height: 188cm

Born: 21 July, 2003

Junior Association: Canterbury

High School: St Andrew’s, Christchurch

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

Scored 20 points in the 2021 U19 National Championship Grand Final for champions Canterbury in the 93-88 defeat of Wellington.

Anthony Hilliard (Tier 2)

Position: Guard

Height: 193cmcm

Born: 28 June, 1986

High School: Seventy First High School, Fayeteville, North Carolina

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Played four years at Elizabeth City State University (NCAA Division II) from 2005-2009.

Played his first season out of college in Belgium and most recently has been playing in Uruguay where, in 33 games, he averaged 14.7 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

In his 14 year pro career he has also played in Germany, France, Finland, Belarus, Israel, Russia and Lebanon.

Geordie Hoeata

Position: Forward

Height: 200cm

Born:

Junior Association: Tauranga City

High School: Mount Maunganui College

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

Graduated from Mount Maunganui College in 2021.

From a rugby playing family, brother Jarrad played for the Chiefs, Highlanders and All Blacks.

Marcel Jones

Position: Forward

Height: 203cm

Born: 2 September, 1985

High School: Mater Dei High School, Santa Ana, California

Previous NBL Clubs – Manawatu Jets (2009 and 2012-13), Wellington Saints (2010), Canterbury Rams (2014, 2016 & 2017), Super City Rangers (2018), Southern Huskies (2019), Taranaki Mountain Airs (2020-22)

Played 17 games for the Airs in 2021 – averaged 23.2 points and 9.6 rebounds per game.

Played in both Kuwait and Bahrain in the 2021-22 northern hemisphere season.

A naturalised American Jones graduated from Oregon State University in 2008.

In addition to playing in New Zealand Jones has played in Australia, Germany, Finland, Hungary, United Kingdom, Syria, Bosnia, Romania, Italy, Turkey, Kosovo, Slovenia, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and most recently in Bahrain.

In his 12^th season in the NBL total he has played 148 games with 5 different clubs since debuting for the Jets in 2009.

Tom Poulgrain

Position: Guard

Height: 190cm

Born: 17 June, 2002

Junior Association: Taranaki

High School: New Plymouth Boys High School

Previous NBL Clubs – Taranaki Airs (2021-present)

Played 6 games for the Airs in 2021 scoring 5 points against Wellington Saints.

Cameron Quinnell

Position: Forward

Height:

Born:

Junior Association: Taranaki

High School: Opunake High School

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Attended the NZ U18 trial in April 2022.

Year 13 at Opunake High School.

Played for the Taranaki U17 Team in 2021.

Richie Rodger

Position: Guard

Height: 189cm

Born: 27 January, 1997

Junior Association: Otago

High School: Kavanagh College (Dunedin)

Highest Honour – NZ U18 (2014)

Previous NBL Clubs – Taranaki Mountain Airs (2018 and 2022), Otago Nuggets (2020-21)

Played 18 games for the Nuggets in 2021 averaging 9.3 points and 3.1 assists per game. Scored a season high 16 points against the Manawatu Jets.

Won an NBL Championship with the Nuggets in 2020.

Rodger spent two-years at Southeast Community College, Nebraska (2015-2017) playing a total of 59 games.

Returned from the States to play a season for Taranaki and then headed to the Philippines on a basketball scholarship at University of the East in 2019 and 2020.

Caleb Smiler

Position: Point Guard

Height: 188

Born:

Junior Association: Waikato

High School: Fraser High School

Previous NBL clubs – Rookie

Cousin Ezra is playing for Hawkes Bay Hawks – the pair were members of the Fraser High School team that won the 2021 Secondary Schools 3×3 National title.

Sister Kaylee is on a basketball scholarship at St Mary’s College, California.

Scott Telfer

Position: Forward

Height: 196cm

Born: 23 January, 1998

Junior Association: North Harbour

High School: Westlake Boys High School

Previous NBL Clubs – Super City Rangers (2019), Taranaki Airs (2021-present)

A reliable performer for the Airs in 2021 playing 17 games, averaging 4.7 points with a season best 12 points against the Auckland Huskies.

Riley Tuuta

Position: Guard

Height: 190cm

Born:

Junior Association: Taranaki

High School: New Plymouth Boys HS

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Attended the NZ U18 trial in April 2022.

Year 13 at New Plymouth Boys High School.

Played for the Taranaki U17 Team in 2021.

Haize Walker

Position: Guard

Height: 188cm

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 (2018-20), Taranaki Airs (2021-present)

In 2021 Walker played 17 games for the Jets averaging 9.8 points and 3.4 assists per game. Scored in double figures on 10 occasions with a season best 15 points against the Manawatu Jets.

Named to the Tournament Team at the 2021 U23 National Championships, playing for runners-up Manawatu.

He played a year at Concordia University, Oregon (NCAA Division II) in 2018-19.

Played in the 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 Palmerston North Boys High.

Shaun Willett (Tier 2)

Position:Swingman

Height: 193cm

Born: 15 November, 1996

High School: Heritage HS, Florida

Previous NBL Clubs – Rookie

Played 2 years at Queens University (NCAA Division II) from 2017-19. Queens reached the NCAA Division II Final four in 2018.

Played the 2021-22 season for UD Oliveirense in Portugal where he averaged 17.2 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.

Previously played in Luxembourg and Germany.

Tai Wynyard

Position: Centre

Height: 206cm

Born: 5 February, 1998

Junior Association: Waitakere West Auckland

High School: Rangitoto College

Highest Representative Honour: Tall Blacks (Debuted in 2014 as a 16 year-old)

Previous NBL Clubs – Super City Rangers (2014 and 2015), Southland Sharks (2019), Taranaki (2020-present)

Averaged 15.9 points and 6.4 rebounds for the Airs in 2021, playing 17 games. Had 3 double-doubles in the season including a monster 31 points and 17 rebounds against Manawatu Jets.

A member of the 3×3 Tall Blacks gold medal winning team at the FIBA 3×3 World Cup Qualifier Asia in March 2022. Played alongside Taylor Britt, Dom Kelman-Poto and Nikau McCullough.

Nikau McCullough was also a team member when winning the 2015 FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup. The other team members were Matt Freeman and Sam Timmins.

Named Tournament MVP at 2021 U23 Nationals after leading Porirua to the title.

After high school attended the University of Kentucky for two years.

Led the NZ scoring (14.3ppg) and rebounding (9.8rpg) at the 2017 FIBA U19 World Cup in Egypt – he was Top 10 at the tournament in both categories.