Nathan Leon Jawai (born 10 October 1986) is an Australian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the Darwin Salties of the NBL1 North. Standing at 209 cm, he plays at the power forward and centre positions.

Early life

Born at the Royal Hospital for Women in the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountai ...

suburb of

Paddington Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddingt ...

on 10 October 1986, Jawai lived in Sydney for a year before his parents, Lynette and Ron, moved back to

Bamaga Bamaga ( , ) is a small town and locality about from the northern tip of Cape York in the north of Queensland, Australia. It is within the Northern Peninsula Area Region. It is one of the northernmost settlements in continental Australia and i ...

, a small town of about 1000 people, located north of the Jardine River and only 40 km from the tip of

Cape York Peninsula Cape York Peninsula is a large peninsula located in Far North Queensland, Australia. It is the largest unspoiled wilderness in northern Australia.Mittermeier, R.E. et al. (2002). Wilderness: Earth’s last wild places. Mexico City: Agrupació ...

. He is an

Indigenous Australian Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...

Torres Strait Islander Torres Strait Islanders () are the Indigenous Melanesian people of the Torres Strait Islands, which are part of the state of Queensland, Australia. Ethnically distinct from the Aboriginal people of the rest of Australia, they are often groupe ...

descent. He is the cousin of

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

basketball player Patty Mills,

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

NRL players Edrick Lee and Brenko Lee. Jawai's uncle is former Olympian basketballer Danny Morseu, the second Indigenous Australian to represent Australia at the Olympics in basketball. Jawai’s great uncle is Indigenous

land rights Land law is the form of law that deals with the rights to use, alienate, or exclude others from land. In many jurisdictions, these kinds of property are referred to as real estate or real property, as distinct from personal property. Land use ...

activist Eddie Mabo. Like most children on Cape York, he played

throughout primary school and early high school.Indigenous basketballer Nathan Jawai shoots for top
/ref> However, living in a remote indigenous community meant Jawai was subject to a lot of bad influences and was often getting in trouble due to the stain of drug and alcohol abuse.Wildcats' wild ride to the top
/ref> Strong parental guidance and the decision to send Jawai to high school at St Augustine's College in

Cairns Cairns (, ) is a city in Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. The population in June 2019 was 153,952, having grown on average 1.02% annually over the preceding five years. The city is the 5th-most-p ...

ensured he stayed away from bad influences. At the age of 15, Jawai began playing basketball, and it only took him two years until he began playing competitively for the Cairns Marlins of the Queensland Basketball League in 2004. He then spent two years at the

Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...

before venturing to the United States in 2006 to play college basketball for Midland College. However, after just one season with Midland, Jawai returned to Australia and had surgery to remove the meniscus in his right knee. With his move back home, he had hopes of joining an NBL club.The next Shaq is a Taipan
/ref> He subsequently re-joined the Cairns Marlins and helped guide them to a national title in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhut ...

while earning ACC All-Star Five honours.

Professional career

Cairns Taipans

Jawai's play with the

Cairns Taipans The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Taipans compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Convention Centre, known colloquially as "The S ...

' feeder team, the Cairns Marlins, earned him a spot on the Taipans roster for the 2007–08 NBL season. In 31 games for the Taipans, Jawai averaged 17.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. His season highs for points and rebounds was 28 and 18 respectively.

NBA

Jawai was drafted 41st overall in the 2008 NBA draft by the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Central Division (NBA ...

; however, his rights were traded to the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

in a deal that also brought

Jermaine O'Neal Jermaine Lee O'Neal Sr. (born October 13, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. The center– power forward had a successful high school career and declared his eligibility for the 1996 NBA draft straight out of high sc ...

to Toronto in exchange for T. J. Ford,

Rasho Nesterović Radoslav "Rasho" Nesterović ( sr-Cyrl, Радослав "Рашо" Нестеровић, sl, Radoslav "Rašo" Nesterovič; born May 30, 1976) is a Slovenian former professional basketball player. He holds citizenship in both Slovenia and Greece ...

, Maceo Baston, and the draft rights to Roy Hibbert. On 11 July 2008, he signed a two-year deal with the Raptors, and the nicknames soon rolled in with "Aussie Shaq", "Outback Shaq" and "Baby Shaq", due to his resemblance to

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), known commonly as "Shaq" ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program '' Inside the NBA''. O'Neal is regarded as one of the great ...

. He was also nicknamed "Big Nate" by Toronto commentators. On 17 December 2008, Jawai was cleared to resume training after enduring a worrisome period in which he was not allowed to undergo physical activity. Jawai was required to 'rest', due to a routine pre-season test which revealed a cardiac abnormality. On 21 January 2009, Jawai made his NBA debut against the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at ...

The Palace of Auburn Hills The Palace of Auburn Hills, commonly referred to as the Palace, was a multi-purpose arena built in 1988 and located in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It was the home of the Detroit Pistons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Detroit Sho ...

, becoming the first indigenous Australian to play in the NBA. On 26 February 2009, Jawai was assigned by the Raptors to the Idaho Stampede of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

. In his first start (his second game), he registered 12 points, 5 rebounds and a team-high 3 blocks in Idaho's 104–96 win over the Utah Flash. Jawai was recalled from the D-League on 23 March 2009. On 9 July 2009, Jawai was traded to the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Southwest Division. T ...

as a part of the four-team trade that also involved the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

and

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

. Later that year, on 20 October 2009, Jawai was traded to the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

in exchange for a conditional second-round pick in the

2012 NBA draft The 2012 NBA draft was held on June 28, 2012, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The draft started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time (2300 UTC), and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Ass ...

. On 8 November 2009, Jawai played arguably the best game of his NBA career, scoring a team-high 16 points and grabbing six rebounds in a game against the Portland Trail Blazers. On 19 February 2010, Jawai was sent to the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA D-League for a short stint. He was recalled on 21 February 2010, and sent back on 31 March 2010.

Europe

On 18 August 2010, Jawai signed a one-year deal with the Serbian team Partizan Belgrade. In June 2011, Jawai signed a deal with the Russian team UNICS Kazan. Following the conclusion of Kazan's season, Jawai returned to Cairns and joined the Marlins for a two-game stint. In July 2012, Jawai signed a deal with the Spanish team Barcelona Regal for the 2012–13 season. In July 2013, Jawai signed with the Turkish team Galatasaray Liv Hospital. In October 2013, he sustained a traumatic neck injury while playing for Galatasaray. He had long-lasting effects because of the incident and temporarily couldn't see from one eye. He subsequently managed just four total games for Galatasaray in 2013–14. Despite the circumstances, Jawai re-signed with the club in September 2014. In December 2014, he left Galatasaray and signed with MoraBanc Andorra for the rest of the season.

Perth Wildcats

On 28 August 2015, Jawai signed with the Perth Wildcats for the 2015–16 NBL season. On 10 October 2015, Jawai made his debut for the Wildcats in the team's season opener, where he recorded 11 points and six rebounds in 21 minutes in a 79–66 win over the Adelaide 36ers. On 22 November 2015, he scored a season-high 20 points in a 91–90 win over his former team, the

. On 21 January 2016, he had his best game in two months, scoring 18 points in a 95–72 win over the

Illawarra Hawks The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) is an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball ...

. The Wildcats finished the regular season in second place with an 18–10 record and reached the NBL Grand Final series, where they defeated the

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Sky Sport Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games a ...

2–1. Jawai appeared in 32 of the team's 34 games in 2015–16, averaging 10.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.

Second stint with Cairns and return to Europe

On 3 June 2016, Jawai signed a three-year deal with the

, returning to the club he began his career with in 2007. A major factor in his return to Cairns was his long-time mentor and Taipans head coach Aaron Fearne. On 3 August 2016, he was ruled out for the entire NBL pre-season following finger surgery. On 5 February 2017, he scored a season-high 22 points in an 85–77 win over the Perth Wildcats. On 10 October 2017, Jawai was ruled out for 12 weeks after suffering a partial tear of a ligament in his left foot in the Taipans' 2017–18 season opener four days earlier. On 3 April 2018, Jawai took up his player option with the Taipans for the 2018–19 season. On 17 February 2019, Jawai signed with French team

Levallois Metropolitans Metropolitans 92 is a French professional basketball club that is based in Levallois-Perret, in the Paris metropolitan area. The club currently plays in the LNB Pro A, the highest-tier level in French basketball. The club was established in 2007 ...

for the rest of the 2018–19 Pro A season. In 14 games, he averaged 5.8 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. On 4 August 2019, Jawai re-signed with the Taipans for the 2019–20 NBL season. On 3 August 2020, Jawai re-signed again with the Taipans on a two-year deal. On 9 June 2021, Jawai joined the Cairns Marlins of the NBL1 North, marking his fourth stint with the team. Jawai missed most of February of the 2021–22 NBL season after suffering a partial Grade 2 tear of his right adductor. He parted ways with the Taipans following the season. In May 2022, Jawai joined the Darwin Salties for their inaugural season in the NBL1 North.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anc ...

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Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, 39 , , 2 , , 10.6 , , .441 , , .000 , , .684 , , 2.7 , , .6 , , .3 , , .2 , , 3.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 45 , , 2 , , 9.6 , , .435 , , .000 , , .684 , , 2.4 , , .5 , , .2 , , .2 , , 2.8

Euroleague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2010–11 , style="text-align:left;", Partizan , 16 , , 7 , , 22.9 , , .459 , , .000 , , .786 , , 5.0 , , .9 , , .6 , , .7 , , 9.1 , , 10.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2011–12 , style="text-align:left;", UNICS , 15 , , 10 , , 14.1 , , .547 , , .000 , , .643 , , 4.3 , , .3 , , .3 , , .5 , , 7.3 , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2012–13 , style="text-align:left;",

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

, 30 , , 6 , , 15.5 , , .697 , , .000 , , .710 , , 4.7 , , .4 , , .3 , , .8 , , 7.1 , , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;", Galatasaray , 2 , , 0 , , 14.7 , , .875 , , .000 , , .727 , , 2.5 , , .5 , , .5 , , .5 , , 11.0 , , 14.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 63 , , 23 , , 17.0 , , .582 , , .000 , , .790 , , 4.6 , , .5 , , .4 , , .7 , , 7.8 , , 8.9

National team career

Jawai represented the

Australian Boomers The Australian men's national basketball team, known as the Boomers after the slang term for a male kangaroo, represents Australia in international basketball competition. Since the late 1980s, Australia has been placed among the world elite t ...

at the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championship and the 2014 FIBA World Cup. In November 2018, he was called up to the Boomers squad for the team's next window of 2019 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

Personal life

Jawai is the nephew of Danny Morseu, the first Indigenous Australian to play basketball for Australia. Jawai has two daughters.

References

External links