Harrison Michael Froling (born 20 April 1998) 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 (appro ...

player for the

Melbourne Tigers Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Joh ...

of the

NBL1 South NBL1 South is a semi-professional basketball league in Victoria (state), Victoria and Tasmania, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2019, Basketball Victoria partnered with the National Basketball League (Australia), ...

. He is also contracted with the

Illawarra Hawks The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) are an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home game ...

of the National Basketball League (NBL). He had a two-year

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

career in the United States playing for the

SMU Mustangs The SMU Mustangs are the sport, athletic teams that represent Southern Methodist University in University Park, Texas, United States. SMU was founded in 1911 and joined the Southwest Conference, competing against Baylor Bears, Baylor, Rice Owls, ...

(2016–17) and the

Marquette Golden Eagles The Marquette Golden Eagles are an athletic team representing Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They compete as a member of the NCAA Division I level (non-football, sub-level), primarily competing in the Big East Conf ...

(2017–18). In 2018, he joined the

Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in the state's capital of Adela ...

of the NBL and earned NBL Rookie of the Year honours for the 2018–19 season. Froling's career was halted for two years when he suffered brain injuries after an assault in 2023.

Early life and career

Froling was born in

Townsville The City of Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 201,313 as of 2024, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland and Northern Australia (specifically, the parts of Australia north of ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, where he attended

Pimlico State High School Pimlico State High School is a government public high school in Townsville, Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australi ...

. In 2014, he moved to

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

to attend 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 ...

and play for the

BA Centre of Excellence 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, Australian Capital Territory, Bruce, Can ...

in the

South East Australian Basketball League The South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL) was a semi-professional basketball league in Australia comprising both a men's and women's competition. The SEABL began in 1981 and operated for 38 seasons until it was disbanded in 2018. The ...

(SEABL). In 2015, he split his time between the BA Centre of Excellence in the SEABL and the Townsville Heat in the

Queensland Basketball League NBL1 North, formerly the Queensland Basketball League (QBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Queensland partnered wit ...

(QBL). Froling joined the

Townsville Crocodiles The Townsville Crocodiles were an Australian professional men's basketball team based in the North Queensland city of Townsville. They competed in the National Basketball League (NBL) and played their home games at the Townsville Entertain ...

of the National Basketball League (NBL) for the 2015–16 season, playing nine games as an injury replacement for

Luke Schenscher Luke Dean Schenscher (born 31 December 1982) is an Australian former professional basketball player. He played four years of college basketball for Georgia Tech before having stints in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls in 2006 and the Portland Trai ...

. Following the NBL season, he returned to the Heat for the 2016 QBL season.

College career

Froling moved to the United States to play

for the

in the 2016–17 season. However, he left the team in December 2016 and transferred to Marquette in January 2017. In 10 games for the Mustangs, he averaged 4.3 points and 3.2 rebounds in 14.6 minutes per game. In the 2017–18 season, Froling played 20 games for the

. He was unable to debut until mid-December due to NCAA transfer rules. He averaged 2.8 points and 3.0 rebounds in 12.4 minutes per game.

Professional career

Following the 2017–18 U.S. college season, Froling joined the Townsville Heat for the 2018 QBL season. He helped the Heat win the 2018 QBL championship, with Froling named finals MVP for his 27 points and 18 rebounds in game two. In 22 games, he averaged 19.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. In April 2018, Froling signed a two-year deal with the

of the NBL. In the 2018–19 season, he won the NBL Rookie of the Year. In

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

, Froling had a short stint with the Southern Huskies of the New Zealand NBL. Froling returned to the 36ers for the

2019–20 NBL season The 2019–20 NBL season was the 42nd season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. The Perth Wildcats became champions. They drew an average home attendance of 12,974, the highest in the 2019–20 NBL season. Team ...

. Following the NBL season, he moved to Poland to play for

Spójnia Stargard Spójnia Stargard, also known as shortly Spójnia, is a professional Poland, Polish basketball team based in Stargard, Poland, currently (as of 2022) playing in the Polish Basketball League (PLK), the highest tier in Polish basketball. Spójnia ho ...

and later played in the 2020 Queensland State League (QSL) for the RedCity Roar. On 17 July 2020, Froling signed with the

Brisbane Bullets The Brisbane Bullets are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL) based in Brisbane, Queensland. They competed from 1979 to 2008, and returned to the league in 2016. Brisbane were one of ten NBL ...

for the

2020–21 NBL season The 2020–21 NBL season was the 43rd season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of nine teams contested in the 2020–21 season. The regular season was played between January and June 2021, followed by a ...

. Following the NBL season, he joined the Mackay Meteors of the

NBL1 North NBL1 North, formerly the Queensland Basketball League (QBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Queensland partnered wit ...

for the

2021 NBL1 season The 2021 NBL1 season was the second season of the NBL1 after the 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With North and Central conferences introduced in 2020 alongside the South Conference, the NBL1 expanded further in 2021 wi ...

. Froling made the NBL1 North All-Star Five in the 2021 season, but missed the finals where the Meteors won the NBL1 North championship. On 23 July 2021, Froling signed with the

, teaming up with his brother Sam for the

2021–22 NBL season The 2021–22 NBL season was the 44th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams contested the 2021–22 season, which commenced on 3 December 2021. Australian broadcast rights to the season ...

. On 24 January 2022, he scored a career-high 27 points with eight 3-pointers in a 100–89 win over the 36ers. Froling joined the

Hobart Chargers Hobart Chargers is a NBL1 South club based in Hobart, Tasmania. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 South. The Chargers play their home games at the Hobart Netball and Sports Centre and Pembroke Park's South East Stadium. Cl ...

of the

for the 2022 season. He was named to the NBL1 South All-Star Five. On 28 May 2022, Froling signed with the Brisbane Bullets for the

2022–23 NBL season The 2022–23 NBL season was the 45th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams contested in the 2022–23 season. Australian broadcast rights to the season are held by ESPN in the second sea ...

. On 22 January 2023, he was hospitalised with a serious head injury after getting knocked unconscious during a night out in Wollongong. He discharged himself later that morning before flying back to Brisbane where he was re-admitted to hospital and underwent brain surgery. He was subsequently ruled out for the rest of the season. On 24 January, a 19-year-old man turned himself into police and was charged with reckless

grievous bodily harm Assault occasioning grievous bodily harm (often abbreviated to GBH) is a term used in English criminal law to describe the severest forms of battery. It refers to two offences that are created by sections 18 and 20 of the Offences against the ...

and

affray In many legal jurisdictions related to English common law, affray is a public order offence consisting of the fighting of one or more persons in a public place to the terror (in ) of ordinary people. Depending on their actions, and the laws ...

. On 23 August 2024, the perpetrator was sentenced to two years and seven months in jail. Froling had been set to join the Ipswich Force for the 2023 NBL1 North season. The Bullets declined the team option on Froling's contract for the 2023–24 season and he subsequently became a free agent. In May 2023, it was revealed that Froling had not been cleared for physical activity and could potentially not play competitive basketball again. In an August 2024 interview, Froling revealed that he continued to experience headaches,

insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder where people have difficulty sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep for as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low ene ...

amnesia Amnesia is a deficit in memory caused by brain damage or brain diseases,Gazzaniga, M., Ivry, R., & Mangun, G. (2009) Cognitive Neuroscience: The biology of the mind. New York: W.W. Norton & Company. but it can also be temporarily caused by t ...

and

post-traumatic stress disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental disorder that develops from experiencing a Psychological trauma, traumatic event, such as sexual assault, domestic violence, child abuse, warfare and its associated traumas, natural disaster ...

because of the assault. He also stated that he wanted to return to playing basketball and was undergoing rehabilitation with the assistance of the Mackay Meteors. Froling initially signed with the Southern Districts Spartans for the 2025 NBL1 North season, but on 10 March he signed with the

Taranaki Airs The Taranaki Airs are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in New Plymouth. The Airs compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at TSB Stadium. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the Steelform ...

for the

2025 New Zealand NBL season The 2025 NBL season is the 44th season of the National Basketball League. The competition increased to 12 teams in 2025 with the debut of the Indian Panthers, but later decreased to 11 teams in May following the withdrawal of the Panthers. The ...

. He parted ways with the Airs in mid May to join the

of the NBL1 South for the rest of the season. On 9 July 2025, Froling signed with the Illawarra Hawks for the

2025–26 NBL season The 2025–26 NBL season will be the 48th season of the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams will contest the 2025–26 season. As Australia men's national baske ...

, returning to the team for a second stint.

National team career

Froling played for Australia at the 2013

FIBA Oceania Under-16 Championship The FIBA U15 Oceania Cup, formerly known as the FIBA Oceania Under-15 Championship, is an international boys' basketball tournament in the FIBA Oceania zone, inaugurated in 2009. The current champions are Australia. Before 2017, the competition ...

2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship The 2014 FIBA Under-17 World Championship (Arabic: بطولة العالم لكرة السلة 2014 تحت 17 سنة ) was the 3rd edition of the FIBA Under-17 World Championship, the biennial international men's youth basketball championship co ...

, and 2014

FIBA Oceania Under-18 Championship The FIBA U17 Oceania Cup, formerly the FIBA Under-17 Oceania Championship, is an international junior men's basketball tournament in the FIBA Oceania zone, inaugurated in 2002. The current champions are Australia men's national under-19 basketba ...

. He debuted for the

Boomers Baby boomers, often shortened to boomers, are the demographic cohort preceded by the Silent Generation and followed by Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964 during the mid-20th century baby boom that fol ...

in 2017 during the 2019 FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers.

Personal life

Froling is the son of Shane and Jenny Froling, and has two older twin sisters, Alicia and Keely, and a younger brother Sam.

References

External links

NBL player profileMarquette Golden Eagles bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Froling, Harry Living people 1998 births Adelaide 36ers players Australian expatriate basketball people in New Zealand Australian expatriate basketball people in Poland Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States BA Centre of Excellence men's basketball players Australian men's basketball players Brisbane Bullets players Centers (basketball) Illawarra Hawks players Marquette Golden Eagles men's basketball players SMU Mustangs men's basketball players Southern Huskies players Sportspeople from Townsville Taranaki Airs players Townsville Crocodiles players Sportsmen from Queensland 21st-century Australian sportsmen