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Dontae Russo-Nance
New Zealand basketball player From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Dontae Russo-Nance (born 20 January 2005) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the Manawatu Jets of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He is also contracted with the Perth Wildcats of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played two seasons in the New Zealand NBL in 2021 and 2022 with the Auckland Huskies/Tuatara, earning Youth Player of the Year honours in 2022. After a season in the United States with Oak Hill Academy, he signed with the Wildcats in May 2023.
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Early life and career
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Russo-Nance was born in Auckland, New Zealand.[1] He attended Saint Kentigern College[2] and played as a junior for Waitakere Basketball, where he won three national championships across different age groups.[1]
In 2019, Russo-Nance played for an Asia Pacific team at the Junior NBA Global Championship in Orlando, Florida. He featured in six games and averaged 15.7 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists.[1]
In 2021, Russo-Nance debuted in the New Zealand NBL for the Auckland Huskies. He averaged 11.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game as a bench player,[3] earning runner-up for Youth Player of the Year.[1]
In 2022, Russo-Nance continued with the Auckland franchise, now known as the Tuatara. He helped the Tuatara reach the New Zealand NBL grand final, where he scored 11 points in an 81–73 loss to the Otago Nuggets.[4][5] In 18 games, he averaged 15.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists and a league-leading 2.9 steals per game.[6][7] He was subsequently named Youth Player of the Year.[8][9]
In August 2022, Russo-Nance was named to the All-Star Five at the Basketball Without Borders Asia camp in Canberra, Australia.[7][10] The following month, he moved to the United States to attend Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, for the 2022–23 school year.[2][11] In February 2023, he competed at the Basketball Without Borders Global camp in Salt Lake City during the 2023 NBA All-Star weekend.[12][13]
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Professional career
On 27 May 2023, Russo-Nance signed a three-year deal with the Perth Wildcats of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL), joining as a development player for the 2023–24 season.[14] A foot injury limited his availability in the middle part of the season and a wrist injury ended his season early.[15] He appeared in three games for the Wildcats in 2023–24, averaging 2.7 points per game.[16]
Russo-Nance joined the Otago Nuggets for the 2024 New Zealand NBL season.[17] In seven games, he averaged 11.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.0 steals per game.[18][19]
He re-joined the Wildcats as a development player for the 2024–25 NBL season, and will then be elevated to the full roster in 2025–26.[20]
He joined the Manawatu Jets for the 2025 New Zealand NBL season.[21]
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National team
In July 2025, Russo-Nance was named in his first New Zealand Tall Blacks squad ahead of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup.[22]
Personal life
Russo-Nance has a Māori mother and an African-American father.[11]
References
External links
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