Mojave King, a basketball player from New Zealand, got picked by the Los Angeles Lakers in the last NBA Draft but could not make an immediate impact in the league. Now, he has signed up for a year with the NZ Breakers in Australia’s NBL for the upcoming 2024-25 season.
Mojave King, before joining the Breakers, played for the Cairns Taipans and Adelaide 36ers in the ANBL. He’s coming to the Breakers after a season with the Indiana Mad Ants in the NBA G-League. King is one of only a few New Zealanders who have been drafted into the NBA before, like Sean Marks and Steven Adams.
After the deal was finalized, King said that he is eager to move on to the next phase of his career with the Breakers in a press briefing.
“I’ve signed with the Breakers because I’ve had some excellent conversations with Head Coach Mody Maor,” stated King.
“A major factor in my decision to sign was Mody. I want to be a part of everything he has planned for the team’s play in the upcoming season and his vision for it,” he added.
In the roster update for ANBL25, King has become the fourth player to join the Breakers’ squad, which now comes to 11 members. He’s joining some impressive company, including star player Parker Jackson-Cartwright, who was selected for the All-ANBL First Team. Additionally, there’s excitement around the new signing of Sam Mennenga from New Zealand and the return of Dane Pineau.
Mojave King’s career since the 2023 NBA Draft
In 2023, the Los Angeles Lakers chose King as the 47th pick in the NBA draft, but he quickly moved to the Indiana Pacers. This made him only the third player from New Zealand to be picked in the NBA draft, following in the footsteps of Sean Marks and Steven Adams.
After the draft, he showcased his skills with the Pacers during the 2023 NBA Summer League. By October 2023, he had joined the Indiana Mad Ants, the Pacers’ NBA G League team. During the 2023–24 NBA G League season, he played 15 games for the Mad Ants and averaged 3.9 points in 8.9 minutes per game.
Remains to be seen if the youngster can make his way back to the NBA after this one-year stint in the NBL.
Let us know in the comment section below what you think of Mojave King’s career trajectory? We would love to hear about it.
