Nathan Jawai facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Nathan Jawai

Jawai in 2014
Personal information
Born	(1986-10-10) 10 October 1986 (age 38) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
High school	St Augustine's College (Cairns, Queensland)
Listed weight	130 kg (287 lb)
Career information
College	Midland (2006–2007)
NBA Draft	2008 / Round: 2 / Pick: 41st overall
Selected by the Indiana Pacers
Pro career	2004–2024
Career history
2004	Cairns Marlins
2005–2006	Australian Institute of Sport
2007	Cairns Marlins
2007–2008	Cairns Taipans
2008–2009	Toronto Raptors
2009	→Idaho Stampede
2009–2010	Minnesota Timberwolves
2010	→Sioux Falls Skyforce
2010–2011	Partizan Belgrade
2011–2012	UNICS Kazan
2012	Cairns Marlins
2012–2013	Barcelona
2013–2014	Galatasaray Liv Hospital
2014–2015	MoraBanc Andorra
2015–2016	Perth Wildcats
2016–2022	Cairns Taipans
2019	Levallois Metropolitans
2021	Cairns Marlins
2022–2024	Darwin Salties
Career highlights and awards
NBL champion (2016) Copa del Rey de Baloncesto winner (2013) Serbian League champion (2011) Radivoj Korać Cup winner (2011) Adriatic League champion (2011) Adriatic League Final Four MVP (2011) NBL Rookie of the Year (2008) All-NBL Second Team (2008) NBL All-Star Game MVP (2008) 2× QBL champion (2004, 2007) 2× ABA champion (2004, 2007) ABA All-Star Five (2007)

Nathan Leon Jawai (born 10 October 1986) is an Australian former professional basketball player. He is known for his strong play as a power forward and centre, standing at 209 cm (6 ft 10 in) tall.

Jawai started his basketball journey with the Cairns Marlins in 2004. He later played for the Cairns Taipans in Australia's National Basketball League (NBL). In 2008, he was drafted into the NBA by the Indiana Pacers. After playing in the NBA, he moved to Europe, playing for teams like Partizan Belgrade in Serbia and Barcelona in Spain. He returned to Australia and won an NBL championship with the Perth Wildcats in 2016.

Jawai also proudly represented the Australian Boomers, Australia's national basketball team, at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup. He retired from competitive basketball in June 2025.

Nathan Jawai's Early Life and Family

Nathan Jawai was born in Sydney, Australia, on 10 October 1986. When he was about one year old, his family moved back to Bamaga. This is a small town in northern Queensland, close to the tip of Cape York Peninsula.

Nathan is an Indigenous Australian and comes from the Torres Strait Islander people. He has several famous relatives who are also athletes. His cousin is NBA basketball star Patty Mills. His uncles, Edrick Lee and Brenko Lee, are well-known rugby league players. Nathan's uncle, Danny Morseu, was also an Olympian in basketball. He was the second Indigenous Australian to play basketball for Australia at the Olympics. Nathan's great uncle, Eddie Mabo, was a very important person who fought for Indigenous land rights.

Starting Basketball in Cairns

Like many kids in Cape York, Nathan played rugby league when he was younger. However, his parents wanted him to have the best opportunities. They decided to send him to high school at St Augustine's College in Cairns. This helped him focus on his future.

At 15, Nathan discovered basketball. He quickly became very good at it. By 2004, just two years later, he was playing competitively for the Cairns Marlins. He then spent two years at the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra. In 2006, he went to the United States to play college basketball for Midland College. After one season, he returned to Australia for knee surgery. He then rejoined the Cairns Marlins and helped them win a national title in 2007.

Nathan Jawai's Professional Basketball Career

Playing for the Cairns Taipans

Nathan's strong performance with the Cairns Marlins helped him join the Cairns Taipans for the 2007–08 NBL season. This was his first time playing in Australia's top basketball league. In 31 games, he averaged 17.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He even scored 28 points and grabbed 18 rebounds in some games.

Time in the NBA

In 2008, Nathan Jawai was picked 41st in the 2008 NBA draft by the Indiana Pacers. His rights were then traded to the Toronto Raptors. On 11 July 2008, he signed a two-year deal with the Raptors. Fans and commentators gave him nicknames like "Aussie Shaq" or "Baby Shaq" because he reminded them of the famous player Shaquille O'Neal. He was also called "Big Nate."

Nathan faced a health challenge when a routine test showed a heart issue. He had to rest and couldn't train for a while. But he was cleared to play again on 17 December 2008. On 21 January 2009, Nathan made history. He played his first NBA game against the Detroit Pistons, becoming the first Indigenous Australian to play in the NBA.

To get more playing time, Nathan was sent to the Idaho Stampede in the NBA Development League (now G-League). He played well there, scoring 12 points and getting 5 rebounds in one game. He later returned to the Raptors.

In July 2009, Nathan was traded to the Dallas Mavericks and then to the Minnesota Timberwolves in October 2009. On 8 November 2009, he had one of his best NBA games, scoring 16 points and grabbing six rebounds against the Portland Trail Blazers. He also had short periods playing for the Sioux Falls Skyforce in the D-League.

Playing in Europe

Jawai playing for Galatasaray Liv Hospital in October 2013

After his time in the NBA, Nathan moved to Europe. On 18 August 2010, he signed with the Serbian team Partizan Belgrade. In June 2011, he joined the Russian team UNICS Kazan. After their season, he briefly returned to play for the Cairns Marlins.

In July 2012, Nathan signed with Barcelona Regal in Spain. In July 2013, he moved to the Turkish team Galatasaray Liv Hospital. While playing for Galatasaray, he had a serious neck injury in October 2013. This injury affected him for a while, but he worked hard to recover. He later left Galatasaray in December 2014 and joined MoraBanc Andorra for the rest of that season.

Winning a Championship with Perth Wildcats

On 28 August 2015, Nathan signed with the Perth Wildcats for the 2015–16 NBL season. He quickly became an important player for the team. In his first game, he scored 11 points and grabbed six rebounds. He had a season-high of 20 points against his old team, the Cairns Taipans.

The Wildcats had a great season, finishing second in the league. They made it to the NBL Grand Final series and won the championship by defeating the New Zealand Breakers. Nathan played in almost all the games, averaging 10.3 points and 4.1 rebounds.

Returning to Cairns and Final Years

On 3 June 2016, Nathan signed a three-year deal to return to the Cairns Taipans, the team where he started his NBL career. He was excited to work again with his long-time coach, Aaron Fearne. He continued to play for the Taipans until 2022. During this time, he also had a short period playing for the French team Levallois Metropolitans in 2019. In 2021, he played again for the Cairns Marlins.

In May 2022, Nathan joined the Darwin Salties for their first season in the NBL1 North league. He continued to play for the Salties in 2023 and 2024. In June 2025, Nathan Jawai played his final competitive basketball game. He was part of an Indigenous Basketball Australia All-Stars team that played against Maori Basketball New Zealand.

Nathan Jawai's Career Statistics

NBA Statistics

Euroleague Statistics

Playing for the Australian National Team

Jawai playing for Australia at the 2014 FIBA World Cup.

Nathan Jawai first played for Australia at the 2005 FIBA Under-21 World Championship. He then joined the senior Australian Boomers. He represented Australia at the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championship, the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, and the 2015 FIBA Oceania Championship. In November 2018, he was called up again to the Boomers squad for the 2019 FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

Personal Life

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

See also

In Spanish: Nathan Jawai para niños

• List of foreign basketball players in Serbia