sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Tohiraukura Makaere Smith-Milner (born 6 October 1995) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the South East Melbourne Phoenix of the National Basketball League (NBL). He previously played for Melbourne United in the Australian NBL and has represented the New Zealand Tall Blacks.

Tohi Smith-Milner

No. 18 – S.E. Melbourne Phoenix
Position	Power forward
League	NBL
Personal information
Born	(1995-10-06) 6 October 1995 (age 27) Auckland, New Zealand
Nationality	New Zealand
Listed height	205 cm (6 ft 9 in)
Listed weight	112 kg (247 lb)
Career information
High school	Rosmini College (Auckland, New Zealand)
College	Polk State College (2014–2015)
Playing career	2012–present
Career history
2012	Auckland Pirates
2013–2015	Super City Rangers
2015–2020	Melbourne United
2016	Sandringham Sabres
2017	Canterbury Rams
2017	Frankston Blues
2018	Nelson Giants
2019	Kilsyth Cobras
2020	Auckland Huskies
2021	Wellington Saints
2021–present	South East Melbourne Phoenix
2022	Sandringham Sabres
Career highlights and awards
NBL champion (2018) 2× NZNBL champion (2012, 2021) First-team All-Suncoast Conference (2015)
Medals Men's basketball Representing  New Zealand FIBA Asia Cup 2022 Jakarta Commonwealth Games 2018 Gold Coast Team

Early life

Smith-Milner was born and raised in Auckland,[1] where he attended Rosmini College and played junior basketball for Waitakere.[2]

Professional career

NZNBL and Australian state leagues

Smith-Milner started his professional career in 2012 with the championship-winning Auckland Pirates in the New Zealand NBL. He joined the Super City Rangers in 2013 but did not play, going on to make his debut for the Rangers 2014 and averaging 12.7 points per game.[3]

After a season in the United States playing college basketball for Polk State College in 2014–15,[4] Smith-Milner re-joined the Rangers for the 2015 season.[3]

In 2016, Smith-Milner played for the Sandringham Sabres in the SEABL. In 2017, he played for both the Canterbury Rams in the New Zealand NBL and the Frankston Blues in the SEABL. He played for the Nelson Giants in the New Zealand NBL in 2018 and the Kilsyth Cobras in the NBL1 in 2019.[5] He played for the Auckland Huskies in 2020,[6] the Wellington Saints in 2021,[7] and the Sandringham Sabres in 2022.[8]

Australian NBL

In 2015, Smith-Milner moved to Australia to play for Melbourne United in the Australian NBL. He spent three seasons as a development player before signing a full-time contract with United in 2018.[9][10] He spent two seasons with United as a fully contracted player.[11]

On 13 August 2021, Smith-Milner signed a two-year deal with the South East Melbourne Phoenix of the Australian NBL, with the second year being a Club Option.[12]

National team career

Smith-Milner played for the New Zealand Tall Blacks in the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup in Lebanon, where he averaged 10.5 points and 4.2 rebounds.[13] The following year, he was a member of the bronze-medal winning Tall Blacks squad at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.[5] In 2019, he played in the FIBA Basketball World Cup in China, where he averaged 5.2 points and 2.8 rebounds.[14]

In July 2022, Smith-Milner helped New Zealand win bronze at the FIBA Asia Cup. He was subsequently named to the All-Star Five.[15]

References

External links

• NBL player profile

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