James Hunter (basketball)


James Paton Hunter is an Australian professional basketball player for the Knox Raiders of the NBL1. He also holds a New Zealand passport that he obtained as a teenager.

Early life

Hunter was born in Nowra, New South Wales but spent much of his childhood living with his grandmother in Taumarunui, New Zealand. He attended Cranbrook School in the eastern suburbs of Sydney where he was selected to represent Australia as part of the Australian Schoolboys' basketball team which traveled to the United States to compete in tournaments throughout North Carolina over a two-week period. He was also selected for the NSW Schoolboys State team and competed in the School Sport Australia Basketball Championship. Hunter also played rugby during his time at Cranbrook.
Between 2009 and 2011, Hunter also played in the Waratah League for the Sydney Comets.

College career

In 2010, Hunter moved to the United States to attend Gillette College. After redshirting the 2010–11 season, he joined the Pronghorns men's basketball team for a lone season in 2011–12. He transferred to Washington State in 2012 where he played for the Cougars over two seasons, appearing in 18 games and totalling 17 points and seven rebounds.
In May 2014, Hunter transferred again, this time to South Dakota where in 2014–15, he averaged 5.8 points and 3.5 rebounds in 32 games.

Professional career

On 30 April 2015, Hunter signed with the Manawatu Jets for the rest of the 2015 New Zealand NBL season. In eight games for the Jets, he averaged 10.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
In September 2015, Hunter signed with Grupo INEC Zamora of the Spanish Liga EBA for the 2015–16 season.
On 2 February 2016, Hunter signed with the Ballarat Miners for the 2016 SEABL season. He was awarded SEABL Player of the Week for Round 19. In 15 games for the Miners, he averaged 11.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.
In September 2016, Hunter joined the Wellington Saints for their Asia Basketball Club Championships campaign in Seoul, South Korea.
On 9 November 2016, Hunter signed with the Southland Sharks for 2017 New Zealand NBL season. In 18 games for the Sharks, he averaged 7.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
On 11 July 2017, Hunter signed with the New Zealand Breakers for the 2017–18 NBL season. On 8 January 2018, he was released by the Breakers. He appeared in two games for the Breakers, totalling five points.
On 20 October 2017, Hunter re-signed with the Southland Sharks for the 2018 season.
On 18 February 2019, Hunter signed with the Knox Raiders for the 2019 NBL1 season.

National team career

Hunter played for New Zealand in the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup.

Personal

Hunter is the son of musicians Todd Hunter and Johanna Pigott. He also has an older brother, Harry, and a younger brother, Joey. His grandmother is Fijian.