Izayah Mauriohooho-Le'afa (born 7 November 1996) is a New Zealand professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Sky Sport Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at ...

of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). He is also contracted with the

Wellington Saints The Wellington Saints are a New Zealand basketball team based in Wellington. The Saints compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at TSB Bank Arena. Team history The Wellington Saints were founded in 1981. In 1 ...

of the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL). He began his career in the New Zealand NBL, playing three seasons for the Wellington Saints before moving to the United States in 2016 to play

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Sacramento State Hornets The Sacramento State Hornets (also Sac State) represent California State University, Sacramento in Sacramento, the capital city of the U.S. state of California, in intercollegiate athletics. The school fields 21 teams including men and women's ba ...

. After graduating in 2020, he played a season for the

Auckland Huskies The Auckland Tuatara are a semi-professional basketball team based in Auckland, New Zealand. The Tuatara compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Eventfinda Stadium. Founded in Tasmania in 2019 as the Southe ...

and earned NZNBL Defensive Player of the Year and NZNBL All-Star Five. He subsequently joined the

South East Melbourne Phoenix The South East Melbourne Phoenix are an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. The Phoenix entered the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) in the 2019–20 ...

in the NBL and played two seasons before joining the Breakers in 2022.

Early life and career

Le'afa was born and bred in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, New Zealand. He attended St Patrick's College, where he played both

and

rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...

. He played four years for the basketball team and was the starting

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...

each of his final three seasons. He averaged over 20 points per game during his last two years and was named the school's Sportsman of the Year and team MVP during each of those seasons. St Patrick's were coached by Le'afa's father, George, who was also an assistant coach with the

in the New Zealand NBL. Le'afa debuted for the Wellington Saints in the

2013 New Zealand NBL season The 2013 NBL season was the 32nd season of the National Basketball League. The 2013 season saw the withdrawal of the Auckland Pirates and Harbour Heat, but saw the return of the Waikato Pistons after a one-year hiatus as well as the Super City ...

, but due to suffering from multiple concussions, he missed a number of games over his first two seasons. He won a

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

with the Saints in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

and then averaged 7.3 points per game in

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

College career

Le'afa moved to the United States in 2016 to play

for the

, becoming the program's first ever New Zealand-born player. As a freshman in 2016–17, Le'afa played in 29 games and made 28 starts, averaging 4.6 points, 2.2 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 25.1 minutes per game. He scored in double figures four times, including a season-best 16 points against

Southern Utah Southern Utah University (SUU) is a public university in Cedar City, Utah. Founded in 1897 as a normal school, Southern Utah University now graduates over 1,800 students each year with baccalaureate and graduate degrees from its six colleges. ...

on 12 January 2017. As a sophomore in 2017–18, Le'afa played in 30 games and made 26 starts, averaging 8.5 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.1 steals in 31.0 minutes per game. He scored in double figures in 13 of his final 23 games of the season, including a career-high 23 points against

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

on 21 December 2017. As a junior in 2018–19, Le'afa played in 30 games and made 26 starts, averaging 8.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.5 steals in 31.2 minutes per game. He was a finalist for Big Sky Defensive Player of the Year. He scored in double figures 11 times, including eight games with at least 15 points. He twice had a season high of 18 points. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Le'afa's final season was cut short. As a senior in 2019–20, he started all 28 games in which he appeared, averaging 10.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.8 steals in 32.6 minutes per game. He scored in double figures 13 times, including tying his career high with 23 points on two occasions. He was subsequently named an honourable mention all-Big Sky Conference selection. In his junior and senior seasons, Le'afa was named a Big Sky all-academic selection and NABC Honors Court choice for academic excellence.

Professional career

Auckland Huskies (2020)

In June 2020, Le'afa was acquired by the

for the

2020 New Zealand NBL season The 2020 NBL season (officially known as the 2020 NBL Showdown) was the 39th season of the National Basketball League. The regular season was set to commence on Thursday 9 April and end on Sunday 12 July, with the finals then taking place betwe ...

. In the Huskies' final game of the season, he scored 39 points against the

Canterbury Rams The Canterbury Rams are a New Zealand basketball team based in Christchurch. The Rams compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Cowles Stadium. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as The Wheeler Motor Can ...

. He was named in the league's All-Star Five and earned co-

Defensive Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year (DPOY or DPOTY) is the name of an award given in sports for outstanding defensive play by a single player over the course of a season. Many sports leagues award this type of award. League awards for Defensive Player o ...

honours alongside

Jarrod Kenny Jarrod Daniel Kenny (born 17 September 1985) is a New Zealand former professional basketball player. He played many seasons in the New Zealand National Basketball League (NZNBL) for the Hawke's Bay Hawks and represented the New Zealand Tall Bl ...

. In 13 games, he averaged 20.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, 5.2 assists and 2.5 steals per game.

South East Melbourne Phoenix (2020–2022)

On 24 September 2020, Le'afa signed with the

in Australia as a development player for the

2020–21 NBL season The 2020–21 NBL season was the 43rd season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of nine teams contested in the 2020–21 season. The regular season was played between January and June 2021, followed by a p ...

. He was drawn to the Phoenix by his Kiwi connections with

Reuben Te Rangi Reuben Te Rangi (born 14 October 1994) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the South East Melbourne Phoenix of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) and is a regular New Zealand Tall Black. Early life Te Rangi was bo ...

and assistant coach Judd Flavell. He was quickly thrust into the rotation due to injuries. He had a breakout game on 15 April 2021, scoring a game-high 29 points with eight 3-pointers in a 97–90 loss to the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...

. In 32 games, he averaged 6.1 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. On 24 June 2021, Le'afa re-signed with the Phoenix on a two-year deal. His hounding defence and ability to get to the rim in his first season saw him earn elevation from development player to a full-time contract. In 2021–22, he emerged as a backcourt starter and one of the best lockdown defenders in the league, averaging 8.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 26 games. On 7 June 2022, Le'afa and the Phoenix agreed on a mutual release from the second year of his contract.

New Zealand Breakers and Wellington Saints (2022–present)

On 10 June 2022, Le'afa signed a two-year deal with the

. He helped the Breakers reach the NBL Grand Final series in the 2022–23 season, where they lost 3–2 to the

. In 35 games, he averaged 10.3 points, 2.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 steals per game. On 27 April 2023, Le'afa signed with the

for the rest of the

2023 New Zealand NBL season The 2023 NBL season was the 42nd season of the National Basketball League. For the third year in a row, the league fielded 10 teams. The regular season commenced on 6 April in Pukekohe, with the Franklin Bulls hosting the Hawke's Bay Hawks at Fr ...

. Le'afa is set to re-join the Saints for the 2024 New Zealand NBL season.

National team career

In 2013, Le'afa was selected for the New Zealand Tall Blacks, making his senior national team debut as a 16-year-old. In 2014, he captained the Junior Tall Blacks at the FIBA Oceania Under 18 Championship and represented

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

3x3 basketball 3x3 basketball (pronounced ''three-ex-three'') is a variation of basketball played three-a-side, with one backboard and in a half-court setup. According to an ESSEC Business School study commissioned by the International Olympic Committee, 3x3 ...

at the

Summer Youth Olympics The Youth Olympic Games (YOG) is an international multi-sport event for athletes between 15 and 18 years old, organized by the International Olympic Committee. The games are held every four years in staggered summer and winter events consisten ...

. In 2015, he was selected to play for the Tall Blacks' Olympic qualifying team. In July 2023, Le'afa was named in the Tall Blacks squad for the

2023 FIBA World Cup The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup will be the 19th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup for men's national basketball teams. The tournament will be the second to feature 32 teams. For the first time in its history, the World Cup will be h ...

. He re-joined the Tall Blacks for qualifiers in February 2024.

Personal life

Le'afa is the son of George and Dana. His father played in the New Zealand NBL for the Wellington Saints and won multiple championships. He also coached Le'afa at school and at the Saints.

References

External links

New Zealand Breakers player profile

Sacramento State Hornets college bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Le'afa, Izayah 1996 births Living people Auckland Huskies players New Zealand Breakers players New Zealand expatriate basketball people in the United States New Zealand men's basketball players People educated at St. Patrick's College, Wellington Point guards Sacramento State Hornets men's basketball players South East Melbourne Phoenix players Sportspeople from Wellington City Wellington Saints players 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup players