League NBL Weight 125 kg Nationality New Zealand Name James Paringatai Position Power forward | Listed height 201 cm (6 ft 7 in) Role Basketball Player Pro career 2004 Listed weight 117 kg (258 lb) Height 2.01 m | |
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James Paringatai (born 7 January 1986) is a New Zealand professional basketball player for the Geraldton Buccaneers of the State Basketball League (SBL).
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Early years
Paringatai burst on to the scene in 2004 with the Junior Tall Blacks. He debuted in the NBL with the Manawatu Jets in 2004 as an 18-year-old, moving to the Wellington Saints in 2005 before returning to the Jets in 2006 and remaining with the team for three more seasons. He also starred in the Conference Basketball League, playing for Palmerston North in 2007, Wellington in 2008 and Southland in 2010.
Paringatai played for the Taranaki Mountainairs in 2009 where he had a more prominent role and averaged 13 points per game; however, the team lost all sixteen of their games.
Southland Sharks
Paringatai was one of the first players to sign with the new Southland Sharks franchise for the 2010 New Zealand NBL season. He moved to Invercargill eying a Tall Blacks spot. In June 2010, he played in the Southland A-grade competition for the 'Magic', becoming a household name in the region after scoring over 130 points in four games.
Paringatai was a member of the Sharks' maiden championship winning team in 2013. In 2015, he became the first Shark to reach 100 games, and helped the team claim their second championship in three seasons.
SBL
On 17 June 2016, following the conclusion of the 2016 New Zealand NBL season, Paringatai signed with the Mandurah Magic for the rest of the 2016 State Basketball League season as an injury replacement for Taylor Mullenax.
On 1 November 2016, Paringatai was announced as a signing of the Kalamunda Eastern Suns for the 2017 SBL season. However, he later parted ways with the Suns before the start of the season and joined the Geraldton Buccaneers.
Personal
Paringatai is the son of Parry and Sarah Paringatai. Paringatai has a son named Cooper. Paringatai is close friends with former Southland Stags fullback, Glen Horton.