Kuany a key addition to Heat

Illawarra Hawks rising star Kuany Kuany is hoping to taste NBL championship glory before linking with a new-look Townsville Heat for the 2025 NBL1 North season.

Kuany and the Hawks are currently preparing for an NBL finals showdown with Melbourne United, while the former collegiate standout also ran out for his homeland South Sudan in their recent Afro Basket qualifiers.

The talented 24-year-old will be a key addition to the Heat program as they look to build around the shooting and athleticism of the 206cm power forward.

“My Hawks teammates Sam Froling and Luca Yates are from North Queensland and they told me some great things about to Townsville so I’m looking forward to getting up there and working on my game,” he said.

“I can’t wait to make my NBL1 debut for Townsville. They’ve told me that the North conference is the toughest of all the NBL1 leagues, so you know why not play against the best every single night?

“My agent and I really wanted to find a place in the NBL off-season where I can focus on getting better and playing against high-level competition and Townsville is a great fit.”

Kuany honed his game across five seasons of college basketball at University of California and Virginia Commonwealth University before joining Illawarra this season.

While playing limited minted for a stacked Hawks side this season, Kuany is relishing the prospect of a featured role for the Heat as they look to break their finals drought.

“I really want to get to Townsville as soon as possible after the NBL season and start to build chemistry with the guys and really develop my leadership skills,” he said.

“Being somewhere where I’m going to have to have the ball in my hands and making decisions is going to be great for me and my development.”

Heat head coach John O’Farrell was thrilled to welcome a player the calibre of Kuany to the team as they look to re-tool the roster following the loss of several key players from last year’s squad.

“Everyone we reached out to around the league and in Illawarra had such great things to say about Kuany and said he’s an enthusiastic and hard-working young man so we’re delighted to have him on board,” he said.

“We were after a big man who can stretch the floor a little bit and he also brings that international experience with South Sudan that really helps build your toughness.

“We have lost around six players from last year’s group, including some experienced campaigners in Matty Rees and Mick Cedar, so we really wanted to bring in someone who can play a big role for us and play longer minutes.

“Kuany will be coming in in good shape, he’s a great shooter and with his athleticism he can be a lob threat for us and play above the rim. He can really challenge defenders and bring a lot to our team on both ends of the floor.”

The A. Gabrielli Constructions Townsville Flames and Aligned Townsville Heat will tip-off their NBL1 North campaigns on Saturday, May 3, when they host fierce rivals the Cairns Marlins and Dolphins at Carmichael Ford Stadium.