Can X Mark Spot With Third Team?

Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Xavier Rathan-Mayes is hunting for an NBL contract heading into next season.

After two seasons in the NBL Xavier Rathan-Mayes is prepared to call Australia home, as he looks to find his third NBL team.

Rathan-Mayes arrived in the NBL with the Illawarra Hawks in NBL22, and after winning the competition’s Sixth Man of the Year honours in his only campaign for the Hawks, he then moved to Melbourne United for NBL23.

Strong NBL contributions aside ‘XRM’ boasts an impressive global resume. The 29-year-old represented the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2017-18 NBA season, and has since plied his trade in Greece, Israel, Romania, Canada, the NBA G-League and Turkey.

Despite the globetrotting nature of his career, he’s prepared to carve out a life in Australia.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">???? To celebrate our upcoming Multicultural Game we sat down with some of our players to learn more about their culture.<br>Next up is Canadian guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes (<a href="https://twitter.com/xrm_22?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@xrm_22</a>)<br><br>More of XRM's story here: <a href="https://t.co/1uSjkXOkrp">https://t.co/1uSjkXOkrp</a> <a href="https://t.co/HxuaHpUVIk">pic.twitter.com/HxuaHpUVIk</a></p>— Melbourne United (@MelbUnited) <a href="https://twitter.com/MelbUnited/status/1588667416556589056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 4, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“I was in and around the NBA [and] in Europe, and my fiancée is Australian,” Rathan-Mayes told Sporting News. “I knew her for four or five years before I came to Australia, but there was a patch in the summer where this thing became real – to be able to come to Australia.

“It was for the Illawarra Hawks and she’s from Sydney, so a 45 minute/one hour drive away. It was kind of a match made in heaven.

“To be able to be here and around her and the family was really special and it gave me a dynamic of family that I didn’t really have. It was a decision we made to come back here and to be here together.

“Now I’m buying a house in Sydney, I’m going to get married and hopefully get an Australian citizenship within hopefully two years, so it’s funny how things change so quickly.”

Following the culmination of his NBL23 campaign with Melbourne Rathan-Mayes was one of a handful of NBL stars to take their talents abroad in the off-season.

The electric scorer averaged over 13 points per game over a 12 game stint with Turkish side Merkezefindi, which included a breakout 26-point game against Milton Doyle and Brady Manek’s Tofas SK.

Since returning to Australia though, he’s been all in on staying in the NBL.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Xavier Rathan-Mayes says "Too small" ?<br><br>Watch <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL23?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL23</a> live on ESPN via Kayo Sports and Foxtel <a href="https://t.co/Cai3nkCIpz">pic.twitter.com/Cai3nkCIpz</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1583022646937022464?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 20, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

“There’s definitely a few teams in the mix. For me, it’s just going to be all about fit. Where’s the best fit for myself and for my family.

“I’m at a point in my career where I want to maximise my potential, my earning potential, and we’re just in a process right now of weighing options.

“I absolutely love the NBL. I love what they’ve done with the league.”

For the full story head to >> Xavier Rathan-Mayes, the Canadian hooper bringing California streetball culture to Sydney.