BIO: Andrews grew up in Portland, Oregon, born as Andrew Wray before a complicated family situation led to an early name change. His parents, Lee Williams Jr. and Patricia Hall, gave him a surname different from their own for reasons he never fully learned, and when they separated during his early childhood, he was adopted by his aunt. She later gave him her maiden name, Andrews, and he was raised primarily by his aunt and grandmother, both of whom played major roles in his upbringing.

Throughout his childhood, Andrews explored a wide range of activities — football, karate, tennis, ballet and swimming — before discovering in the fourth grade that basketball was where he excelled most naturally. That shift in focus eventually led him to Benson Polytechnic High School, where he developed into one of the top guards in Oregon. As a senior, he averaged 24 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists per game, guiding Benson to the Oregon Class 5A State Championship game and emerging as one of the state’s elite prep scorers.

As a junior at Benson Polytechnic, Andrews (20 points and 8 assists per game) developed into one of the Portland Interscholastic League’s leading guards.

He represented Inner City Players Portland on the AAU circuit, including Nike Elite Youth Basketball League competition.

In the 2011 Oregon Class 5A championship game against Corvallis, Andrews (41 points and six three-pointers) led Benson in a 79–73 double-overtime defeat.

Andrews also scored a season-high 42 points against Evergreen and 31 points in the Oregon–Washington Northwest Shootout All-Star game.

He earned Oregon Class 5A State Co-Player of the Year and Portland Interscholastic League Player of the Year honours in 2011.

By the time he graduated, Andrews had earned national recruiting attention, rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals.com and ranked 83rd among point guards in his class by ESPN. Those evaluations set the stage for his move to the University of Washington, where he began his collegiate career the following season.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Andrew Andrews made his NBL debut with the Cairns Taipans at 32 years of age. He scored eight points in his first game.

Cairns entered NBL26 attempting to recover from an 8-21 wooden-spoon season, with Adam Forde initially departing before returning as head coach in June. Rob Edwards (to Xinjiang), Taran Armstrong (to Golden State), Tanner Groves (to Saga), Pedro Bradshaw (to Rostock), Akoldah Gak (to Mexico City), Jonah Antonio, Jackson Makoi, Deshon Taylor, Tad Dufelmeier Jr and Dillon Stith exited, while Sam Waardenburg, Kyrin Galloway, Kyle Adnam, Kody Stattmann and Alex Higgins-Titsha returned. Forde added Jack McVeigh (via Houston), Admiral Schofield (via Lyon), Marcus Lee (via Melbourne), Reyne Smith (via Louisville), Mawot Mag (via BYU), Lloyd McVeigh (via South Adelaide) and Jed Richardson (via Northside), with Stattmann and Higgins-Titsha elevated from development-player status and Lachlan Barker (via Tasmania) added as a nominated replacement player for the injured Waardenburg.

Original point guard Ashton Hagans (via Xinjiang) was unable to reach Cairns before the season because of visa complications, leading the Taipans to release him and sign Andrew Andrews (via Vilnius) to a one-year deal on September 15. Andrews arrived after representing the United States at the 2025 FIBA AmeriCup and winning a bronze medal, having spent the previous season with BC Wolves in Lithuania following stops in Turkey, Latvia, Israel, Greece and Spain.

Cairns opened at John Cain Arena on September 20 without Andrews, who had not yet arrived in Australia, and South East Melbourne defeated the Taipans 114-77. Smith (19 points and 6 rebounds) and Jack McVeigh (18 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists) led Cairns, while Glover (18 points and 5 rebounds) was the Phoenix’s leading scorer.

Andrews (8 points, 1 rebound, and 4 assists) landed in Cairns two days before his debut and had only one training session before starting against Brisbane at the Cairns Convention Centre on September 26. Despite missing his first eight field-goal attempts and battling cramp, he helped steady the backcourt as Cairns won 83-82, with Jack McVeigh (19 points, 9 rebounds, and 9 assists) and Schofield (19 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal) leading the Taipans while Harrison (22 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block) was Brisbane’s best.

Andrews (14.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 7.6 assists across 31 games) started every appearance and became Cairns’ primary playmaker after joining at short notice. He produced one of the strongest assist seasons in club history, recording at least six assists in 24 games and reaching double figures seven times, including consecutive 13-assist games during Round 16. His only absence after joining came against Tasmania on January 30 after he failed a pre-game fitness test.

Andrews’ best scoring game came in Wollongong on December 6, where he made five three-pointers and finished with 27 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal as Cairns defeated defending champion Illawarra 93-76. Galloway (16 points, 14 rebounds, 2 steals, and 1 block) and Schofield (17 points and 11 rebounds) helped the Taipans win without Jack McVeigh, Waardenburg and Smith, while Grida (18 points) led the Hawks.

Andrews (13 points, 3 rebounds, 13 assists, and 1 steal) controlled the offence against Melbourne at Red Energy Arena on January 7 as Cairns won 93-92 in a game featuring 33 lead changes. Jack McVeigh (20 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Waardenburg (20 points and 9 rebounds) carried the scoring, while Goulding (27 points) led United.

King (11.2 points and 4.4 rebounds across 22 games) returned to Cairns as an injury replacement after Higgins-Titsha (6.3 points and 4.6 rebounds across 9 games) required season-ending wrist surgery, while Dennis (0 points across 1 game) was later added when another backcourt injury depleted the active roster.

Jack McVeigh (21.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4 assists across 29 games) and Waardenburg (15.5 points and 5.4 rebounds across 8 games) were Cairns’ two leading scorers, although Waardenburg was restricted by ankle injuries. Andrews carried the season-long playmaking, with King providing another scoring option after joining during the year, while Smith (9.9 points across 14 games), Schofield (8.8 points and 4.3 rebounds across 30 games), Galloway (7.6 points and 4.6 rebounds across 33 games), Lee (6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds across 33 games), Stattmann (6.6 points across 23 games) and Higgins-Titsha were the other main contributors.

Jack McVeigh earned All-NBL Second Team, club MVP and Members’ Choice MVP honours, Andrews received the Players’ Player award and Galloway was named Defensive Player of the Year. Barker (4.5 points across 26 games) received the Coaches’ Award and Richardson (0 points across 2 games) earned the Commitment to Community award.

Cairns finished ninth with a 9-24 record and missed the postseason. Their season ended at Eventfinda Stadium on February 19, where Andrews (24 points, 2 rebounds, 7 assists, and 1 steal) led the Taipans, with Stattmann (20 points and 5 rebounds) and Smith (13 points) in support, while Mennenga (32 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists) was New Zealand’s best. The Breakers won 115-84.

Andrew Andrews played one season in the NBL. He averaged 14.8 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 7.6 assists in 31 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:

– 7th in assists per game.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Andrew Andrews – 18 points, 13 assists versus Brisbane (NBL26, Round 16)

Andrew Andrews and Adam Forde – press conference versus Brisbane (NBL26, Round 7)