NBL EXPERIENCE

Mantas Rubstavicius made his NBL debut with the New Zealand Breakers at 21 years of age. He scored two points in his first game.

The primary focus of the Breakers’ off-season was re-signing promising guard William McDowell-White on a two-year deal. McDowell-White, who had a stellar NBL23 and was highly sought after in free agency, viewed staying with the Breakers under coach Mody Maor as the best opportunity to elevate his game. Finn Delany, who had spent the previous season playing in Germany, also returned to the club. From there, the Breakers were able to retain the majority of their core group, with Cameron Gliddon, Izayah Mauriohooho-Le’Afa, and captain Thomas Abercrombie returning. They added complementary pieces Mangok Mathiang (via Illawarra), Dane Pineau (via South East Melbourne), and Lithuanian prospect Mantas Rubstavicius under the NBL Next Star Program. Coach Maor then finalized the roster by replacing outgoing imports Barry Brown Jr. (to China), Jarrell Brantley (to France), and Dererk Pardon (to Italy) with Parker Jackson-Cartwright (via Turkey), Zylan Cheatham (via Germany), and Justinian Jessup, who returned to the NBL after a year in the G-League.

Before reneging on the NBA Draft in an attempt to further his career opportunities and boost his draft stock in the NBL, Mantas Rubstavicius was seen as a strong chance to be selected in the second round. After seeing Rubstavicius perform at the Under 20 Euro Championships Breakers’ head coach Mody Maor was excited for him to join the squad.

“He led the competition in scoring and Lithuania to the final and this is when he put himself on the radar for the Breakers,” Maor, said.

“He has experience in high pressure situations in competitive environments and has been playing against adults which is not the case when you get a 18-year-old.”

New Zealand started their season with a win against Cairns (98–87) and a narrow loss to Brisbane (84–89) before heading to the USA to play against the Phoenix Suns in the NBLxNBA exhibition game. With a number of player injuries, former NBA forward Anthony Lamb was also added to the squad. Despite being heavy underdogs, New Zealand pushed the Suns to the limit, making a late surge to cut the lead to four in the final minute before falling just short in a 91–86 loss. Corey Webster (27 points and 7 assists) and Tai Wesley (15 points and 7 rebounds) led the Breakers offensively. Phoenix, who were without star Devin Booker, relied on Deandre Ayton (21 points and 15 rebounds) and Trevor Ariza (16 points and 6 assists).

Rubstavicius began the NBL season projected to be a second-round pick in ESPN’s 2024 NBA mock draft and joins the NBL as a high-upside youngster with huge potential to increase his NBA stocks.

New Zealand returned from the USA and, due to injuries, roster changes, and inconsistent play, extended their losing streak to five games before a win over Cairns (91–81). Lamb (19 points), Mauriohooho-Le’Afa (14 points and 4 assists), McDowell-White (14 points, 4 assists, and 2 steals), Jackson-Cartwright (13 points and 7 assists), and Rubstavicius (11 points) all scored in double figures. Delany (11 games), Cheatham (11 games), McDowell-White (6 games), and Rubstavicius (5 games) all missed a considerable amount of games during the season, with Jessup being released after being unable to overcome his pelvis injury. In January, New Zealand (8–12) fell to the bottom of the ladder following three consecutive losses before turning things around, winning five of their last seven games to finish with a 13–15 record, equal with Sydney and Brisbane. Due to points percentage, Sydney (fifth) and New Zealand (sixth) advanced to the play-in tournament, while Brisbane (seventh) was eliminated.

Mantas Rubstavicius (9.4 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.2 assists) provided solid depth for the Breakers. His standout performances included a 21-point, 8-rebound, and 3-assist game in a win against Cairns (15 December 2023), a 17-point, 2-rebound, and 3-assist effort against Sydney (22 December 2023), and a 17-point, 2-rebound, and 1-assist game against Illawarra (28 January 2024), where he also recorded 2 steals and shot 75% from the field (6 of 8). His contributions, particularly in these standout games, were crucial for the Breakers during key matchups.

Alongside Rubstavicius, the Breakers were led offensively by Parker Jackson-Cartwright (20.6 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 5.8 assists), and saw strong contributions from Anthony Lamb (19.5 points, 6 rebounds, and 2.8 assists), Zylan Cheatham (15.3 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists), and William McDowell-White (9.2 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 4.3 assists).

In the play-in tournament, New Zealand faced Sydney and secured a hard-fought win (83–76) led by Parker Jackson-Cartwright (34 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds) and Mangok Mathiang (10 points and 9 rebounds). Once into the second play-in game against Illawarra, Jackson-Cartwright (19 points and 9 assists) and Cheatham (12 points and 9 rebounds) produced solid efforts, but the inconsistency that highlighted the Breakers’ season all year returned, and they would lose by three points (85–88) and miss out on an NBL semi-final berth.

Mantas Rubstavicius played one season in the NBL. He averaged 9.3 points, 2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 25 NBL games.

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Dan Boyce (811 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.