Tai Wesley
July 23, 2020
Durrell McDonald
- Nationality: AUS/USA
- Date of Birth: 25/02/94
- Place of Birth: New York, New York (USA)
- Position: GRD
- Height (CM): 188
- Weight (KG): 78
- Junior Assoc: VIC - Bulleen
- College: DePaul (2012-2015) / Mercyhurst (2016-2017)
- NBL DEBUT: 18/02/18
- AGE AT DEBUT: 23
- LAST NBL GAME: 18/02/18
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 23
- NBL History: Melbourne 2018
- Championships: 1
- Melbourne (2018)
NICKNAME/S: Nugget
BIO: Durrell McDonald was born in New York, New York (USA).
NBL EXPERIENCE
Durrell McDonald made his NBL debut with the Melbourne United at 23 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.
After finishing sixth with a 13–15 record and missing the playoffs, Melbourne replaced Dean Demopoulos with former Sydney assistant Dean Vickerman on a two-year deal. Todd Blanchfield (to Sydney), Ramone Moore (to Adelaide) and Nate Tomlinson (retired) departed, while David Barlow, Josh Boone and Casper Ware re-signed. Craig Moller (via Sydney), Casey Prather (via Perth) and Daniel Dillon (via Hiroshima) were added, although Dillon ruptured his Achilles while playing for Kilsyth before the season and was ruled out for six-to-eight months, leading Melbourne to add Peter Hooley (via Ballarat) as his injury replacement.
Durrell McDonald joined Melbourne as a development player after completing his college career at Mercyhurst. McDonald (0 points across 1 game) remained a development player throughout the season and did not miss time because of injury, with his lack of appearances the result of his development-player role and selection.
Prather dislocated his left elbow against Illawarra on December 16 and was ruled out for at least eight weeks, with fellow development player Felix Von Hofe initially elevated before Carrick Felix (via Long Island Nets) joined as Prather’s injury replacement. Melbourne later added Chris Patton (via Cairns) as another injury replacement on January 24, while Prather returned on February 16 and NBL rules forced Felix from the active roster once Prather was declared healthy.
McDonald’s best game for the season was also his NBL debut and only appearance, coming in Melbourne’s final regular-season game against Illawarra on February 18. McDonald (0 points and 1 assist) played 5:16 as the Hawks defeated Melbourne 94–84, with Boone (14 points and 3 assists) and Wesley (14 points and 4 rebounds) leading United while Nicholas Kay (27 points and 7 rebounds) and Tim Coenraad (24 points and 6 rebounds) led Illawarra. Melbourne had already secured first place before the game.
Ware (16.6 points and 4.3 assists across 35 games), Prather (15.9 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 1.3 steals across 23 games), Goulding (14.7 points across 33 games), Boone (12.9 points and 8.9 rebounds across 35 games) and Wesley (11.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks across 35 games) were Melbourne’s major contributors as United finished first with a 20–8 record. Ware and Boone were named to the All-NBL First Team, Wesley earned All-NBL Second Team honours and Vickerman was named Coach of the Year.
McDonald did not play when Melbourne opened the semifinals with an 88–77 win over New Zealand behind Ware (33 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, and 1 steal) and Prather (15 points and 5 rebounds), while Newbill (19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals) and Ili (16 points and 5 assists) led the Breakers.
Melbourne completed the sweep with an 88–86 overtime win in game two behind Boone (33 points, 15 rebounds, 2 steals, and 2 blocks), who scored the winning putback at the buzzer, and Ware (15 points and 6 assists), while Newbill (21 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Penney (17 points) led New Zealand.
Melbourne opened the Grand Final with a 107–96 win over Adelaide behind Goulding (26 points and 4 rebounds) and Ware (20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists), while Johnson (18 points and 5 rebounds) and Shorter (16 points, 8 rebounds, and 4 steals) led Adelaide.
Adelaide levelled the series with a 110–95 win in game two, where Prather (20 points and 7 rebounds) and Goulding (19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 steals) led Melbourne, while Deng (18 points and 6 rebounds) and Creek (17 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists) led the 36ers.
Melbourne won game three 101–98 behind Ware (25 points and 3 assists) and Prather (23 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals), while Johnson (20 points and 3 assists) and Moore (18 points and 2 steals) led Adelaide. Sobey was ejected following a halftime clash with Prather before Deng missed a potential game-tying three-pointer in the final seconds.
Adelaide forced game five with a 90–81 win in game four behind Johnson (21 points and 9 rebounds) and Sobey (16 points and 4 rebounds), while Prather (23 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 steals) and Goulding (15 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists) led Melbourne.
McDonald did not appear during the playoffs as Goulding (23 points and 4 rebounds), Ware (23 points) and Prather (19 points, 11 rebounds, 4 steals, and 1 block) led Melbourne to a 100–82 game-five victory, while Shorter (20 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block) and Johnson (17 points, 8 rebounds, and 1 block) led Adelaide. Goulding was named Grand Final MVP after averaging 19.6 points and 3.6 rebounds as Melbourne won the series 3–2.
Durrell McDonald played in one NBL game during the 2017-18 season, scoring 0 points, 0 rebounds, and 1 assists.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-18 | 24 | Melbourne | 20-8 (1) | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0% | 0 | 2 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0 | Totals | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0.0% | 0 | 2 | 0.0% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 0% | 0% | 0 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017-18 | 24 | Melbourne | 20-8 (1) | 1 | 5.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0% | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0 | Total | 1 | 5.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2.0 | 0.0% | 0% | 0% | 0 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
STATE LEAGUE EXPERIENCE
- Waverley (2021–2022), North Adelaide (2023–2024), Northside (2025)
McDonald joined Waverley for the 2021 NBL1 South season after having originally signed with the club before the previous year was wiped out, and he helped the Falcons to a 9-4 record before the season ended early. He averaged 16.0 points per game, opened the year with 18 points, seven rebounds and three steals, produced 19 points, 10 assists, six rebounds and five steals against Bendigo, and had a 28-point game with four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the overtime win over Geelong.
McDonald returned to Waverley for the 2022 NBL1 South season, which made it his third year with the club, and he averaged 16.4 points in 29.8 minutes across eight games while shooting 48.1 percent from the field. His 2022 game highlights included helping Waverley beat Knox in a four-point thriller, finishing with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists against Ballarat, adding 13 points, four rebounds and two assists against Ringwood, and contributing 12 points, seven rebounds and four steals in the NBL1 Wildcard game.
McDonald joined North Adelaide for the 2023 NBL1 Central season and quickly became a lead guard for the Rockets. He opened with 17 points, seven rebounds, five steals and three assists in a 95-70 win over Central Districts, posted 20 points, seven assists and five rebounds in a win over Forestville, had 27 points, six rebounds, eight assists and five steals in a May victory, recorded 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in the win over Eastern, and finished the season averaging 16.41 points, 7.59 assists, 4.71 rebounds and 3.35 steals per game while shooting 44.35 percent from the field.
McDonald remained with North Adelaide for the 2024 NBL1 Central season as the Rockets captain and again carried a major backcourt role. He scored 27 points in the early-season game against South Adelaide, won the Anzac Round Medal after delivering 23 points and 10 assists in North Adelaide’s first win of the season against Central Districts, added 29 points, seven rebounds, four steals and three assists in the overtime game against Norwood, and had 20 points, four rebounds and three assists in July. During that 2024 run, one of his league-circulated highlights was pushed out under the line “Durrell ‘Nugget’ McDonald you are joking,” which matched the nickname attached to him during his North Adelaide stint.
DURRELL 'NUGGET' MCDONALD YOU ARE JOKING 🚨
— NBL1 (@NBL1) June 15, 2024
Watch NBL1 Central via https://t.co/NEk1I7kaV8 or the NBL1 App 💻&📲 pic.twitter.com/x38MKsU2M5
McDonald then moved to Northside for the 2025 NBL1 North season, extending his Australian state league career beyond the stops provided in the original team list. He averaged 16.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.8 steals for the Wizards, and one of his noted performances came in a 94-91 win over Mackay when he scored 26 points with seven rebounds and two steals.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
- India - Mumbai Titans (2025)
Durrell McDonald joined Mumbai Titans for the 2025 InBL Pro U25 season in India, making his first appearance after arriving the previous night and recording 11 points and 5 assists off the bench in an 85–70 win over Chennai Heat.
He played seven games for Mumbai Titans in the 2025 InBL Pro U25 season, averaging 8.29 points in 15:43 minutes per game.
COLLEGE
McDonald played college basketball at DePaul during the 2012-13 season before transferring to Mercyhurst, where he competed from 2016 to 2017 after redshirting in 2015-16.
McDonald suited up for DePaul during the 2012-13 season, appearing in 32 games with nine starts and averaging 11.1 minutes per game as a freshman.
In that 2012-13 season, McDonald totaled 93 points (2.9 points per game) while shooting 39-for-89 from the field (43.8%), going 10-for-25 on three-pointers (40.0%), and making 5-of-10 free throws (50.0%).
Across those 32 games in 2012-13, he recorded 30 total rebounds (0.9 per game), with 3 offensive rebounds and 27 defensive rebounds, along with 22 assists (0.7 per game), 20 steals (0.6 per game), 1 block, 38 turnovers, 51 personal fouls, and 355 total minutes played.
DePaul’s season-by-season log credits McDonald with a seven-point DePaul debut against UC Riverside, a 12-point effort with three assists against Seton Hall, and a nine-point game against Austin Peay that included two steals and two rebounds during his freshman year.
McDonald returned for the 2013-14 season and played in 33 games with seven starts, lifting his workload to 647 total minutes (19.6 per game).
In 2013-14, he scored 179 points (5.4 per game) and shot 65-for-159 from the field (40.9%), hitting 27-for-65 from three-point range (41.5%) and 22-for-33 at the foul line (66.7%).
His 2013-14 totals also included 60 rebounds (1.8 per game) split across 18 offensive and 42 defensive, plus 39 assists, 37 steals, 4 blocks, 31 turnovers, and 74 personal fouls over those 33 appearances.
One single-game defensive peak documented in DePaul’s archived notes from that season was McDonald collecting six steals against Arizona State on December 6, 2013.
McDonald’s final season at DePaul came in 2014-15, when he played all 32 games and moved into the starting group for 21 of them while averaging 23.9 minutes per outing.
In 2014-15, he totaled 138 points (4.3 per game) on 51-for-134 shooting (38.1%), went 21-for-69 from three (30.4%), and made 15-of-21 free throws (71.4%).
He finished that 2014-15 season with 89 rebounds (2.8 per game), consisting of 13 offensive rebounds and 76 defensive rebounds, while adding 72 assists (2.3 per game), 44 steals (1.4 per game), 7 blocks, 43 turnovers, and 78 personal fouls across 764 minutes.
DePaul’s team bio for 2014-15 lists McDonald as second on the roster in both steals (44) and assists (72), and it also places him among BIG EAST steals leaders for the full season at 10th in the league at 1.3 steals per game, with a conference-games-only mark listed at 1.1 steals per game (tied 13th).
Several individual game lines called out in his 2014-15 DePaul write-up included six assists at Marquette, nine points and two rebounds at Butler, seven points with five rebounds and four assists against Seton Hall, 12 points with two steals against Loyola Marymount, and a six-point, six-rebound, two-steal outing against Colorado.
After the 2014-15 season, McDonald was granted his request to transfer from DePaul on April 26, 2015, which closed his three-year run with the Blue Demons at 97 games played and a DePaul career scoring total of 410 points, along with 179 rebounds, 133 assists, and 101 steals based on DePaul’s official cumulative career table for his tenure.
McDonald later joined Mercyhurst and sat out the 2015-16 season as a redshirt before making his on-court debut for the Lakers in 2016-17.
In the 2016-17 season at Mercyhurst, McDonald earned All-PSAC West Second Team recognition and appeared in 28 games while leading the team in total points with 432 for the season.
LIFE AFTER BASKETBALL
After his basketball career, Durrell McDonald transitioned into television and public media, becoming known for multiple appearances across Australian reality TV and entertainment formats.He appeared on Australian Survivor, where he competed as a contestant and was part of the physically demanding, strategy-based format that features athletes, personalities, and everyday Australians. His athletic background was a key part of his profile on the show, contributing to his challenge performances and overall presence.
McDonald later featured on The Challenge Australia, a spin-off of the global Challenge franchise that brings together reality TV personalities and athletes in a series of physical and strategic competitions. His inclusion in the cast reflected his crossover from sport into mainstream entertainment.
He was also part of The Summit, a show centered around endurance, teamwork, and survival-style challenges in extreme outdoor environments. His participation continued his trend of appearing in physically demanding formats that aligned with his sporting background.
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