BIO: Hannahs is the son of former Arkansas and MLB pitcher Gerry Hannahs. Hannahs’ father nicknamed him “Dusty” after former Los Angeles Dodgers teammate Dusty Baker.

Hannahs was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas and attended high school at Pulaski Academy. He was a three-time All-District selection and was named first team 4A All-State in his junior and senior seasons with the Bruins. He committed to Texas Tech University after his junior season after averaging 26.2 points per game and shooting 51 percent from three. In his senior season, Hannahs averaged 20 points per game and led Pulaski to the 4A state championship game and scored 43 points in a loss to Clarksville High School.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Dusty Hannahs made his NBL debut with the Adelaide 36ers at 28 years of age. He scored 10 points in his first game.

Adelaide kicked off the 2021/22 season with a series of roster moves, bringing in Mitch McCarron from Melbourne, highly touted Filipino NBA prospect Kai Sotto, and Cairns backup guards Tad Dufelmeier Jr and Mojave King, who left the Taipans seeking more playing time to boost his NBA chances. Imports Dusty Hannahs and Todd Withers were signed to fill out the roster. In a surprise move, however, Adelaide parted ways with coach Connor Henry, despite him having a year left on his contract. CJ Bruton, who had narrowly missed the Brisbane Bullets head coaching job, stepped in just weeks before the season opener. Bruton then completed the squad by adding Hyrum Harris (also from Cairns) and Cam Bairstow, who had gone unsigned by other NBL teams due to his injury history. Having worked closely with Bairstow in Brisbane, Bruton convinced him to join Adelaide and revive his career.

Mitch McCarron (7.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists, and 1.9 steals) was named team captain at 29, taking on a leadership role as the 36ers’ franchise player. The season started rocky, with Adelaide losing their first two games to Perth (85–73) and Illawarra (71–81). However, they bounced back with wins against Tasmania (83-80) and New Zealand (98–85), briefly lifting them to sixth place with a 2-2 record, their highest position all season and the only time they were above .500.

Adelaide’s momentum was derailed when Isaac Humphries (7.7 points, 4.8 rebounds in 17.7 minutes) suffered a season-ending knee injury after just six games. With Humphries sidelined, Bairstow (11.4 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.7 assists) stepped up, delivering his best NBL season before a late-season ankle injury brought his career to a close.

As the season progressed, underwhelming performances from imports Dusty Hannahs (13.5 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists) and Todd Withers (8.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.2 assists) left Adelaide with little hope of making the playoffs. At 7-17, they were out of contention with a month left, but they managed to end the season on a more positive note. Adelaide nearly won four consecutive away games, narrowly losing to South East Melbourne (91-94) before finishing seventh for the third year in a row with a 10-18 record.

Daniel Johnson (16.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 2.1 assists) led the team in scoring and earned his second straight Mark Davis Award as the club’s MVP. Hyrum Harris (4.2 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists) was voted the club’s Most Improved Player, and Sunday Dech (12.3 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 2.3 assists) solidified his role as a key contributor in his second year with the 36ers.

Hannahs, despite flashes of scoring ability, averaged 13.5 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists during an inconsistent season for the import guard.

Dusty Hannahs played one season in the NBL. He averaged 13.6 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 23 NBL games.

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Dan Boyce (815 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.