NICKNAME/S: JK

BIO: Jarrod Kenny was born in Auckland (NZ) and attended Westlake Boys High School. The 188 cm point guard has represented the New Zealand Tall Blacks multiple times.

From 2002 to 2008, Kenny split time between playing for the Harbour Heat and earning his physiotherapy degree at the Auckland University of Technology.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Jarrod Kenny made his NBL debut with the Perth Wildcats at 30 years of age. He scored seven points in his first game.

On the heels of a injury-riddled season that ended in a semi-final defeat, similar to the 2010/11 season, coach Trevor Gleeson was confident heading into the 2015 season that he had a team capable of winning Perth’s seventh championship. After conceding his side struggled with chemistry issues the past season, Perth added high-profile recruits Casey Prather and Nathan Jawai as well as backup guard Jarrod Kenny to correct team balance.

With the team’s acquisition of Nathan Jawai, a injury-free Matthew Knight was able to move to his natural position of power forward for the first time while Shawn Redhage was moved to a bench role.

This first month of the season began by losing Damian Martin (5.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.8 steals) after he suffered a broken jaw and missing teeth after a errant elbow from Townsville Crocodiles forward Brian Conklin. He returned to action by the end of the month, despite originally being ruled out for three weeks.

Further injuries saw Wildcats leading scorer Casey Prather (16.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists 1.2 steals) also miss a number of games. Also a big part of Perth’s success this season were big numbers from Beal (15.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists) and the healthy combo of Knight (11.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) and Jawai (10.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) which saw Perth sit among the top spots on the ladder all season.

The battle for the top spot saw Perth and Melbourne go back and forth all season, the Wildcat’s able to hold the top position for four rounds while United owned the top spot for 14 rounds. Both teams faced off in some gruelling battles during the season, including a career high night from Jermaine Beal, who notched up 40 points (sinking ten three-pointers) after not scoring at all in the first quarter as Perth dismantled Melbourne (113-83). A few weeks later, Melbourne took their revamp and defeated Perth (92–87) in a game that pushed the Wildcat’s into third position on the ladder for the only time that season.

the Wildcats finished the season in second place (18–10) (Behind United) and reached the playoffs for the 30th straight season, a streak not matched in any other Australian or American professional sport code.

Next, the Wildcat’s went on to make light work of the Rob Beveridge-led Illawarra Hawks in game one of the semi finals. Casey Prather (19 points) led the Wildcats in scoring in the game one victory (80-68). In game two, the Hawks would even the score behind what was perhaps Oscar Forman’s best playoff game ever, one where he barely missed and finished with 21 points to defeat the Wildcat’s in convincing fashion (104–87).

Once the team returned home, Perth would take out the series (2-1) with a conclusive 89-74 victory. Jermaine Beal led the team in scoring with 17 points, and Prather added another 15 points, including a thunderous one-handed slam over AJ Ogilvy early in the fourth quarter.

On the opposite side of the bracket, a surprise upset saw reigning champions New Zealand (16-12), who had narrowly made the playoffs as the third seed, eliminated top seed Melbourne in two straight games to face Perth in the championship series.

In game one, the Wildcat’s played some of their best basketball thanks to Jawai’s presence inside, Prather’s athleticism, Kenny’s ability to provide a spark while Damian Martin went to the bench… all of the critical factors they were lacking last season. The result being a six-point win (82–76) to open the series.

After struggling in game one, Beal (20 points) finished as the high scorer of game two but would also make a crucial late-game turnover in the dying seconds of the match that would cost Perth the game. Riding the hot form of Breakers guard Cedric Jackson (13 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists) who recorded a near triple-double, New Zealand were able to even the series with a win back in Auckland (72–68).

With the deciding game in Perth and 13,090 of the ‘Red Army’ in attendance, the Wildcats’ core of Redhage, Wagstaff, Knight, Hire, Beal and Jervis made sure history didn’t repeat itself. Casey Prather (19 points) and Jermaine Beal (14 points) did most of the damage on the scoreboard for the Wildcats, but it was Martin’s inspirational display in defence that shone the brightest. Martin would be named Grand Final MVP after keeping star Breakers guard Cedric Jackson scoreless in the deciding game as the Wildcat’s claimed their seventh championship in a blowout win (75–52).

Kenny would play in all 34 games for the Wildcats, averaging 4.6 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.

2016/17
The 2016 offseason saw a lot of change in personnel, with three key players from the 16 championship team (Nathan Jawai, Tom Jervis and Jermaine Beal) moving on. To replace them, coach Trevor Gleeson brought in Angus Brandt, Jameel McKay and Jaron Johnson and began their attempt to secure the team’s first back-to-back championships since 1991.

In April 2016, the team re-signed both Damian Martin (three-year deal) and Matthew Knight (two-year deal), who had just undergone shoulder stabilisation surgery on his left arm. Shortly after, injury struck Knight (9.4 points, 6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists) again, this time during the 2016 pre-season. This led to him being ruled out for two months. To cover for the loss of Knight, the team added veteran forward Lucas Walker, who had been training with Melbourne United after not being re-signed by the Adelaide 36ers.

After adding Walker, the Wildcats started the season off strong with a 4–1 record, but things went south quickly after that.Long-term injuries to Martin, Knight and Kenny were hurting the Wildcats, and by December, Perth had slumped to a 7–9 record and sat in the last spot on the ladder.

Import Jaron Johnson (13.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) would take the brunt of the Wildcats’ poor start and be replaced with three-point specialist Andre Ingram just three games into the season. In a bizarre twist, Ingram (8.5 points, 2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals) left the team and returned to the US after just two games, citing mental issues, and Johnson was then brought back into the squad. Johnson’s return would be a temporary solution however, he was shown the door again in December with the Wildcats seizing the opportunity to sign former NBA guard Bryce Cotton. It was around this time also that veteran Shawn Redhage (2.7 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.5 assists) announced that he would retire at the end of the season.

Throughout the roller-coaster of roster changes, Prather (19.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.6 steals) had continued to carry the offensive load for the Wildcats, this included a career-high 39 points in a 92–89 win over Melbourne United (Dec 9). In February, Prather also put up 29 points in a win over the Sydney Kings (101–74), then two days later, recorded 26 points and a career-high 11 assists in a win over United (96–94). Martin (4.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.7 steals) also returned to form after his injury, and in his 250th NBL game (Jan 28), he scored a season-high 11 points to go with six rebounds and four assists in another win over Melbourne (73–71). But it was the addition of Cotton that saw the Wildcats become a completely different team, winning eight of their remaining twelve regular-season games, the last two being must win games in order to reach the playoffs. Cotton (23.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals) finished as the league’s leading scorer, while Prather finished second in NBL MVP voting (107 votes) behind Jerome Randle (147) of the Adelaide 36ers and was selected to the All-NBL First Team.

Alongside Perth’s two import stars, Kenny averaged 4.1 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 2 assists as the team finished in third place with a 15–13 record.

in the semifinals, Perth (15-13) would face Cairns (15-13) at home, where Cotton (34 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists) and Prather (22 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals) led the way offensively for a easy win in game one (91-69). In game two, Perth closed out the series (74-66) with Prather (24 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists) leading the team in scoring and Jesse Wagstaff (20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals) having a huge game off the bench

In the NBL Grand Final series, Prather (22 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists), Cotton (18 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists), and Knight (18 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 steals) delivered a balanced offensive attack, winning the opening game by twelve points (89-77). The series moved to Wollongong for game two, but the Wildcat’s continued their playoff winning streak (89-77), with Cotton (20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals) and Prather (18 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists) being the team’s primary scorers on a night the Wildcats had five different players deliver double figure scoring efforts. Perth won game three comfortably (95-86), finishing undefeated in the postseason, claiming their eighth championship and winning back-to-back for the first time since 1991.

A number of record-breaking moments occurred in the game three win. Most prominently, Bryce Cotton was named Grand Final MVP after putting up 45 points, the most ever scored in a NBL Grand Final game. Cotton’s 27.7 points per game over the Grand Final series marked the most from any player in 20 years.

Trevor Gleeson became the first coach to win back-to-back championships in Perth while Prather delivered a historical season. Prather was voted Wildcats MVP for the second year in a row, becoming the only player to be a club MVP in more than one championship season, as well as becoming the first Perth player to win two championships in his first two seasons.

2017/18
Perth were able to re-sign Grand Final MVP Bryce Cotton but lost two-time Club MVP Casey Prather, who was unable to commit to the Wildcats season due to pursuing NBA opportunities. Perth would sign Devondrick Walker in the meantime, leaving Prather with no place on the roster after he had exhausted his NBA options. Walker then suffered a foot injury during the pre-season and Perth were forced to replace him with JP Tokoto. Other changes to the roster included Derek Cooke Jr replacing Jameel McKay and Lucas Walker stepping up from a training player role to a full-time squad member in place of the retired Shawn Redhage.

The Wildcats then started the season with a 10–3 record, which included Hire playing his 200th game for Perth (becoming the 11th Wildcat to reach the mark) before missing five games due to a low-grade calf strain. Hire’s injury coincided with Perth dropped to 13–9 by mid-January.

Around this time, Matthew Knight (5.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 0.6 assists) made it public that he would retire at the end of the season, but as a result of three early-season head knocks, he chose to bring his retirement forward and retired in early November, playing in only five games.

The Wildcats started the season on top of the ladder with a record of 10–3 but would then lose Damian Martin (4.6 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.5 steals) for two games with an ankle injury (14 Dec). Perth also faced injuries to Clint Steindl (2.8 points, 1.3 rebounds) and Greg Hire (2.1 points, 2 rebounds, and 0.6 assists), which saw the team drop to 13–9 by mid-January. Import Derek Cooke Jr (5.7 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 0.6 assists) then became the brunt of repeated criticism, with many calling for the team to replace him to his lack of production. Cooke Jr would, however, remain with the team for the entire season, and when the roster returned to full health, he helped Perth finish the regular season off strongly and secure third place on the ladder (16–12). Kenny would play in 30 games, and averaging 5.2 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.6 assists.

On the eve of their finals campaign, Martin was named the league’s Best Defensive Player, earning the honour for a record-breaking sixth time. Tokoto (15.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.7 steals) earned a spot on the All-NBL Second Team, and Cotton (19.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals) was selected to the All-NBL first team, as well as being named league MVP, becoming just the third Wildcat to win the award after Paul Rogers (2000) and Kevin Lisch (2012).

In game one of the semi finals series against second-seeded Adelaide 36ers, the Wildcats were soundly defeated (109–74) in what was their second biggest finals loss in club history. The only time the Wildcat’s have lost by a larger margin in their 32-year finals streak was in 1989, when they lost to North Melbourne by 55 points. Game two saw a much closer contest, but Perth still fell short by one point (88–89), stopping Perth from winning a third championship in a row.

CAIRNS TAIPANS
2018/19
In 2018, Cairns chose to go in a new direction, parting ways with long-time coach Aaron Fearne after eight years of him patrolling the sidelines. Mike Kelly was brought in as his replacement and was tasked with rebuilding a roster that had already lost key players Cameron Gliddon (to Brisbane), Mitchell McCarron (to Melbourne), Jarrad Weeks (to New Zealand), and Stephen Weigh (retired).

With only a short time before the season kicked off, Kelly bolstered the roster by adding free agent Rob Loe (via New Zealand) and a new import trio consisting of Melo Trimble, Devon Hall, and DJ Newbill, while Nathan Jawai, Alex Loughton, and Jarrod Kenny were retained for their experience and leadership.

Cairns started the season with a dominant victory over Brisbane (88-70) in their opening game, but consistency soon became an issue. The team endured a six-game losing streak between 21 October and 9 November 2018. Despite these struggles, the Taipans managed some impressive wins later in the season, including a surprise victory over Perth (81-79) and a dominant win over Brisbane (109-80), but an inability to consistently win at home (3-11) or away (3-11) saw them finish the season dead last.

While wins were few and far between, Melo Trimble (21.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 1.2 steals) and DJ Newbill (14.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.1 steals) formed a powerful one-two punch this season. Trimble earned a spot on the All-NBL Second Team and was named the Taipans’ club MVP at the end of the season.

Kenny (5.2 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists) provided stability and leadership off the bench, bringing his veteran presence to a team that struggled with inconsistency. He also led the Taipans in three-point shooting at 44%, adding a reliable scoring option from beyond the arc. His defensive awareness and ability to facilitate the offense were crucial in moments when the team needed a steady hand. Kenny’s efforts were recognized by the coaching staff, earning him the Coaches Award for his competitive mentality, work ethic in training, and consistent readiness to fill any role needed.

Kenny’s best games this season included a 15-point, 6-rebound, 2-assist performance against Brisbane (3 Jan 2019), a 13-point, 5-rebound, 3-assist effort against Sydney (16 Feb 2019), and a 13-point, 3-rebound game against Illawarra (4 Feb 2019).

Despite solid contributions from Kenny, Jawai, Loughton, and other veterans, Cairns was unable to build momentum, finishing with one of the worst records in franchise history (6-22).

2019/20
In 2018, Cairns chose to go in a new direction, parting ways with long-time coach Aaron Fearne after eight years of him patrolling the sidelines. Mike Kelly was brought in as his replacement and was tasked with rebuilding a roster that had already lost key players Cameron Gliddon (to Brisbane), Mitchell McCarron (to Melbourne), Jarrad Weeks (to New Zealand), and Stephen Weigh (retired).

With only a short time before the season kicked off, Kelly bolstered the roster by adding free agent Rob Loe (via New Zealand) and a new import trio consisting of Melo Trimble, Devon Hall, and DJ Newbill, while Nathan Jawai, Alex Loughton, and Jarrod Kenny were retained for their experience and leadership.

Cairns started the season with a dominant victory over Brisbane (88-70) in their opening game, but consistency soon became an issue. The team endured a six-game losing streak between 21 October and 9 November 2018. Despite these struggles, the Taipans managed some impressive wins later in the season, including a surprise victory over Perth (81-79) and a dominant win over Brisbane (109-80), but an inability to consistently win at home (3-11) or away (3-11) saw them finish the season dead last.

Kenny (4.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) provided stability and leadership off the bench, bringing his veteran presence to a team that struggled with inconsistency. He also led the Taipans in three-point shooting at 44%, adding a reliable scoring option from beyond the arc. His defensive awareness and ability to facilitate the offense were crucial in moments when the team needed a steady hand. Kenny’s efforts were recognized by the coaching staff, earning him the Coaches Award for his competitive mentality, work ethic in training, and consistent readiness to fill any role needed.

Kenny’s best games this season included a 15-point, 6-rebound, 2-assist performance against Brisbane (3 Jan 2019), a 13-point, 5-rebound, 3-assist effort against Sydney (16 Feb 2019), and a 13-point, 3-rebound game against Illawarra (4 Feb 2019).

Despite solid contributions from Trimble, Newbill and Kenny, Cairns was unable to build momentum, finishing with one of the worst records in franchise history (6-22).

2020/21
In 2020/21 Kenny averaged 2.6 points and 1.6 rebounds, and helped guide the Taipans to a ninth-place finish during the regular season with a 8-28 record.

2021/22
Cairns underwent a rehaul prior to the 2021/22 season, the first move being Adam Forde replacing head coach Mike Kelly. Forde, who had spent the previous season coaching the Sydney Kings, was tasked with finding some new firepower for the Snakes after losing the team’s leading scorer Cam Oliver to the NBA the previous season.

Imports Tahjere McCall and Stephen Zimmerman were brought in, alongside Keanu Pinder (via Adelaide) and rookie Bul Kuol (Detroit Mercy) to bolster a Taipans core which already included Majok Deng, Kouat Noi, Nathan Jawai, Mirko Djeric, Jarrod Kenny and Scott Machado who was named team captain.

The Taipans struggled to generate wins all season thanks to a glut of player injuries which saw Cairns unable to field a full roster in any game that season. Despite the team’s struggles, Forde was instrumental in developing the Taipans younger talent, many whom delivered career best seasons.

Majok Deng (14.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1 assists) had his best season to date, playing in every game for the Taipans and finishing second on the team in points per game and Keanu Pinder (10.9 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 1.1 assists), went on to be named the NBL’s Most Improved Player after doubling his points and rebounds from the previous season.

Another breakout season came from Ben Ayre (6.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 3.5 assists), who joined the team originally as a unpaid training player after being recommended to the team by former 36ers coach Joey Wright. Ayre was elevated into the full-time roster as an injury replacement in April, before going on to break NBL records in his eight-game tenure. On 18 April 2022, in just his sixth appearance for the Taipans, Ayre scored a team-high 20 points to go with 10 assists, four rebounds, three steals and four three-pointers in a loss to Melbourne (80-92). The 26-year-old became just the third player in 2021/22 to record 20 points and 10 assists in a game (alongside Bryce Cotton and Jaylen Adams) and just the second Taipan in club history to register 20 points and 10 assists. Lastly, first year player Bul Kuol (10.4 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists), who had been told he was not guaranteed to be part of the rotation or receive any minutes, also saw injuries thrust him into the lineup and quickly became one of the Taipans’ most important players. He would be rewarded at seasons end by being named Rookie of the Year.

Scott Machado (10.2 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.3 assists) sustained a heel injury in round two of NBL22, missing more than six weeks with the injury. In April 2022, he re-injured his heel and missed the rest of the season. Machado and Tahjere McCall (16.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.5 assists, 2 steals), who led the team in scoring, and assists, were selected as co-MVP’s of the team as Cairns finished in second last place (9-19). Jarrod Kenny would appear in 21 games and averaged 3.1 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 2.0 assists.

Jarrod Kenny played seven seasons in the NBL, playing for both the Perth Wildcats and the Cairns Taipans. He averaged 3.8 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 207 NBL games.

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.