BIO: Jasper Rentoy, who is of Filipino descent, was born in West Sydney (NSW) and began playing basketball as a junior with the Penrith basketball program.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Jasper Rentoy made his NBL debut with the Sydney Kings at 23 years of age. He went scoreless in his first NBL game.

At 23 years of age, Rentoy signed a development player contract for the 2023-24 campaign, alongside Jackson Makoi, Klairus Amir and Isaac Gattorna.

“Signing as a development player with the Sydney Kings is a absolute dream come true,” Rentoy said upon joining the Kings.

“Growing up, I went to all the Kings games and camps, so now being a part of them now, it’s definitely come full circle. I’ve always had goals to make it to the NBL, but never would I have thought that I’d get the honour to wear the purple and gold and represent my home.”

During Rentoy’s first season, Sydney were forced to undergo a huge rebuild prior to NBL24, after losing several key pieces to NBA opportunities. First reigning NBL MVP Xavier Cooks and DJ Vasiljevic both headed to Washington, then coach Chase Buford was released to pursue NBA opportunities and eventually joined Milwaukee. Imports Derrick Walton Jr, Justin Simon and Tim Soares all headed overseas, and Jordan Hunter remained with the team as the only starter from the championship squad to return.

Former league MVP Jaylen Adams returned after a season in Europe and joined new imports DJ Hogg (via Cairns), Denzel Valentine and former NBA talent and Australian Boomer Jonah Bolden, who returned to basketball after a 4-year absence.

G-League championship coach Mahmoud Abdelfattah was brought in as Buford’s replacement, and despite the considerable roster turnover, the Kings still entered the season as championship favourites.

After ten games, Sydney sat in second position (7-3) and had lost to only two teams, the Tasmania JackJumpers (twice) and the Cairns Taipans. This was achieved while marquee player DJ Hogg (who missed the first half of the season) and Jaylin Galloway sat injured on the sidelines.

From Round 8 onwards, the Kings looked nothing like the team that had dominated the league for the past two years. They struggled to win games, giving up 100 points on nine occasions, and finished as one of the worst teams in the league at the defensive end.

Much of the team’s success this season came from the pick-and-roll offence of Adams (19.4 points, 3.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.1 steals) and Hunter (10.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 0.9 blocks). Bolden (8.5 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.1 assists) delivered some great games but understandably spent most of the season working himself back into basketball form. In comparison, Denzel Valentine (12.2 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and 1.1 steals) and Dj Hogg (14.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.3 blocks) didn’t deliver as expected at both ends. Sydney finished the season in fifth place and failed to make the post-season after losing to New Zealand during the play-in qualifiers. However, breakout seasons from rookie Alex Toohey (8 points and 4.0 rebounds), Kouat Noi (10.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.0 assists), who came close to winning the league’s best sixth-man award, and Galloway (10.3 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.2 steals) were the only real highlights of the season, showcasing the individual talent and potential within the team. Rentoy saw court time in only 16 games as a rookie, scoring a total of two points.

Jasper Rentoy played one season in the NBL. He averaged 0.5 points, 0 rebounds, and 0 assists in 4 NBL games.

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.