A new tradition will be introduced for the AUS v NZL Trans-Tasman Throwdown with Australian basketball alumni to be honoured as ‘Ball Legends’.
At the Adelaide & Sunshine Coast stops on the Throwdown, Australian Opals Rachael Sporn OAM OLY & Tiana Mangakahia will be acknowledged for their contributions to the game and their community.
Sporn is a triple Olympic medallist and 5-time WNBL Champion who played for West Adelaide, North Adelaide and eventually the Adelaide Lightning.
The 65th Opal produced one of the greatest WNBL careers in league history with 2 x MVP, 8 x All-Star Five & 2 x WNBL Grand Final MVP. Sporn was a rock in the Opals silver medal run at Athens & Sydney and will be celebrated in front of her home crowd on 7 May.
Tiana Mangakahia, a Queenslander with Māori heritage, starred for Syracuse in the NCAA from 2017 – 2021 and was selected in the Opals Olympics squad in 2020 and 2024 prior to receiving a further cancer diagnosis.
Tiana is continuing her breast cancer treatment whilst playing NBL1. It will be a powerful moment as we acknowledge Mangakahia in front of a full house at UniSc Arena prior to the Opals v Tall Ferns
The introduction of the ‘Ball Legend’ tradition is an initiative to champion the history of Australian basketball and the outstanding athletes and people that have contributed to the culture that persists today.
The tradition will be an ongoing feature for all of Basketball Australia’s domestic non-FIBA fixtures and involve a storytelling content component.
Content episodes featuring both Sporn & Mangakahia will be available during the series across Basketball Australia & Australian Opals platforms.
