Auckland Tuatara foundation player Tom Beattie will depart the club this week as he heads off to join the University of Hawaii.
Beattie joined the Tuatara while still in his final year of high school at Rosmini College in 2022 and played a cameo role with the side during their run to the Sal’s NBL final.
The North Shore native returned to the Tuatara in 2023 and played a much bigger role, using his athleticism and speed to full effect at both ends of the court.
He was given a scholarship to join the University of Hawaii earlier this year and indicated that it would be unlikely he could stay for the duration of the 2023 Sal’s NBL season as he needed to make the move and meet the requirements of his new team.
“We are so happy for Tom and proud of him and we wish him all the best,” said Tuatara GM of Sport Dale Budge.
“Tom’s been a massive part of building our club and his DNA is all over what we’ve done to this point.
“He is a terrific player, a consummate professional in the way he goes about his business despite still being an amateur player and is a player that is respected by all of our organisation.
“We will miss him through the rest of this year’s campaign, but we will follow his progress with great interest.
“We would love to see Tom return to the franchise in the future.”
Beattie also helped North Harbour win the U19 national championship this year and was named to the tournament team for the second consecutive year.