Former Kentucky big man Tai Wynyard was named to the preliminary 33-man roster for New Zealand’s national team ahead of FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 Asian Qualifiers.
The roster will be cut down to 12 in late-June.
Wynyard spoke to 1News recently about trying to make the most of his second chance following a controversial ending to his career at Kentucky.
Here is an excerpt:
But three years after joining the Wildcats, Wynyard was dumped following an incident involving someone with a gun at a party – something he says was blown out of proportion.
Regardless, it changed everything.
“I didn’t really enjoy basketball anymore and I kind of stopped playing for about two years,” Wynyard told 1News.
“I put on a lot of weight.”
As such, a different-looking player took to the court for the 2020 NBL showdown but he’s spent the past two years getting back in shape, motivated mainly by the birth of his son.
“As soon as I laid eyes on him I promised to myself and him I need to do this for us so that I can be a proper role model to him,” he said.
“I didn’t want to be the person I was those last two years after college.”
Here are some highlights of Wynyard from 2021:
