There’s a lot to reasons to believe Dan Fotu will be a Tall Blacks regular for many years to come; following in the footsteps of older brother Isaac and sister Ella, as high-profile athletes who have represented New Zealand on the world stage.
After winning back-to-back National Secondary Schools Basketball titles with Rangitoto College in 2015-2016, Fotu joined the BNZ Breakers as a development player before starting his NCAA college career at St Mary’s in California – graduating in 2022 with 126 games under his belt. Returning to New Zealand, he signed a two-year deal with the Breakers and has made 22 appearances to date.
With Fotu named to the Tall Blacks squad of 12 for tonight’s FIBA Asia Cup Qualifier game versus Chinese Taipei – and in line for his seventh appearance in the black jersey since 2023 – we check in with the 6’7” forward as he prepares for put on the black jersey for the first time this year.
Q: You’ve got a solid mix of veterans and younger players in this squad; what’s the vibe been like so far in Tall Blacks camp?
A: The vibe with these boys is definitely really good, there’s a lot of players here that have something to prove, maybe not knowing where they’re going to be in a few years – so they’re got a chip on their shoulder and they’re ready to put in the work.
That’s the vibe really, that they’re going to go out there and work hard, do what it takes to win, work together to get that dub. Coach Pero [Cameron] has been reiterating that, saying you guys have got something to prove so go out there and show people why you should be on this team.
Building the culture and the environment is definitely a big focus here for the Tall Blacks, it gets talked about here a lot amongst past and current players so you see it’s important. The vets are a huge part of that; coaches too, but the coaches aren’t there late at night when you’re chilling with the team or at the back of the bus, on the court and in the huddle.
Dion, Ethan, Jordan, Tom – they’ve all been great as the veteran leaders, they definitely embrace that culture and try to teach it to the best of their ability. Having Dion here is really cool, I haven’t been on a team with him before so seeing how he works and the type of leadership he brings, is cool to see.
You can see how the players respond to their leadership, especially Jordan – he leads the haka and he does it with such power and poise, so all the young guys – including me – look up to them and they do a great job with the culture.
Q: You’ve been fighting hard with the BNZ Breakers all season, is it tough to leave them behind for a week and switch to that national team mentality?
A: Yeah it’s hard leaving a team like that while we’re training to be in the championship game, we’ve got a lot to do to get ready. But you’ve got to switch the mindset to being in a different role – a national team role – and be ready to play for your country. It’s easy though because it’s still basketball, it’s like riding a bike; but you do have to adjust to having a different role in the team, a different coach and a different setup.
But for me I do love it, the Tall Blacks environment with the culture they have is definitely one you want to be around. They make it easy for you to be part of the Tall Blacks family and it’s helped me to slip into the team pretty comfortably.
Q: What does it mean for you to wear the black jersey, especially as part of a well-known basketball family that has represented New Zealand so well in the past?
A: It’s a dream come true for me. Seeing my brother Isaac and my sister Ella wear it – and wear it with such honour – just seeing what they’ve done with it on in the international stage is cool.
It’s not only a dream for me, but for my family too – to see New Zealand written on the front and then the Fotu name on the back, is something that me and my family couldn’t ever have dreamed of; but it’s become a reality. To be able to make my mum and dad proud like that is awesome.
Growing up in Auckland, at first my dad wanted us to play rugby like he did. But as we grew a little bit, we saw my brother could go overseas to play basketball and get a free education from it, we could see he was actually pretty good at it. So I made that decision to switch over and focus on basketball and it’s been a blessing for us, we do thank God every day for the blessing he’s given us.
It was definitely competitive growing up, we had a hoop outside at home and we were always out there battling amongst each other, seeing who was the top dog – some days it was me.
Representing New Zealand definitely does mean a lot to me and my family, not just my parents but my grandparents too. Even in his later days my granddad would still come to a lot of our games and be there to support us. So I’d just try to show the family that we’re happy to be there – by working hard on the court and encouraging our teammates – just to show them that all the hard work was getting put to good use.
Q: Last year you were in that extended World Cup squad but didn’t make the final 12; did that give you extra motivation to fight for a place on the Tall Blacks, and where do you see yourself in the black jersey over the next few years?
A: It was heartbreaking not to make the [World Cup] squad, because they were going to go up against some big teams – it was a chance for someone like me and the team itself to prove themselves, so I would’ve loved to be part of something great like that.
And also I wanted to be on the team with Isaac on that world stage, that would’ve been cool. But the coaches they know what they’re doing and you’ve gotta trust in their decision; and for that squad they chose to turn to other players. Yeah it was upsetting at the time but the coaches called me in and Reuben [Te Rangi] was there and we all talked about how I can keep improving. I took that onboard and it helped fuel the fire for me to play in these other windows; it’s a stepping stone to keep getting better.
Looking back, it was a blessing to be chosen for the wider squad and to be able to play in the friendly games in China, Canada and Japan so that was really cool – and I got to play alongside Isaac in the black jersey in those games too. I really want to be in the mix for the Olympic Qualifiers [in Greece in July] and the 2025 Asia Cup squad, so I’ll just keep on working hard and hopefully I get in the conversation.
