Where will PJC land next season?

Tuesday, February 4, 2025

"I get the sense that Parker Jackson-Cartwright is enjoying his time in the NBL."

One of the NBL’s premier point guards, Parker Jackson-Cartwright, is set to hit the free agency market with doubt surrounding his next move.

In two seasons with the New Zealand Breakers, Jackson-Cartwright has emerged as one of the league’s best players, averaging 19.9 points and 6.2 assists in his 51 games for the club.

The Breakers have offered the star guard the largest contract in team history in a bid to keep him, club owner Matt Walsh revealed to Newstalk ZB last month.

“There’s some work to do in terms of the trust between PJC and the league and how he was treated and how he feels about that,” Walsh said.

“But I can tell you we made the highest offer in the history of the Breakers last season to keep him, and we’ve done the same to try keep him this time around.”

However, ESPN’s Olgun Uluc believes that if we see Jackson-Cartwright back in the NBL, it might not be in Breakers colours.

“I get the sense that Parker Jackson-Cartwright is enjoying his time in the NBL, I don’t know if that future is with New Zealand. I would doubt it’s with New Zealand,” Uluc said on NBL Media’s The Marketplace.

“Based on this season, from all of the ups and downs through that franchise, it is very tough to see him returning.”

New Zealand has had a tumultuous season and will finish 9th after a promising 7-3 start to the campaign.

NBL analyst Pete Hooley believes the Breakers need to do everything they can to try and keep Jackson-Cartwright, who is a perennial MVP contender.

“This is an MVP-calibre player,” Hooley said.

“We saw it, we saw what he’s worth and what he’s capable of doing. You have to ask, how do we build around you to make your job a little easier, and to give you the best platform to showcase your best basketball?

“Otherwise, there’s going to be plenty of teams that have a crack.”

1990 NBL MVP Derek Rucker added Jackson-Cartwright wouldn’t be afraid of going to a bigger market.

“The bottom line is he’s an LA kid, big market and bright lights do not scare him,” Rucker said.