Interest rising in New Zealand standout Dontae Russo-Nance
Most people aren’t familiar with junior guard Dontae Russo-Nance, but that’s about to change quickly. After playing in New Zealand’s NBL last season, he decided to transfer to Oak Hill Academy for the upcoming season.
While he’s not going to be ranked until the next full update, Rivals has already went ahead and put four stars beside his name, as he projects as a top-35 prospect.
Russo-Nance spoke with Rivals about the programs involved in his recruitment and broke down a handful of them.
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2023 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2024 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team
2025 Rankings: Top 40
Transfer Portal: Latest news
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IN HIS OWN WORDS
Programs involved: “Louisville, San Jose State, Washington State, California, Georgia, Xavier, Texas Tech, Wisconsin, Gonzaga, Wake Forest, Maryland and Nebraska.“
Louisville: “They’ve come to the last few practices. One practice I was able to train, and the other I wasn’t. The head coach came over last week and we just had a good talk about the school, the program, and all of that. I feel like our connection is getting stronger each day.”
Xavier: “I’ve got a few coaches from there that text me like every other day. They haven’t come to the school yet, but they’re constantly texting me and making sure I’m all right, seeing how everything is going each and every day.”
California: “Our relationship is pretty good. I went on a visit a couple of weeks ago and I really enjoyed seeing the coaches. The culture there was pretty cool. I got to meet some of the players and have dinner with them. It’s a good school, I like it.”
Gonzaga: “I just like the success that they’ve had as a school. They’ve had such good players like Jalen Suggs and Chet Holmgren over the last few years. I just like how it’s such a successful school and how they make players better.”
Wake Forest: “I like how they’re constantly staying in contact. Some schools will text you and get you excited, and stuff like that, but then won’t talk to you for a couple of weeks. Wake Forest is constantly texting all of the time, so I just like the connection that they’re trying to build.”
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RIVALS' REACTION
Russo-Nance doesn’t have any visits planned at this time, but he should be a hot commodity once the high school season starts. His ability to score from all over the floor is very impressive and his overall skill set is high level for his age. Once teams are able to see him live this winter, he’ll keep adding offer after offer.