American-born Illawarra Hawks guard Tyler Harvey has had his Australian citizenship approved, with a ceremony expected to take place ahead of the start of the 2026-27 NBL season, a team spokesperson confirmed to ESPN.
Harvey sat and passed his Australian citizenship test at the Department of Home Affairs in Parramatta on Monday morning, sources said, with a swearing-in ceremony expected to follow in the near future, ahead of the Hawks' season opener on September 20.
Once the ceremony takes place, Harvey will be an Australian citizen, making him eligible to represent the Boomers -- Australia's senior men's national team - as a naturalised player and classifying him as a non-restricted player in the NBL. Colloquially, Harvey would become a local player in the league; he would no longer count toward the Hawks' three-import limit and would be eligible for marquee designation.
A marquee designation allows a team to pay a player's full salary while the contract counts against the salary cap at a lower, fixed figure. The designation is applied on a game-by-game basis, with each team permitted a maximum of four combined imports and marquees in any given contest.
With regard to Harvey potentially representing the Boomers, it's worth noting that, under FIBA's guidelines, national teams are permitted only one naturalised player on their roster for international competition. Both Matisse Thybulle and Bryce Cotton are considered naturalised players.
Harvey, a native of California, earned permanent residency in Australia in February 2026. He has been with the Hawks since the 2020-21 season, establishing himself as one of the NBL's most formidable perimeter scorers and shooters. The 33-year-old played a key role in the franchise's 2025 championship-winning campaign and has been named to the All-NBL First Team twice, in 2021 and 2025.
Harvey recently signed a contract extension with the Hawks that runs through the 2027-28 NBL season; what would be his eighth with the franchise.
Over the 2025-26 season, Harvey averaged 16.9 points and 3.6 assists per game, shooting 38.9% from 3-point range on 6.8 attempts per contest, for a Hawks team that battled injuries throughout and finished eighth on the ladder.
With Harvey set to become a local player, the Hawks suddenly have three vacant import spots to fill ahead of the new season. The expectation, sources say, is that the Hawks will fill all three spots before their season opener against the New Zealand Breakers on September 20.
This development sees Harvey follow in the footsteps of Cotton - a six-time NBL MVP who's also an American-born guard - who earned Australian citizenship in September of 2025.