Toohey cut again... but this time it's just his 'rehab' hair

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Steph Curry's Golden State Warriors traded for former NBL Next Star Alex Toohey on draft night in 2025 – at pick 52 – as part of a seven-team deal that sent future Hall of Famer Kevin Durant to the Houston Rockets.

Toohey, 22, signed a two-way contract with the Warriors and suited up for their G League affiliate, the Santa Cruz Warriors, but his 2025-26 season was cut short by a knee injury. He was waived by the Warriors on December 8.

In a show of faith, the Warriors have brought the now crew-cut Canberra-born 2.03m forward back for the 2026 Summer League even though he is yet to return from injury.

“Everything’s tracking nicely and kind of progressing day by day, so I’m happy with it so far,” Toohey told NBL colour commentator Brad Rosen in Las Vegas this week.

“I think it’s just taking it a day at a time, but slowly progressing each day and kind of developing to get back into live play.

“Playing against the best athletes in the world, it’s tough to get yourself back up to speed, but I think just taking it as a steady progression and not setting a timeline of when I’m back.

“Just making sure I’m taking the steps in the right direction.

“I think hopefully before next season, somewhere in that time frame, I should be back.”

Toohey, who played for the Sydney Kings from 2023 to 2025, is one of 16 NBL Next Stars alumni to be drafted to the NBA. He credited the program with preparing him for the next level.

“Just being able to be a pro,” he said.

“You get thrown into the deep end a little bit, and you’re playing with some of the best players in the world. There’s not much time to develop. It’s kind of, if you’re ready, you’re ready.

“That struggle and that cycle of getting beat up at the start, and then obviously Karim (Lopez), how he developed that second year, I think myself as well, just that progression of, ‘Alright, it’s tough’, then you get used to it, then you kind of adapt and understand how the game plays.

“I think just playing around pros… in a lot of sports you get thrown into the professional environment when you’re 15 or 16, so just being thrown into it early and getting to develop within that.”

Toohey didn’t get an opportunity to play for the Golden State Warriors last season, but being in and around the program gave him a glimpse of what it would take to earn minutes.

“It’s the speed of play,” he added.

“The athletes here are on another level, and everyone can jump out of the gym. Their agility is… You don’t get the time to make decisions that you do in the NBL.

“So I think getting used to making decisions at higher speeds and making the right decisions as well is definitely a hard factor.

“But I think that’s something that, now I’ve had time to sit and just work on my body and refine my game in those different areas, that’s something I’ve been working on a lot – just decision-making, making quick decisions and trying to make the right one.”

Toohey’s two years in the NBL undoubtedly improved his game:

Year-on-year improvement

• Points: 7.9 → 10.6 (+2.7 PPG)
• Assists: 0.8 → 1.3 (+62%)
• Steals: 0.5 → 1.4 (nearly tripled)
• Blocks: 0.5 → 0.8
• Three-point percentage: 24.2% → 31.0%
• Free-throw percentage: 68.5% → 72.6%
• Minutes: 21.3 → 23.0

Toohey’s fans had grown accustomed to his full head of hair, but he spoke to Rosen after what appeared to be a losing battle with a set of clippers.

“I’ll tell you – seven months of rehab can put you through it,” Toohey revealed about his new ‘do.

“So I just had to kind of get it all out.

“But no, I think just keep it simple and save some money. The haircuts have been pretty expensive recently, so just save some money.”

Alex Toohey's NBL Next Star Career Highs