Dalano Banton

About

Dalano Banton ( də-LAH-noh BAN-tən; born November 7, 1999) is a Canadian professional basketball player who last played for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers and Nebraska Cornhuskers. Banton was selected by the Toronto Raptors with the 46th overall pick in the 2021 NBA draft, making him the first Canadian player ever drafted by the Canadian franchise.

Banton was born on November 7, 1999, in Toronto, Ontario, to a Jamaican father and a Canadian mother. He grew up in the Mount Olive area within the Rexdale neighborhood of Toronto. Banton began playing basketball as a child at the North Kipling Community Centre, the Rexdale Community Hub, and a local parking lot. He also attended basketball camps hosted by former Toronto Raptor DeMar DeRozan in the neighborhood.
Banton, originally a member of 2019 class, reclassified into 2018. He played for Redemption Christian Academy in Northfield, Massachusetts, and MacDuffie School in Granby, Massachusetts.
By the end of his high school career, Banton was a consensus four-star recruit and was ranked in the top 100 recruits nationally in…