| No. 30 – Iowa Wolves | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Point guard /shooting guard | ||||||||||||||
| League | NBA G League | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born | (2004-02-17)February 17, 2004 (age 21) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school | Sierra Canyon(Los Angeles, California) | ||||||||||||||
| College | UCLA (2022–2023) | ||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 2023: 2nd round, 41st overall pick | ||||||||||||||
| Selected by theCharlotte Hornets | |||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2023–present | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Charlotte Hornets | ||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | →Greensboro Swarm | ||||||||||||||
| 2024 | Long Island Nets | ||||||||||||||
| 2024–present | Iowa Wolves | ||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||
Stats at NBA.com  | |||||||||||||||
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |||||||||||||||
Medals
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Amari Bailey (born February 17, 2004) is an American professionalbasketball player for theIowa Wolves of theNBA G League. In high school, he was selected as aMcDonald's All-American andCalifornia Mr. Basketball. He playedcollege basketball for theUCLA Bruins, earning all-freshman honors in thePac-12 Conference in his only season. He was selected by theCharlotte Hornets in the second round of the2023 NBA draft.
Bailey was born inNew Orleans, Louisiana. He is the son of Johanna Leia (real surname Edelberg), asocial media influencer and formerFord model, and formerNFLIndianapolis Colts wide receiverAaron Bailey; the two eventually split.[1][2][3][4] Edelberg is Jewish, as is Amari.[2][3][5]
Bailey grew up inChicago, Illinois, and was raised by Edelberg.[6][7][3] AttendingSkinner West Elementary School in theWest Loop neighborhood in theNear West Side, he was the most talked about 7th grade basketball player in Chicago.[8][9] In 2017, when he was 12 years old he and his mother were featured when he was in middle school inBringing Up Ballers, aLifetime reality show that followed Chicago-area entrepreneur mothers of basketball players.[10][7][11][12]
He moved toChatsworth, California, in the Los Angeles area to play forSierra Canyon School ('22) in Chatsworth.[13][7][14] As afreshman, Bailey helped his team win theCalifornia Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Open Division state title.[14][15] As ajunior, he averaged 29.2 points, 9.1rebounds, and 6.5assists per game.[16]
He was namedCalifornia Mr. Basketball, theMaxPreps.com California Player of the Year,Los Angeles Daily News All-Area Player of the Year, andGold Coast League MVP.[17][18][19] He also earned All-CIF Open Division honors as a sophomore, junior, and senior.[17] He was selected as aMcDonald's All-American as a senior in 2021–22.[20]
Bailey was a consensus five-starrecruit and one of the top players in the 2022 class, according to major recruiting services. At age 13, while in eighth grade, he committed to playing college basketball forDePaul, but he decommitted before starting high school.[21][22] He later committed toUCLA as a high school freshman, before decommitting again eight months later when their coach,Steve Alford, was fired.[23][24] On February 17, 2021, Bailey recommitted to UCLA and their new coach,Mick Cronin.[24][25]
Bailey was seen as the number one player by every recruiting service entering the summer off his senior season, before he suffered an injury which resulted in Bailey missing playing in theAAU circuit and early parts of Sierra Canyon season.[26]247Sports ranked Bailey as the third-bestcombo guard in his high school class, and ESPN ranked him the No. 2 shooting guard and No. 5 in the nation among all players in his high school class.[27][17]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amari Bailey SG | Chicago, IL | Sierra Canyon (CA) | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Feb 17, 2021 | |
Star ratings:Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 93 | ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals:13 247Sports:10 ESPN:5 | ||||||
Sources:
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Bailey began the2022–23 season winning thePac-12 Conference's freshman of the week award twice, and had a couple of 19-point games againstPepperdine andStanford.[28][29] He was injured againstKentucky when the Wildcats' centerOscar Tshiebwe stepped on his left foot. Bailey aggravated his injury the following game.[30] From December 30, 2022, until January 26, 2023, he was sidelined for seven games due to discomfort in his foot.[28][31][32][33] On February 9, Bailey scored 24 points in a win againstOregon State.[34] After UCLA's best defender,Jaylen Clark, suffered a season-ending leg injury in the regular-season finale, Bailey assumed the task of defending the opposition's top perimeter player, and he also increased his scoring.[35][36][37]
In the Bruins' opener in the2023 Pac-12 tournament, Bailey scored a career-high 26 points in a win overColorado.[38] He had 19 points and seven rebounds in the finals, which UCLA lost 61–59 to Arizona.[39] He was named to the 2023 All-Pac-12 Tournament team.[40] He helped the Bruins advance to the Sweet 16 of the2023 NCAA tournament, averaging 15.5 points and 6.0 assists while converting 49.5% of hisfield goals and 38.9% of histhree-pointers. In the six games after Clark's injury, Bailey averaged 17.3 points and shot 56.1%. He ended the 2022–23 season with averages of 11.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 30 games, including 28starts.[41][42] He was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.[43]
After the season, hedeclared for the NBA draft.[41]
Bailey was selected by theCharlotte Hornets in the second round of the2023 NBA draft with the 41st overall pick.[42] On July 14, 2023, he signed atwo-way contract with the Hornets.[44] Playing for the Hornets in the 2023NBA Summer League, he averaged nine points in 16 minutes per game. At 19 years of age, he was the 10th-youngest player in the league.[45][46] On November 17, 2023, he made hisG-League debut with theGreensboro Swarm, and scored 26 points.[47]
Bailey made his NBA debut on November 12, 2023, for the Hornets against theNew York Knicks.[48]
On September 21, 2024, Bailey signed with theBrooklyn Nets,[49] but was waived on October 19.[50] Eight days later, he joined theLong Island Nets.[51]
On December 30, 2024, Bailey was traded to theIowa Wolves in a three-team trade involving theStockton Kings with Stockton receivingChasson Randle from Iowa and Long Island acquiringDrew Timme from Stockton.[52]
Bailey represented theUnited States at the2019 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Brazil. He averaged 13.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 3.0 assists per game, helping his team win the gold medal.[53]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023–24 | Charlotte | 10 | 0 | 6.5 | .333 | .125 | .857 | .9 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 2.3 |
| Career | 10 | 0 | 6.5 | .333 | .125 | .857 | .9 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 2.3 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | UCLA | 30 | 28 | 26.9 | .495 | .389 | .698 | 3.8 | 2.2 | 1.1 | .3 | 11.2 |
Bailey's father,Aaron, playedfootball for theIndianapolis Colts of theNational Football League.[54]
and Basketball Reference 
