.jpg) Braun after winning the 2023 NBA Finals | |
| No. 0 – Denver Nuggets | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard /Small forward |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (2001-04-17)April 17, 2001 (age 23) Burlington, Kansas, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 220 lb (100 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Blue Valley Northwest (Overland Park, Kansas) |
| College | Kansas (2019–2022) |
| NBA draft | 2022: 1st round, 21st overall pick |
| Selected by theDenver Nuggets | |
| Playing career | 2022–present |
| Career history | |
| 2022–present | Denver Nuggets |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Christian Nicholas Braun (/braʊn/BROWN;[1] born April 17, 2001) is an American professionalbasketball player for theDenver Nuggets of theNational Basketball Association (NBA). He playedcollege basketball at theUniversity of Kansas and was a starter on the team that won the2022 NCAA championship. In2023, he contributed to the Nuggets winning their first NBA title, becoming the fifth player in basketball history to winNCAA and NBA titles in back-to-back seasons.[2]
Braun played basketball forBlue Valley Northwest High School inOverland Park, Kansas. As a senior, he averaged 27.8 points, 9.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, leading his team to a third straight Class 6A state title.[3][4] He was namedMr. Kansas Basketball and KansasGatorade Player of the Year.[5] He committed to playing college basketball forKansas over offers fromKansas State,Illinois andMissouri, among others.[6]
On April 4, 2022, the school declared that day Christian Braun Day.[7]
As a freshman at Kansas, Braun averaged 5.3 points and 2.9 rebounds per game, earningBig 12 All-Freshman Team honors.[8] On November 27, 2020, he recorded a career-high 30 points, nine rebounds and four steals in a 94–72 win overSaint Joseph's.[9] As a sophomore, Braun averaged 9.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.[10] He was named to the Second Team All-Big 12 as a junior.[11] In theFinal Four againstVillanova, he became the 65th player to reach 1,000 points for Kansas, finishing that game with 10 points and helping the Jayhawks reach the championship. In thechampionship game against theNorth Carolina Tar Heels, he had 12 points and 12 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season, which helped Kansas rally from a 40–25 halftime deficit. In the final possession of that game, he defendedCaleb Love's three-point attempt, sealing the win and giving him his first NCAA title.[12] On April 24, 2022, Braun declared for the2022 NBA draft, while maintaining his college eligibility.[13] He confirmed he would remain in the NBA draft and forego his senior season on May 25, 2022.[14]
Braun was picked by theDenver Nuggets with the 21st overall pick in the2022 NBA draft. On July 3, 2022, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Nuggets.[15] Braun won his first championship with the Nuggets after they defeated theMiami Heat in the2023 NBA Finals.[16] He became the fifth player in NBA history to win an NCAA and NBA championship in back-to-back seasons, alongsideBill Russell,Henry Bibby,Magic Johnson andBilly Thompson.[2]
| 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 |
| † | Won anNBA championship |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23† | Denver | 76 | 6 | 15.5 | .495 | .354 | .625 | 2.4 | .8 | .5 | .2 | 4.7 |
| 2023–24 | Denver | 82 | 4 | 20.2 | .460 | .384 | .694 | 3.7 | 1.6 | .5 | .4 | 7.3 |
| Career | 158 | 10 | 18.0 | .473 | .373 | .672 | 3.1 | 1.2 | .5 | .3 | 6.1 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023† | Denver | 19 | 0 | 13.0 | .533 | .200 | .579 | 2.1 | .6 | .6 | .2 | 3.2 |
| 2024 | Denver | 12 | 0 | 17.0 | .426 | .222 | .688 | 2.7 | .8 | .2 | .4 | 5.1 |
| Career | 31 | 0 | 14.6 | .475 | .214 | .629 | 2.3 | .6 | .4 | .3 | 3.9 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | Kansas | 31 | 5 | 18.4 | .431 | .444 | .731 | 2.9 | .5 | .7 | .2 | 5.3 |
| 2020–21 | Kansas | 30 | 30 | 31.2 | .380 | .340 | .786 | 5.2 | 1.9 | 1.2 | .4 | 9.7 |
| 2021–22 | Kansas | 40 | 39 | 34.4 | .495 | .386 | .733 | 6.5 | 2.8 | 1.0 | .8 | 14.1 |
| Career | 101 | 74 | 28.5 | .449 | .378 | .749 | 5.0 | 1.8 | 1.0 | .5 | 10.1 | |
Braun has two brothers, one older and one younger.[18] His uncle played college basketball at Missouri. His older brother, Parker, played at Kansas during the 2023-24 season. Braun's father Donny was a formerwalk-on at Kansas, while his mother, along with her older sister, also played at Missouri. His mother's family was inducted into theMissouri Sports Hall of Fame.[19]
Braun has launched a fashion line, The CB2 Collection.[20]
Despite its spelling, Braun's surname is pronounced 'Brown' like the color. Below is a clip of the Nuggets rookie on draft day correctly pronouncing his name as he talks about delivering a banner to the Nuggets franchise.