Morris Almond (born February 2, 1985) is an American former professionalbasketball player. Almond is the founder of Almond Athletics.[1] His last professional appearance would be for theLos Angeles D-Fenders of theNBA Development League (D-League).
 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1985-02-02)February 2, 1985 (age 40) Dalton, Georgia, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | McEachern (Powder Springs, Georgia) |
| College | Rice (2003–2007) |
| NBA draft | 2007: 1st round, 25th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Utah Jazz |
| Playing career | 2007–2013 |
| Position | Shooting guard |
| Number | 21, 22, 19 |
| Career history | |
| 2007–2009 | Utah Jazz |
| 2007–2009 | →Utah Flash |
| 2009–2010 | Springfield Armor |
| 2010 | Maine Red Claws |
| 2010 | Real Madrid |
| 2010–2011 | Scavolini Pesaro |
| 2011 | BC Cherkasy |
| 2012 | Maine Red Claws |
| 2012 | Washington Wizards |
| 2012 | Crvena zvezda |
| 2012–2013 | Iowa Energy |
| 2013 | Los Angeles D-Fenders |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Career NBA statistics | |
| Points | 119 (3.1 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 46 (1.2 rpg) |
| Assists | 12 (0.3 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
High school
editAlmond was born inDalton, Georgia and attendedMcEachern High School inPowder Springs, Georgia, where he was a teammate of fellow professional basketball playerJosh Smith. Almond was the first basketball player in McEachern school history to have his #22 jersey retired.
College career
editAlmond played college basketball atRice University, where he was a member ofMartel residential college.[2] During his junior season, Almond's scoring average jumped to 21.9 points per game (up from 7.2 points per game as a sophomore). His scoring average led all players inConference USA.
During his senior year, Almond's scoring average increased to 26.4 points per game, ranking third in the nation. He was named Conference USA Player of the Year and was named AP All-America Honorable Mention.
Almond finished his career at Rice with 121 games played and a scoring average of 15.1 points per game. He was also the first Rice basketball player to appear on the cover of a national publication.[3] After graduation, he was selected by theUtah Jazz in the first round (25th pick) in the2007 NBA draft.
Professional career
editAlmond played in 9 games during his rookie season with the Jazz, averaging 4.3 minutes. His NBA career high is currently 12 points, atSacramento on December 2, 2008. He scored his first NBA points on January 8, 2008, against theIndiana Pacers, with 2 points on 1-of-5 shooting. However, he spent most of the season with the team'sD-League affiliate, theUtah Flash, to whom he was assigned.[4] He led the D-League in scoring during the season, averaging 25.6 points per game.[5] In just his fifth game with the team on December 21, 2007, he tied a league record with 51 points in a 118–116 victory over theAustin Toros.[6] Later in the season, he broke the record with a 53-point performance against theBakersfield Jam in a 102–87 win.[7] The record was tied byWill Conroy in 2009 and surpassed byPierre Jackson in 2014 (58).[8]
On September 18, 2009, Morris Almond signed with theOrlando Magic.[9] He was waived on October 21, 2009.[10] Almond later played for theMaine Red Claws andSpringfield Armor of the NBA Development League.[11] He then signed withReal Madrid Baloncesto of theSpanishACB. In July 2010 he left Real Madrid and joined the Italian clubScavolini Pesaro.[12]
In January 2012, Almond returned to the United States and signed with the Maine Red Claws for the second time.[13] On the 16th of April 2012, the Washington Wizards announced they would be signing Almond to contract for the rest of the 2011–12 season.[14] At the end of the 2011–2012 season he was selected to the All NBA D-League Third Team after averaging 23.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game for the Red Claws.
Almond briefly played forCrvena zvezda during the 2012–13 season.[15] He then returned to the Maine Red Claws, who traded him to theIowa Energy.[16]
On January 30, 2013, he andMike Taylor were traded to theLos Angeles D-Fenders in exchange for Jarrid Famous.[17]
Post-professional career
editAlmond has since retired from professional basketball. He formed Almond Athletics, a non-profit organization, in 2013.[18]
NBA career statistics
edit| 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 |
Regular season
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Utah | 9 | 0 | 4.3 | .267 | .250 | .667 | .2 | .3 | .1 | .0 | 1.4 |
| 2008–09 | Utah | 25 | 1 | 10.2 | .407 | .294 | .808 | 1.4 | .3 | .2 | .2 | 3.7 |
| 2011–12 | Washington | 4 | 0 | 16.8 | .353 | .333 | .333 | 2.0 | .5 | 1.8 | .0 | 3.5 |
| Career | 38 | 1 | 9.5 | .381 | .292 | .743 | 1.2 | .3 | .3 | .1 | 3.1 |
Notes
edit- ^About Us | Almond AthleticsArchived 2016-03-27 at theWayback Machine. Retrieved on March 4, 2024.
- ^"Smooth Shooter".Rice News. Rice University News & Media. Archived fromthe original on July 14, 2014. RetrievedFebruary 21, 2014.
- ^"Smooth Shooter".Rice News. Rice University News & Media. Archived fromthe original on July 14, 2014. RetrievedFebruary 21, 2014.
- ^"Jazz Assigns Morris Almond and Kyrylo Fesenko To Utah Flash".NBA.com. Archived fromthe original on May 24, 2010. RetrievedMarch 14, 2008.
- ^"NBA D-League – 2007–08 scoring average".NBA.com. Archived fromthe original on November 6, 2012. RetrievedApril 21, 2008.
- ^Almond Ties D-League Record, Flash Outlast Toros
- ^Almond Leads Flash to 102–87 Win Over JamArchived 2012-11-06 at theWayback Machine.
- ^"Pierre Jackson's 58 D-League best".ESPN.Associated Press. February 4, 2014. RetrievedFebruary 5, 2014.
- ^Magic Sign Almond, Johnson; Prepare for Camp
- ^Orlando Waives Morris AlmondArchived 2009-10-23 at theWayback Machine. Retrieved on October 21, 2009.
- ^Morris Almond playerfileArchived 2009-12-30 at theWayback Machine. NBA Development League.
- ^Scavolini Pesaro signs Morris Almond
- ^"New-look Armor, Red Claws meet for third straight time Thursday night".The Republican. RetrievedJanuary 19, 2012.
- ^WIZARDS SIGN GUARD MORRIS ALMOND
- ^"RASTANAK SA ALMONDOM". Archived fromthe original on October 23, 2012. RetrievedOctober 21, 2012.
- ^"2012–13 Transactions".NBA.com. Archived fromthe original on November 1, 2011. RetrievedDecember 13, 2012.
- ^D-Fenders Acquire Morris Almond and Mike Taylor
- ^About Us | Almond AthleticsArchived 2016-03-27 at theWayback Machine. Retrieved on March 4, 2024.
External links
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