 Thornton with the Wizards in January 2011 | |
| No. 1 – Peñarol Mar del Plata | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward /Power forward |
| League | LNB |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1983-12-07)December 7, 1983 (age 41) Perry, Georgia, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) |
| Listed weight | 235 lb (107 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Perry (Perry, Georgia) |
| College | Florida State (2003–2007) |
| NBA draft | 2007: 1st round, 14th overall pick |
| Selected by theLos Angeles Clippers | |
| Playing career | 2007–present |
| Career history | |
| 2007–2010 | Los Angeles Clippers |
| 2010–2011 | Washington Wizards |
| 2011 | Golden State Warriors |
| 2012 | Brujos de Guayama |
| 2012 | Zhejiang Lions |
| 2014 | Brujos de Guayama |
| 2015–2016 | NLEX Road Warriors |
| 2017 | Gaiteros del Zulia |
| 2017 | Brujos de Guayama |
| 2018 | Shimane Susanoo Magic |
| 2019–2020 | Suwon KT Sonicboom |
| 2020–2021 | Club Atlético Aguada |
| 2021–2022 | Peñarol Mar del Plata |
| 2022 | Trotamundos B.B.C. |
| 2022–2023 | Peñarol Mar del Plata |
| 2023 | Club Atlético Olimpia |
| 2023–present | Peñarol Mar del Plata |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Willie Alford Thornton (born December 7, 1983) is an American professionalbasketball player forPeñarol Mar del Plata of theLiga Nacional de Básquet (LNB). He had formerly played for theLos Angeles Clippers,Washington Wizards and theGolden State Warriors. Collegiately, he played forFlorida State University.
Thornton's outstanding four-year career at Florida State University was capped off by a stellar individual senior year that saw him make the APAll-American squad as a third team choice, a unanimous selection as first-team All-ACC, and was runner-up toBoston College'sJared Dudley for theACC Player of the Year. He led the ACC in scoring and averaged over 7 rebounds per game as well. His season came to a disappointing end as the Seminoles did not qualify for the NCAA tournament for the ninth straight season and were forced to play in the NIT.[1]
On June 28, 2007, Thornton was taken 14th overall in the2007 NBA draft by theLos Angeles Clippers. Thornton also has the same agent as Yao Ming.On July 9, Thornton played his first summer league game for the Clippers, scoring 24 points and registering 8 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 blocks in a 108–102 loss to theDenver Nuggets.
In just his third preseason game as a rookie, Thornton led the Clippers to a win over the Golden State Warriors with 24 points on 11–15 shooting, including a perfect 2–2 from behind the 3-point arc while also connecting on all 8 of his first attempts from the floor.
WithRuben Patterson in the starting lineup at the start of the season, Thornton would not get the playing time he had received during preseason. Patterson was waived on December 13, 2007, in order to give the rookie more playing time.[2] With a slew of injuries to the Clippers' big men, includingPaul Davis with a tornACL,Tim Thomas with recurring back and ankle injuries, andElton Brand sidelined with a rupturedachilles tendon, Thornton took advantage of his minutes playingpower forward andsmall forward when teammateCorey Maggette was on the bench.
On January 30, 2008, Thornton scored a then season-high 33 points against theAtlanta Hawks, including a significant block in the final seconds in a 95–88 Clipper win.[3] Thornton also recorded his first[4]double-double on February 9, in a loss to thePhiladelphia 76ers, in which he had 18 points and 10 rebounds.[5]
On March 29, 2008, Thornton equaled a rookie franchise record (and Clippers season-high) 39 points on 13 of 23 field goal shooting, 3 of 6 from behind the arch, and 10 of 12 from the line in a 110–97 win over theMemphis Grizzlies. Thornton scored 20 of his 39 in the fourth quarter to seal the win and snap the Clippers' 10-game losing streak.[6]
On May 13, 2008, Al Thornton was named to the 2008NBA All-Rookie First Team.[7]
On October 31, 2008, Thornton had a double-double with 30 points and 11 rebounds, a season high.
On February 17, 2010, Thornton was traded from theLos Angeles Clippers to theWashington Wizards as part of a three-team, six-player trade that sentAntawn Jamison from Washington to theCleveland Cavaliers,Žydrūnas Ilgauskas, a2010 first-round pick and the rights toEmir Preldžič from Cleveland to Washington,Drew Gooden from Washington to Los Angeles, andSebastian Telfair from Los Angeles to Cleveland.[8]
On March 1, 2011, he reached a buyout agreement with the Wizards and was waived.[9] He signed a contract with theGolden State Warriors on March 3, 2011.[10]
On March 14, 2011, Thornton scored 23 points against theSacramento Kings, his most points as a member of the Warriors.
On February 19, 2012, he signed with theGuayama Wizards of the Puerto Rican basketball leagueBaloncesto Superior Nacional.[11] There he averaged 18.7 points per game.[12]
On September 29, 2012, Thornton signed with theZhejiang Lions of theChinese Basketball Association.[12] Due to injury, he was replaced mid-season byGary Forbes.[13]
In March 2014, he rejoined theGuayama Wizards of theBaloncesto Superior Nacional.
On January 2, 2015, he signed with theNLEX Road Warriors.[14] He made his debut during the2015 Commissioner's Cup in a loss to theRain or Shine Elasto Painters with 28 points and 12 rebounds.[15] In a loss to theAlaska Aces, he led the team with 39 points and 13 rebounds.[16] He was then held to a PBA career-low 11 points on 3-of-14 from the field.[17] He bounced back with 39 points and 15 rebounds as he finally led NLEX to its first win of the conference.[18] From there, NLEX won five straight games to get into the playoffs, including a win overBarangay Ginebra in which he scored 50 points.[19][20] In the playoffs, they were swept by theMeralco Bolts.[21]
In January 2016, Thornton returned to the Philippines to play again for NLEX for the2016 Commissioner's Cup.[22] He started NLEX's campaign by scoring 50 points once again in an overtime win over Ginebra.[23] In a triple overtime game against theSan Miguel Beermen, he scored 69 points, the highest in his career and most by any PBA player in over two decades, but his team still lost.[24] NLEX did not qualify for the playoffs that conference.[25]
Thornton was tapped to represent theMighty Sports PH the representative club of the Philippines at the2016 William Jones Cup.[26] Thornton led the Mighty Sports-Philippines pastSouth Korea on its second day with 24 points in an 86–65 win.[27] Thornton once again led theMighty Sports by beatingIndia 81–101 with 30 points[28] and on the following day versusIran 80-73 tallying 24 points and 10 rebounds.[29] Thornton carried theMighty Sports to a 7–0 win–loss record in the tournament with a double-double 20 points and 15 rebounds by beatingEgypt 61-80[30] and eventually winning the gold medal with an unblemished record of 8–0 by beatingChinese Taipei B 80–104 on the last day of the tournament.[31]
On February 28, 2018, Thornton signed with theShimane Susanoo Magic of the JapaneseB.League.[32]
Thornton had initially gone undrafted in the inaugural BIG 3 draft. Al was later acquired byAllen Iverson's3's Company team.[33][circular reference] Al provided "3's Company" with scoring off the bench and went on to become the league's first4th Man.[34]
On August 7, 2020, Thornton signed withClub Atlético Aguada of theLiga Uruguaya de Basketball.[35]
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | L.A. Clippers | 79 | 31 | 27.3 | .429 | .331 | .743 | 4.5 | 1.2 | .6 | .5 | 12.7 |
| 2008–09 | L.A. Clippers | 71 | 67 | 37.4 | .446 | .253 | .754 | 5.2 | 1.5 | .8 | .9 | 16.8 |
| 2009–10 | L.A. Clippers | 51 | 30 | 27.5 | .478 | .357 | .741 | 3.8 | 1.2 | .5 | .4 | 10.7 |
| 2009–10 | Washington | 24 | 16 | 28.1 | .463 | .353 | .694 | 4.3 | 1.2 | .8 | .5 | 10.7 |
| 2010–11 | Washington | 49 | 23 | 21.8 | .471 | .160 | .757 | 3.2 | 1.0 | .6 | .2 | 8.0 |
| 2010–11 | Golden State | 22 | 0 | 14.3 | .490 | .000 | .829 | 2.6 | .5 | .3 | .1 | 6.0 |
| Career | 296 | 167 | 28.0 | .452 | .293 | .747 | 4.2 | 1.2 | .6 | .5 | 11.9 | |
Thornton is a cousin of fellow NBA playerMarcus Thornton.[36] He is the son of Alford and Philomenia Thornton.[37]