 Leuer with Pistons in 2016 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1989-05-14)May 14, 1989 (age 36) Long Lake, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) |
| Listed weight | 228 lb (103 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Orono (Long Lake, Minnesota) |
| College | Wisconsin (2007–2011) |
| NBA draft | 2011: 2nd round, 40th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Milwaukee Bucks |
| Playing career | 2011–2019 |
| Position | Power forward /center |
| Number | 30 |
| Career history | |
| 2011 | Skyliners Frankfurt |
| 2011–2012 | Milwaukee Bucks |
| 2012–2013 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2012–2013 | →Canton Charge |
| 2013–2015 | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 2015–2016 | Phoenix Suns |
| 2016–2019 | Detroit Pistons |
| Career highlights | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Jon Leuer (born May 14, 1989) is an American former professionalbasketball player. He was selected by theMilwaukee Bucks with the 40th overall pick in the2011 NBA draft. During hisNational Basketball Association (NBA) career, he also played for theCleveland Cavaliers,Memphis Grizzlies,Phoenix Suns andDetroit Pistons.
Leuer was born inLong Lake, Minnesota and attendedOrono High School in Long Lake, where he was ranked the 82nd-best college recruit in the nation from the class of 2007.[1] One scouting report read: "At 6-foot-10, 228-pounds, Leuer definitely needs some time to fill out his frame for high-major competition. Nonetheless, he is a pure shooter with good overall skills with the ball. He can knock down a jump hook and can play off the dribble. He moves well up and down the court, but has a ways to go defensively and as a rebounder. Could be an impact player with his size and unique skill set if he does get stronger."[2]
Another one stated: "Flew under the radar prior to the spring of 2006. Excellent player from behind the stripe, especially when you consider that he pushes 6-10. Face up four man will need to add strength to reach his potential. Could be anAndrew Brackman type of forward."[3]
In hisjunior year, he averaged 18 points and 8rebounds per game and earned honorable mention all-state and first-team all-conference honors. He averaged 23.2 points and 12.0 rebounds per game as a senior and was selected toMinnesota StateAll-star game while landing second-team all-state and first-team all-conference honors. He ended up with 35 double digit scoring games and a career high of 37.[4]
He playedAAU basketball with the Minnesota Magic.[5] Leuer had originally entered high school as aguard, but had a 10-inchgrowth spurt before hissenior year.[4]
Leuer never started, but played in 32 games during the 2007–2008 season for the Wisconsin Badgers. The most points he scored during the non-conference season was 12, but he exploded for 25 (on 8 of 9 shooting) against theMichigan Wolverines in theBig Ten opener. However, after scoring 7 in the follow-up game, Leuer would only score 9 points for the remainder of the season. Much of this spoke to Wisconsin's great depth, as the Badgers would go on to win both theBig Ten regular season, with a 16–2 record, andBig Ten Conference tournament. They would later advance to theSweet Sixteen in theNCAA tournament and finished with a 31–5 record.[6] Leuer finished the season averaging 2.9 points per game and 1.3 rebounds in 8.6 minutes.
Leuer played in all 33 games and started the final 12 games of the year during the 2008–2009 season. He had 13 double digit scoring games including 17 in avictory atVirginia Tech in theACC-Big Ten Challenge. He had a season high of 19 points againstSIU-Edwardsville. He averaged 8.8 points per game and 3.8 rebounds in 21.3 minutes. The Badgers finished tied for fourth in theBig Ten with a 10–8 record, and a 20–13 record overall.[7] They would upset the #5 seededFlorida State Seminoles in the first round of theNCAA tournament before succumbing to theXavier Musketeers in the second round.[8] Leuer was named to the Academic All-Big Ten Team.[4]
The Badgers went into the 2009–2010 season picked 9th in theBig Ten. However, they upset theArizona Wildcats andMaryland Terrapins in theMaui Invitational.[9] On December 2, 2009, in a game onESPN, Wisconsin shocked the #5Duke Blue Devils (who would be the eventual National Champions).[10] Leuer poured in 17 points on his way to scoring double digits in 13 of the first 15 games of the year. He followed up the effort against Duke with back-to-back double doubles atUW-Green Bay (a career high 26 points and 10 rebounds) and againstMarquette University (24 points, 12 rebounds). He would also score 25 againstUW-Milwaukee and 21 atMichigan State.[11] Wisconsin was off to a surprising 13–3 start (3–1 in theBig Ten) after a 73–66 upset against #4Purdue. However, Leuer had an off night againstPurdue and only scored 4 points on 2-15 shooting. It was revealed after the game that Leuer had broken hiswrist in the first half, yet still played 38 of the 40 minutes in the game. Leuer was ruled out indefinitely and he ended up missing the next 9 games.[12]
When Leuer returned, he was eased back into the lineup, scoring 4 points in his first game back, a loss against theMinnesota Golden Gophers. However, Leuer would score double digits in each of the final five games of the year, including 20 against theUniversity of Illinois, as the Badgers went 4–1 down the stretch and finished 13–5 in theBig Ten, good enough for fourth place and a #13 national ranking. Leuer wonBig Ten Player of the week for the final week of the regular season. Yet, the Badgers would lose to theIllinois Fighting Illini in the first round of theBig Ten tournament and were upset byCornell in the second round of theNCAA tournament, despite 14 and 23 points from Leuer respectively.[13]
Leuer ended up leading the Badgers in points per game (15.4), rebounds per game (5.8), and blocks per game (1.33). Due to the wrist injury, he only played in 24 games, starting 22 of them. His .522field-goal percentage was the highest by a Wisconsin player sinceAlando Tucker's .533 mark in 2003. He earned honorable mention All-Big Ten, despite missing half of the conference games. He also made the Academic All-Big Ten team for the second straight year.[4]
During the summer, Leuer was selected to be on the United States men's select team, a team ofcollege players hand-picked to help theUnited States men's national basketball team prepare for theFIBA World Championships. Leuer went with the team toNew York City to compete against the likes ofKobe Bryant,LeBron James, andDwyane Wade.[14] Leuer had been named to the team after impressingTeam USA, andVillanova,coach,Jay Wright. When Gary Parrish ofCBSSports.com asked Wright to name the bestcollege player with theUSA Basketball select team, Wright picked Leuer overKyle Singler,Nolan Smith,Marcus Morris and others.[15]
"He's really good," Wright told Parrish. "Maybe I haven't followed him as well because he's from theMidwest, and maybe he wouldn't surprise anybody else. But he's got great size, he puts it on the floor, he passes it, he can shoot it. He's just a ballplayer." When asked if he would be anNBA player, Wright answered "yes."[16]
SI.com named Leuer their Big Ten preseason player of the year. About Leuer, Luke Winn wrote, "Watch out for Leuer, an ultra-efficient, 6-foot-10 forward who'll be the Badgers' clear No. 1 offensive option for the first time in his career."
On December 28, 2010, the Badgers upset then #13 rankedMinnesota Golden Gophers, 68–60. During the first half of the game, Leuer became the 36th player in Wisconsin Badgers history to score 1,000 points in a career.
On March 1, 2011, Leuer was named to theYahoo Sports All-Big Ten 1st team.[17]
He was picked to the Third Team All-America byFox Sports.[18] Leuer was named to theYahoo Sports All-American Team Honorable Mention.[19]
On June 23, 2011, Leuer was selected by theMilwaukee Bucks with the 40th overall pick in the2011 NBA draft.[20] He had a stint in Germany withSkyliners Frankfurt during theNBA lockout.[21]
Leuer joined the Bucks for the 2011–12 season in December 2011.
On June 27, 2012, Leuer was traded to theHouston Rockets along withJon Brockman,Shaun Livingston and the 12th pick in the2012 NBA draft in exchange forSamuel Dalembert and the 14th pick in the 2012 NBA draft.[22] He was waived by the Rockets on July 18.[23]
On July 20, 2012, Leuer was claimed off waivers by theCleveland Cavaliers.[24] On December 7, 2012, he was sent down to the Cavaliers' D-League affiliate, theCanton Charge.[25] He was recalled on December 20,[26] reassigned on January 3,[27] and recalled again on January 7.[28]
On January 22, 2013, Leuer was traded to theMemphis Grizzlies in exchange forMarreese Speights,Wayne Ellington,Josh Selby, and a future first-round draft pick.[29]
On July 15, 2013, Leuer was re-signed by the Grizzlies to a three-year, $3 million contract.[30][31] On December 3, Leuer recorded a career-high 23 points, along with 9 rebounds and 3 blocks, in a 110–91 win over the Phoenix Suns. Six days later, he recorded his first career double-double with 16 points and a career-high 12 rebounds in a 94–85 win over the Orlando Magic. He tied his career high of 23 points on January 5, 2014, in a 112–84 win over the Detroit Pistons.[32]
On December 7, 2014, Leuer had a season-best game with 20 points and career-high tying 12 rebounds in a 103–87 win over the Miami Heat.[33]
On June 25, 2015, Leuer was traded to thePhoenix Suns in exchange for the draft rights toAndrew Harrison.[34] He made his debut for the Suns in the team's season opener against the Dallas Mavericks on October 28, recording 14 points and 7 rebounds off the bench in a 111–95 loss.[35] On November 12, he recorded his first double-double as a Sun, recording 10 points and 11 rebounds in a 118–104 win over theLos Angeles Clippers.[36] Two days later, he received his first starting assignment for the Suns, recording 7 points and 5 rebounds in just under 19 minutes of action, helping the Suns defeat theDenver Nuggets 105–81.[37] On November 25, he had a then season-best game with 20 points and 12 rebounds in a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans.[38]
On March 21, 2016, Leuer recorded his seventh double-double of the season (ninth of his career)[39] with 13 points and 13 rebounds in a loss to his former team, the Memphis Grizzlies. Two days later, he had 22 points and a career-high 14 rebounds in a 119–107 win over theLos Angeles Lakers,[40] recording back-to-back double-doubles for the first time in his career.[41] In the Suns' season finale on April 13, Leuer recorded 16 points and matched his career best with 14 rebounds in a 114–105 win over theLos Angeles Clippers.[42]
On July 8, 2016, Leuer signed with theDetroit Pistons.[43] On December 30, 2016, he scored a then season-high 22 points in a 105–98 loss to theAtlanta Hawks.[44] On February 3, 2017, he scored a career-high 24 points in a 116–108 win over theMinnesota Timberwolves.[45]
Leuer played in only eight games during the 2017–18 season due to an ankle injury, and he decided to have season-ending surgery on it in January.[46] In August 2018, he was reported to have taken surgery on his right knee to repair his medial meniscus.[47] On October 27, 2018, in a 109–89 loss to the Boston Celtics, Leuer made his 2018–19 season debut, his first appearance since October 31, 2017.[48]
On June 20, 2019, Leuer was traded back to theMilwaukee Bucks in exchange forTony Snell and the draft rights toKevin Porter Jr.[49] On July 9, Leuer was waived by the Bucks.[50]
Leuer announced his retirement overInstagram on May 24, 2020, at the age of 31.[51]
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | Milwaukee | 46 | 12 | 12.1 | .508 | .333 | .750 | 2.6 | .5 | .3 | .4 | 4.7 |
| 2012–13 | Cleveland | 9 | 0 | 10.1 | .357 | .000 | .333 | 1.4 | .6 | .2 | .0 | 2.4 |
| 2012–13 | Memphis | 19 | 0 | 5.1 | .625 | .000 | .571 | 1.3 | .2 | .2 | .0 | 1.8 |
| 2013–14 | Memphis | 49 | 0 | 13.1 | .492 | .469 | .787 | 3.2 | .4 | .4 | .3 | 6.2 |
| 2014–15 | Memphis | 63 | 6 | 13.1 | .443 | .241 | .627 | 3.3 | .7 | .3 | .1 | 4.5 |
| 2015–16 | Phoenix | 67 | 27 | 18.7 | .481 | .382 | .762 | 5.6 | 1.1 | .6 | .4 | 8.5 |
| 2016–17 | Detroit | 75 | 34 | 25.9 | .480 | .293 | .867 | 5.4 | 1.5 | .4 | .3 | 10.2 |
| 2017–18 | Detroit | 8 | 0 | 17.0 | .417 | .000 | .867 | 4.0 | .6 | .1 | .4 | 5.4 |
| 2018–19 | Detroit | 41 | 1 | 9.8 | .584 | .091 | .742 | 2.4 | .3 | .3 | .1 | 3.8 |
| Career | 377 | 80 | 15.8 | .484 | .328 | .767 | 3.8 | .8 | .4 | .3 | 6.4 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Memphis | 5 | 0 | 2.2 | .500 | - | - | .6 | .0 | .2 | .2 | .4 |
| 2014 | Memphis | 3 | 0 | 7.7 | .429 | .500 | 1.000 | 2.7 | .7 | .3 | .0 | 3.0 |
| 2015 | Memphis | 4 | 0 | 2.3 | .500 | - | - | 1.3 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 1.0 |
| 2019 | Detroit | 1 | 0 | 5.0 | .500 | - | .000 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Career | 13 | 0 | 3.7 | .467 | .500 | .667 | 1.2 | .2 | .2 | .1 | 1.3 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Wisconsin | 32 | 0 | 8.6 | .472 | .462 | .483 | 1.3 | .4 | .1 | .1 | 2.9 |
| 2008–09 | Wisconsin | 33 | 12 | 21.3 | .466 | .296 | .605 | 3.8 | .8 | .5 | .6 | 8.8 |
| 2009–10 | Wisconsin | 24 | 22 | 28.8 | .522 | .391 | .720 | 5.8 | 1.6 | .5 | 1.3 | 15.4 |
| 2010–11 | Wisconsin | 34 | 34 | 33.5 | .470 | .370 | .843 | 7.2 | 1.6 | .5 | .9 | 18.3 |
| Career | 123 | 68 | 22.8 | .482 | .368 | .723 | 4.5 | 1.1 | .4 | .7 | 11.2 | |
Leuer is the son of Mike and Holly Leuer, has two older sisters, Maren and Katie, and is married to Keegan Billick, the daughter of longtimeBaltimore Ravens head coachBrian Billick. He wasmajoring inhistory while at theUniversity of Wisconsin.[4]
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