Brandon Paul

Brandon Paul (born April 30, 1991) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Olympiacos of the EuroLeague. During his senior year at Warren Township High School, Paul was named Illinois Mr. Basketball for 2009. Paul played college basketball for the University of Illinois and became only the second player in program history to record 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 100 steals.[1][2]

Brandon Paul
Paul playing for Illinois in January 2012
Free agent
PositionShooting guard / Small forward
Personal information
Born (1991-04-30) April 30, 1991
Gurnee, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High schoolWarren (Gurnee, Illinois)
CollegeIllinois (2009–2013)
NBA draft2013 / Undrafted
Playing career2013–present
Career history
2013–2014Nizhny Novgorod
2014–2015Canton Charge
2015–2016Joventut
2016–2017Anadolu Efes
2017–2018San Antonio Spurs
2018→Austin Spurs
2019Zhejiang Golden Bulls
2019–2020Olympiacos
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

High school career

Paul played for Warren Township High School coached by Chuck Ramsey. In high school, Paul was named a member of the 2009 Illinois All-American Team as selected by the Associated Press, Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times, News-Gazette, and the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. After his senior season Paul was named Illinois Mr. Basketball for 2009, narrowly edging out his future University of Illinois teammate Jereme Richmond.[3]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Brandon Paul
SG		 Gurnee, IL Warren Township High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Oct 11, 2007 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout:   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 91
Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #15 (SG)   Rivals: #10 (SG)  ESPN: #87 (overall)
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Illinois Commit List for 2009". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  • "Men's Basketball Recruiting". Scout.com. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  • "ESPN - Illinois Fighting Illini Basketball Recruiting 2009". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved April 15, 2009.
  • "2009 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved April 15, 2009.

    College career

    Entering the University of Illinois during the 2009–10 season, Paul quickly became a key contributor, as he averaged 7.8 points and 3.1 rebounds per game in 18.9 minutes per game. As a sophomore, Paul played in all 34 games for the 2010–11 Illinois Fighting Illini men's basketball team. He averaged 22.4 minutes of playing time and continued as a key contributor. He averaged 9.0 points per game and reached double-figures in 13 games. Paul led his team in steals, averaging 1.1 per game, and was second in assists, averaging 2.1 per game.[1] On February 13, 2011, Brandon scored a season-high 23 points in a 71–80 Illini loss to Purdue.[4]

    Paul drives against John Shurna in 2010

    In his junior year, Paul earned the role of a full-time starter for the 2011–12 season. On January 10, 2012, Paul scored 43 points in an upset win over then ranked #3 Ohio State. It was the third highest scoring total in a single game by an Illinois men's basketball player while his eight three-pointers tied the school record.[5]

    As a senior, Paul led Illinois to win the Maui Invitational Tournament title in 2012 with a win over Butler in the championship game. Paul was named Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament.[6] During his senior season, Paul averaged 16.6 points a game over the course of 36 games. On March 14, 2013, Paul hit a game winning shot against Minnesota in the 2013 Big Ten Conference Men's Basketball Tournament.[7] After graduating, Paul became just the second Illini player to reach career milestones of 1,500 points, 500 rebounds, 300 assists and 100 steals and finished his college career as the eighth-leading scorer in school history with 1,654 points.[2]

    Professional career

    Nizhny Novgorod (2013–14)

    After going undrafted in the 2013 NBA draft, Paul joined the Minnesota Timberwolves for the 2013 NBA Summer League.[8] On August 10, 2013, Paul signed with Nizhny Novgorod of Russia for the 2013–14 season.[9] In early February 2014, he left Russia after experiencing racism and a difficult language barrier.[2] Paul returned to the United States after playing in 12 games and averaging 6.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.5 steals in 13.8 minutes per game.[10]

    2013–14 season

    On February 27, 2014, he was acquired by the Canton Charge of the NBA Development League.[10] On March 14, 2014, he was waived by the Charge due to a season-ending injury.[11]

    2014–15 season

    On November 2, 2014, Paul was reacquired by the Canton Charge.[12] On April 4, 2015, he was placed on the inactive list for the remainder of the season due to injury, and was waived two days later.[13]

    Joventut Badalona (2015–16)

    On September 14, 2015, Paul signed with Spanish club FIATC Joventut.[14] He started 25 of 33 games and led the team in scoring with 13 points per game.[15]

    Anadolu Efes (2016–17)

    After playing for the Charlotte Hornets[16] and the Philadelphia 76ers during the 2016 NBA Summer League,[17] Paul signed with the 76ers on July 25, 2016,[15] but was waived on October 24 after appearing in four preseason games.[18] On December 13, 2016, he signed with Turkish club Anadolu Efes for the rest of the 2016–17 season.[19]

    San Antonio Spurs (2017–2018)

    In July 2017, Paul joined the Dallas Mavericks in Orlando and the Cleveland Cavaliers in Las Vegas for the 2017 NBA Summer League.[20] During summer league play, Paul averaged 15.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, and 1.7 steals per game on 47.12% shooting from the field.[21] On July 14, 2017, he signed with the San Antonio Spurs.[22] Paul had his debut in NBA on October 18, 2017, coming off the bench in a 107–99 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.[23] On October 30, 2017, Paul scored team-high 18 points with five rebounds, in a 94–108 loss to the Boston Celtics.[24] On April 19, 2018, Paul made his debut in NBA playoffs, coming off from bench with an assist and a rebound in a 97-110 loss to the Golden State Warriors.[25] On July 31, 2018, the Spurs waived Paul.[26]

    Zhejiang Golden Bulls (2019)

    Paul signed with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) on December 28, 2018.[27] Paul made his CBA debut on January 4, scoring 40 points with eight rebounds, five assists and three steals in a 104–93 win over the Jilin Northeast Tigers.[28] Five days later on January 9, Paul made his first triple-double in CBA, scoring 51 points with 17 rebounds, 11 assists and four steals in a 111–105 win over the Fujian Sturgeons.[29]

    Olympiacos (2019–20)

    On July 6, 2019, Paul signed a two-year deal with the Greek EuroLeague club Olympiacos.[30]

    Player profile

    Standing 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 m) and weighing 200 pounds (91 kg), Paul has a wingspan of 6 feet 10 inches (2.08 m) and primarily plays off the ball on offense as a shooting guard.[31] Paul is known as a quick, athletic guard who is able to defend against point guards, shooting guards, and small forwards.[32]

    Personal life

    Paul is the son of Cliff Sr. and Lynda Paul. His mother Lynda played college basketball for Ball State University and coached Paul's Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) basketball team, the Illinois Hoopstars[33] Paul's father, Cliff Sr., is police officer and a United States Navy veteran who served 13 years in the service.[3] After the September 11 attacks in 2001, Cliff Sr. was stationed in Spain for six months.[3] He has two brothers, Cliff Jr. and Darius Paul. Darius played one season for Western Michigan before transferring to Illinois for the 2013–14 season as a redshirt sophomore.[1]

    Career statistics
    Legend
      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  PIR  Performance Index Rating
     Bold  Career high

    Note: The EuroLeague is not the only competition in which the player participated for the team during the season. He also played in domestic competition, and regional competition if applicable.

    College
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
    2009–10 Illinois 361518.9.333.279.6443.11.3.8.17.8
    2010–11 Illinois 341022.4.399.361.7673.12.11.1.49.0
    2011–12 Illinois 323033.4.392.333.7274.72.91.4.814.7
    2012–13 Illinois 363532.0.401.325.7384.42.71.2.616.6

    EuroLeague
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
    2016–17 Anadolu Efes 231417.2.340.415.7031.0.61.0.38.65.8

    Regular season
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
    2017–18 San Antonio 6429.0.433.278.5121.1.6.4.12.3
    Career 6429.0.433.278.5121.1.6.4.12.3

    Playoffs
    Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
    2018 San Antonio 103.0.0.0.01.01.0.0.00.0
    Career 103.0.0.0.01.01.0.0.00.0

    References
    1. "Player Bio: Brandon Paul". FightingIllini.com. Archived from the original on November 3, 2014. Retrieved August 10, 2013.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
    2. Spears, Marc J. (November 17, 2017). "Brandon Paul's perseverance finally leads him to Spurs". theundefeated.com. ESPN. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    3. Sakamoto, Bob (January 2, 2015). "Mr. Basketball of Illinois 2009 Warren's Brandon Paul". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    4. "JaJuan Johnson, E'Twaun Moore combine for 44 as Purdue handles Illinois". ESPN.com. February 13, 2011. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
    5. "Brandon Paul scores a career-high 43 to fuel Illinois' upset of Ohio State". ESPN.com. January 11, 2012. Retrieved January 11, 2012.
    6. "Illinois rolls by Butler to win Maui Invitational". USA Today. November 22, 2012. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    7. Hoemann, Darrell (March 14, 2013). "Illinois defeats Minnesota in Chicago". News-Gazette.com. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    8. "Timberwolves Announce 2013 Summer League Roster". CBSLocal.com. July 9, 2013. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    9. "Nizhny Novgorod announced Brandon Paul". Sportando.com. August 10, 2013. Archived from the original on November 14, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
    10. "Charge Acquire Brandon Paul". NBA.com. February 27, 2014. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved February 27, 2014.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
    11. "Charge Acquire Anthony Harris". NBA.com. March 14, 2014. Archived from the original on September 10, 2016. Retrieved March 14, 2014.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
    12. "2014-15 Canton Charge Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. November 2, 2014. Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2014.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
    13. "Michael Dunigan Returns to Charge". OurSportsCentral.com. April 4, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
    14. "FIATC Joventut Badalona lands Brandon Paul". Sportando.com. September 14, 2015. Archived from the original on December 20, 2016. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
    15. "Sixers Sign Brandon Paul". NBA.com. July 25, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
    16. "Hornets Announce 2016 Orlando Pro Summer League Roster". NBA.com. June 27, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    17. Sill, Eliot (July 7, 2016). "REPORT: Brandon Paul to join Ben Simmons, Sixers for Las Vegas Summer League". TheChampaignRoom.com. SB-Nation. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    18. "Sixers Waive Five Players". NBA.com. October 24, 2016. Retrieved October 29, 2016.
    19. "Anadolu Efes Istanbul lands Brandon Paul to replace Bryce Cotton". Sportando.com. December 13, 2016. Archived from the original on July 23, 2017. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
    20. "Cavs Announce MGM Resorts NBA Summer League 2017 Roster". NBA.com. July 5, 2017. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
    21. Vainisi, Jim (July 13, 2017). "San Antonio Spurs sign former Illinois Basketball star Brandon Paul". SB Nation. Retrieved July 13, 2017.
    22. "SPURS SIGN BRANDON PAUL". NBA.com. July 14, 2017. Retrieved July 14, 2017.
    23. "Aldridge's double-double leads Spurs by Timberwolves, 107-99". ESPN.com. October 18, 2017. Retrieved October 18, 2017.
    24. "Celtics beat Spurs 108-94". ESPN.com. October 30, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
    25. "Durant leads Warriors to 3-0 lead over mourning Spurs". ESPN.com. April 19, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
    26. https://www.nba.com/spurs/spurs-waive-brandon-paul
    27. "Brandon Paul agreed terms with Golden Bulls". AsiaBasket. December 28, 2018. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
    28. "Regular Season Round 29: Zhejiang Ch. - Jilin NE T. 104-93". eurobasket.com. January 4, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
    29. "Regular Season Round 31: Fujian S. - Zhejiang Ch. 105-111". eurobasket.com. January 9, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    30. "Olympiacos announced Brandon Paul' signing". Eurohoops. July 6, 2019. Retrieved July 6, 2019.
    31. "Brandon Paul, SG, Illinois". NBA. 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    32. Tjarks, Jonathan (November 28, 2017). "Your Next Favorite NBA Role Player Will Come Out of Europe". The Ringer. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
    33. Young, Jabari (December 26, 2017). "The Brandon Paul Way". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved January 9, 2019.
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