John Shurna

John William Shurna (born April 30, 1990) is an American–Lithuanian[1] professional basketball player for Herbalife Gran Canaria of the Liga ACB. He is the 2012 Big Ten scoring champion. He played in the 2012 NBA Summer League with the Atlanta Hawks. He then signed with the New York Knicks, but was waived at the end of the preseason.

John Shurna
Shurna with Morabanc Andorra
No. 14 – Herbalife Gran Canaria
PositionPower forward
LeagueLiga ACB
Personal information
Born (1990-04-30) April 30, 1990
Glen Ellyn, Illinois
NationalityAmerican / Lithuanian
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High schoolGlenbard West
(Glen Ellyn, Illinois)
CollegeNorthwestern (2008–2012)
NBA draft2012 / Undrafted
Playing career2012–present
Career history
2012–2013Strasbourg IG
2013–2014FIATC Joventut
2014–2015Darüşşafaka
2015–2016Valencia Basket
2016–2017Cedevita Zagreb
2017–2019Andorra
2019–presentHerbalife Gran Canaria
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing the  United States
FIBA U-19 World Championship
2009 New Zealand Team

He played college basketball for the Northwestern Wildcats. He has been a three-time All-Big Ten Conference selection (2010–2nd team; 2011–3rd team coaches/honorable mention media; 2012–1st team) and the Northwestern statistical leader in several categories. He was the 2010 Sporting News Most Improved Player. He holds several Northwestern all-time records, including single-season and career scoring. He was selected as an honorable mention Associated Press 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball All-American. He won the State Farm College 3-Point Championship three-point shooting contest at the 2012 Final Four.[2]

In high school, he was the 2008 Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Class 4A Slam Dunk Champion. He was a member of the gold-medal-winning USA Basketball team at the 2009 FIBA Under-19 World Championship.

High school career

Shurna was a 2007 and 2008 Chicago Tribune All-State boys basketball team special mention selection.[3][4] As a junior, in March 2007, he led Glenbard West High School to the Class AA supersectional for the first time since 1938,[5] but they lost to Lockport Township High School 53–50 despite 27 points by Shurna, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, but only 21 according to the Daily Southtown and Chicago Tribune.[6][7][8] He committed to Northwestern University on May 13, 2007,[9][10] but he did not sign his National Letter of Intent until November 14.[11]

As a senior, he was selected to the IHSA 4A all-state second-team by Associated Press and the 3A/4A all-state first-team by Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. In addition, he won the 2008 IHSA 4A slam dunk championship at the state tournament,[12] but finished second to Marland Johnson by a point in a contest of the winners of the four classes.[13] As a senior, he finished 8th in the Illinois Mr. Basketball voting.[14] Following his senior season, he participated in local and regional All-Star contests such as the 34th annual Foundation For Student Athletes city-suburban all-star event.[15] Although ESPN.com ranked Shurna as the 53rd best high school basketball power forward in the national class of 2008,[16] he was not among the ranked players by state or position according to either Rivals.com or Scout.com.[17][18]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
John Shurna
PF		 Glen Ellyn, Illinois Glenbard West (IL) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) May 13, 2007 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 82
Overall recruiting rankings:   ESPN: 53 (PF)
  • 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:

  • "Northwestern Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  • "2008 Northwestern Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  • "2008 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.

    College career

    Freshman

    As a true freshman, he started all 31 games for the 2008–09 Northwestern Wildcats.[12] Shurna was a member of Team USA basketball during the 2009 FIBA Under-19 World Championship competition held in Auckland, New Zealand from July 2, 2009 until July 12. He played in all 9 games, starting 2. Despite averaging the fewest minutes (12.2), he was fifth on the team in rebounding with (3.9).[19] The USA team earned the gold medal.[20]

    Sophomore
    Shurna defends against Brandon Paul of Illinois (1-23-2010)

    He played forward for the 2009–10 Northwestern Wildcats and led the team in scoring and rebounding.[21] Following the 2009–10 All-Big Ten Conference regular season, he was named a second-team All-conference selection by both the coaches and the media.[22][23] He was twice named Big Ten men's basketball player of the week during the season.[24][25] He was recognized as an All-District second-team selection by the National Association of Basketball Coaches making him eligible for the State Farm Division I All‐America teams.[26] He finished his sophomore season among the Big Ten leaders in many statistical categories: 3rd in scoring, 7th in rebounding, 10th in free throw percentage, 8th in blocked shots, and 6th in minutes played.[27] He was recognized by Sporting News as the Most Improved Player after raising his scoring average from 7.3 points as a freshman to 18.5 as a sophomore, while improving his rebounding average from 2.6 to 6.4.[28] During the season, he established new Northwestern Wildcats basketball single-season records in both total points (619), surpassing Evan Eschmeyer, and field goals made (217), surpassing Dale Kelly. In so doing, he helped Northwestern establish a new school record for single-season wins with 20.[29]

    Junior

    As a junior, he was a preseason top 50 candidate for both the John R. Wooden Award and the Naismith College Player of the Year.[30][31] In the first game of his junior season, Shurna tied his career-high with 31 points on his way to Big Ten Player of the Week honors.[32] On December 20, in week 6 of the season, Shurna repeated as conference player of the week.[33] Following the 2010–11 Big Ten Conference men's basketball season, he was a third team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches and an honorable mention by the media.[34][35] Sports Illustrated named him as one of the ten best players in the Big Ten Conference.[36]

    Shurna submitted the paperwork to declare for the 2011 NBA draft following the season, though he did not hire an agent.[37] He withdrew his name prior to the May 8 deadline and chose to return for his senior year.[38][39] He was one of 20 players who tried out to represent USA Basketball at the 2011 Summer Universiade, but did not make the team.[40]

    Senior
    Shurna in 2012

    As a senior, he repeated as a preseason top 50 watchlist selection for the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award.[41] He was also a Sporting News Preseason All-American (2nd team).[42] When Shurna scored 37 points on November 17 against LSU it heralded a career-high and tied for the most points scored by a Northwestern player during the 12-year Bill Carmody era.[43][44][45] On December 18, he scored 32 points as Northwestern defeated Eastern Illinois.[46] Shurna earned Co-Big Ten Player of the week on February 6 after averaging 26 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals in wins over Nebraska and Illinois on February 2 and 5, respectively.[47][48][49] On February 12, he posted his third 30-point game of the season against Purdue.[50] With three 30-point games as a senior, he brought his career total to six.[51] On February 18 he became Northwestern's all-time leading scorer in a game against Minnesota, passing Billy McKinney's record of 1,900 points.[52][53] He was selected as a first team All-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and the media.[54] He was selected by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association to its 10-man 2011–12 Men's All-District V (OH, IN, IL, MI, MN, WI) Team.[55] Shurna was a first team selection to the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division I All‐District 7 team on March 14.[56] Shurna finished the season with a 20.0 point per game average, which led the Big Ten Conference.[57] He was named an honorable mention Associated Press All-American.[58] He competed in the 2012 State Farm 3-Point Contest, beating Juan Fernandez 21–20 in the final round by making his final seven shots.[2] Shurna was also selected to participate in the NABC 2012 Reese's Division I All-Star Game at the 2012 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament final four.[59] Shurna had 12 points in the game.[60]

    Professional career

    After going undrafted in the 2012 NBA draft, Shurna signed a 2012 Las Vegas NBA Summer League contract with the Atlanta Hawks.[61] On September 10, 2012, Shurna signed a 1-year partially guaranteed contract with the New York Knicks.[62] He was waived at the end of the preseason.[63] By the beginning of December 2012, he had made his professional debut with Strasbourg IG of LNB Pro A.[64] Shurna was originally signed as an injury replacement for Nicolas de Jong until the end of 2012, but was signed longer term as it became apparent that de Jong would be out for an extended period.[65]

    After the played on the Milwaukee Bucks' 2013 NBA Summer League team,[66] Shurna signed a 2-year contract with Joventut Badalona.[67] He signed with the Toronto Raptors for the 2014 NBA Summer League and posted 21 points on 6-for-9 field goal shooting including 5 three point shots in his July 11 debut.[68] In August 2014, he signed a one-year contract with Turkish Basketball League team Darüşşafaka.[69] He played in the 2015 NBA Summer League with the Cleveland Cavaliers.[70] On July 27, 2015, he signed a one-year contract with Valencia Basket of Spain.[71] On November 13, 2016, Shurna signed with Croatian club Cedevita Zagreb for the rest of the season.[72][73]

    On July 27, 2017, Shurna signed a one-year deal with MoraBanc Andorra of the Liga ACB.[74][75] On August 18, 2018, Shurna re-signed a one-year deal with MoraBanc Andorra of the Liga ACB.[76]

    Personal life

    Shurna was born in Glen Ellyn, Illinois, to Tony and Suzy Shurna.[12] At Northwestern, he was a double major in sociology and learning and organizational change.[12] On July 11, 2014, Shurna acquired Lithuanian citizenship per Lithuanian nationality law.[1]

    Notes
    1. Barakauskas, Dailis Alfonsas (July 11, 2014). "1V-474 Del Lietuvos Respublikos pilietybės atkūrimo". e-seimas.lrs.lt (in Lithuanian). Retrieved September 24, 2017.
    2. "NU's Shurna wins 3-point title". Chicago Tribune. March 29, 2012. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
    3. Sakamoto, Bob (March 23, 2007). "Sharing rock 'n' rolling: The 2006-7 Tribune All-State boys basketball first team: Music to any coach's ears: All-Staters who know teamwork trumps a one-man show". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    4. Sakamoto, Bob (March 23, 2008). "Title raises Hare's profile: The 2007-8 Tribune All-State boys basketball first team: Marshall senior is tops in this class after capturing state championship". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    5. McGavin, Patrick Z. (March 13, 2007). "Shurna doing it all for upstart Glenbard W.". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 82.
    6. Akouris, Tina (March 14, 2007). "Porters packing for state: Lockport 53, Glenbard West 50". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 95.
    7. Kuchta, Chris (March 14, 2007). "Lockport makes believers". Daily Southtown. p. B7.
    8. Surico, Dave (March 14, 2007). "Durham delivers 2nd-half comeback: Porters overcome 7-point deficit: Lockport 53, Glenbard West 50". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
    9. Tucker, Steve (May 12, 2007). "Goler HR propels Griffins". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 77.
    10. O'Brien, Michael (May 14, 2007). "Fruendt, Shurna commit to NU". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 83.
    11. Ginnetti, Toni, Lacy J. Banks and Herb Gould (November 15, 2007). "Kelly takes long way home to DePaul – NU inks pair of area recruits Simeon's Simpson 'comfortable' with Illini". Chicago Sun-Times. p. 78.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
    12. "24 John Shurna". NUSports.com. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on November 19, 2012. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    13. Sakamoto, Bob; Colleen Kane (March 16, 2008). "Boys Basketball Championship Bits". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    14. Sakamoto, Bob (April 6, 2008). "Homewood-Flossmoor's Kevin Dillard named Mr. Basketball of Illinois". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    15. Sakamoto, Bob; Alan Sutton (April 26, 2008). "Malnati steps down as New Trier coach: Dudle to replace Dineen for Buffalo Grove girls". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    16. "John Shurna". ESPN. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    17. "John Shurna". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    18. "John Shurna". Scout.com. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    19. "United States U19 Team: Season Statistics". USABasketball.com. July 12, 2009. Archived from the original on April 6, 2010. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    20. "Big Ten Weekly Men's Basketball Release – Week 1: Ohio State tips off 2009–10 campaign Monday night in Columbus". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. November 9, 2009. Archived from the original on July 3, 2010. Retrieved March 29, 2012.
    21. "Northwestern Wildcats Statistics – 2009–10". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
    22. "Big Ten Announces All-Big Ten Teams and Individual Honorees: Ohio State's Evan Turner Named Big Ten Player of the Year". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. March 8, 2010. Archived from the original on March 10, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
    23. "Big Ten to announce men's All-Big Ten teams". Big Ten Network. March 8, 2010. Archived from the original on May 15, 2010. Retrieved March 9, 2010.
    24. "Northwestern and Ohio State Collect Player of the Week Laurels: OSU's Turner records second triple double of the year". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. November 30, 2009. Archived from the original on March 4, 2012. Retrieved November 30, 2009.
    25. "Northwestern`s John Shurna Tabbed Big Ten Player of the Week". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. January 4, 2010. Archived from the original on January 7, 2010. Retrieved January 5, 2010.
    26. "National Association of Basketball Coaches Announces 2010 Division I All-District Teams" (PDF). National Association of Basketball Coaches. March 16, 2010. Retrieved March 16, 2010.
    27. "The Automated ScoreBook: Overall Statistics". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on April 12, 2010. Retrieved March 30, 2010.
    28. DeCourcy, Mike (March 10, 2010). "Sporting News college basketball Most Improved Player of the Year: John Shurna, Northwestern". Sporting News. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    29. "Setting The Standard: Wildcats Establish Numerous New School Records Northwestern re-wrote the record books in 2009–10". NUSports.com. CBS Interactive. March 24, 2010. Archived from the original on September 12, 2012. Retrieved January 8, 2011.
    30. "2010–2011 Men's Preseason Top 50 Candidates". Woodenaward.com. October 4, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
    31. "Big Ten Men's Basketball Weekly Release – Dec. 13, 2010". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. December 13, 2010. Archived from the original on December 31, 2010. Retrieved December 28, 2010.
    32. "Northwestern and Ohio State Garner First Weekly Honor of 2010–11 Season: Conference honors Northwestern's John Shurna and Ohio State's Jared Sullinger for season's first Player and Freshman of the Week awards". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. November 15, 2010. Archived from the original on June 3, 2012. Retrieved November 15, 2010.
    33. "Northwestern and Ohio State Earn Weekly Big Ten Honors: Northwestern's Shurna named Player of the Week; Ohio State's Sullinger named Freshman of the Week". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. December 20, 2010. Archived from the original on December 22, 2010. Retrieved December 28, 2010.
    34. "Big Ten Releases All-Big Ten Teams: Purdue's Johnson named Player of the Year". Big Ten Network. March 7, 2011. Archived from the original on March 9, 2011. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
    35. "2010–11 All-Big Ten Men's Basketball Team" (PDF). CBS Interactive. March 7, 2011. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
    36. "Big Ten's Top 10 Players: John Shurna: 6–8 junior forward, Northwestern". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    37. "John Shurna to explore draft options". ESPN.com. April 19, 2011. Retrieved April 21, 2011.
    38. "NU's John Shurna removes name from NBA draft".
    39. "Twenty-five players withdraw from Draft's early-entry list". NBA.com. May 11, 2011. Archived from the original on May 13, 2011. Retrieved May 11, 2011.
    40. "Training Begins For 2011 USA Men's World University Games Team". USABasketball.com. July 29, 2011. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    41. "Big Ten Men's Basketball Weekly Release – Nov. 9, 2011: All 12 Big Ten teams open 2011–12 season this weekend". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. November 14, 2011. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
    42. Brilowski, Nick (August 29, 2011). "Shurna Tabbed Sporting News Preseason Second-Team All-American". NUSports.com. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
    43. "Shurna's Career-High 37 Points Lead NU to 88–82 Win Over LSU: Wildcats rally back from 14-point deficit". NUSports.com. CBS Interactive. November 17, 2011. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
    44. "Big Ten Men's Basketball Weekly Release – Nov. 21, 2011". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. November 21, 2011. Archived from the original on November 25, 2011. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
    45. "Northwestern 88, LSU 82". ESPN. November 17, 2011. Retrieved November 21, 2011.
    46. "E Illinois 72 (6–4, 1–4 away); Northwestern 87 (10–1, 6–1 home)". ESPN. December 18, 2011. Retrieved December 19, 2011.
    47. "Iowa, Northwestern and Ohio State Earn Weekly Men's Basketball Awards: Shurna, Sullinger tabbed Co-Player of the Week; White, Sobolewski named Co-Freshman of the Week". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. February 6, 2012. Archived from the original on February 21, 2012. Retrieved February 6, 2012.
    48. "Northwestern 84, Nebraska 74". ESPN. February 2, 2012. Retrieved February 6, 2012.
    49. "Northwestern 74, Illinois 70". ESPN. February 5, 2012. Retrieved February 6, 2012.
    50. "Northwestern 77 (15–9, 5–7 Big Ten); Purdue 87 (16–9, 6–6 Big Ten)". ESPN. February 12, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
    51. "Big Ten Men's Basketball Postseason Release – March 13, 2012: Six Big Ten teams enter NCAA Tournament play this week". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. March 13, 2012. Archived from the original on March 16, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
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    53. Powers, Scott (February 18, 2012). "Shurna sets Wildcats' career scoring record". ESPN. Retrieved February 19, 2012.
    54. "Big Ten Announces 2012 Men's Basketball Postseason Honors: Michigan State's Green named Big Ten Player of the Year". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. March 5, 2012. Archived from the original on August 27, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2012.
    55. "USBWA Names 2011–12 Men's All-District Teams". U.S. Basketball Writers Association. March 6, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2012.
    56. "National Association of Basketball Coaches Announces 2012 Division I All-District Teams" (PDF). National Association of Basketball Coaches. March 14, 2012. Retrieved March 14, 2012.
    57. "The Automated ScoreBook: Overall Statistics". BigTen.org. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on March 20, 2012. Retrieved March 19, 2012.
    58. "2011–12 AP All-America Teams". Washington Examiner. March 26, 2012. Retrieved March 26, 2012.
    59. "Harvard's Wright Selected to Play in the 2012 NABC Division I All-Star Game". IvyLeagueSports.com. March 26, 2012. Archived from the original on September 18, 2015. Retrieved April 14, 2012.
    60. "Reese's College All-Star Game Recap". SLAM Magazine. April 2, 2012. Retrieved April 14, 2012.
    61. "Shurna to play for Hawks in summer league". ESPN. July 3, 2012. Retrieved July 4, 2012.
    62. Beck, Howard (September 10, 2012). "Knicks Add Shooting Forward". The New York Times. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
    63. Lawrence, Mitch (October 28, 2012). "NY Knicks Carmelo Anthony says he won't dominate the ball even with Amar'e Stoudemire out". Daily News. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
    64. Arnal, Olivier (December 2, 2012). "Vincent Collet : " Un match un peu irrationnel "". L'Alsace (in French). Retrieved January 1, 2013.
    65. Frey, Jean-Claude. "Vincent Collet après l'exploit à Chalon: "Il faut garder les pieds sur terre…"". SIGBasket.fr (in French). Retrieved January 16, 2013.
    66. Gardner, Charles F. (July 3, 2013). "Bucks set their sights on O.J. Mayo". Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
    67. "El FIATC Joventut Contracta el Jugador John Shurna". Joventut Badalona (in Spanish). August 31, 2013. Archived from the original on February 26, 2014. Retrieved August 31, 2013.
    68. Duber, Vinnie (July 11, 2014). "John Shurna does Northwestern proud in Raptors summer debut". Comcast SportsNet Chicago. Archived from the original on July 14, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
    69. John Shurna signs with Darussafaka Dogus
    70. Pereles, Zach (July 3, 2015). "How to Watch NBA Summer League: Drew Crawford, Orlando Magic and John Shurna, Cleveland Cavaliers". SB Nation. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
    71. "Valencia adds big men Hamilton, Shurna". Eurocupbasketball.com. July 27, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2015.
    72. "Stiglo novo pojačanje, krilni centar John Shurna". www.kkcedevita.hr (in Croatian). November 13, 2016. Archived from the original on November 14, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
    73. "Cedevita adds forward Shurna". Eurocupbasketball.com. November 13, 2016. Retrieved November 14, 2016.
    74. "ACB.COM - John Shurna, pólvora para el MoraBanc Andorra". www.acb.com (in Spanish). July 27, 2017. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
    75. "John Shurna (ex Cedevita) agreed terms with Andorra". Eurobasket.com. July 27, 2017. Retrieved July 27, 2017.
    76. "ACB.COM - John Shurna continúa en el MoraBanc Andorra". www.acb.com (in Spanish). August 18, 2018. Retrieved August 18, 2018.

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