Ryan Luther

Ryan Shanahan Luther (born September 10, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for Darüşşafaka Tekfen of the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi. He played college basketball for Pittsburgh and Arizona.

Ryan Luther
No. 6 – Darüşşafaka Tekfen
PositionPower forward
LeagueBasketbol Süper Ligi
EuroCup
Personal information
Born (1995-09-10) September 10, 1995
Gibsonia, Pennsylvania
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High schoolHampton
(Allison Park, Pennsylvania)
College
NBA draft2019 / Undrafted
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2020BK Ventspils
2020–presentDarüşşafaka Tekfen

High school career

Luther attended Hampton High School. During his senior season, he scored 30 points against Norwin High School in the Penn-Trafford Basketball Tournament and broke the school scoring record.[1] Luther signed with Pittsburgh on October 25, 2013, choosing the Panthers over Duquesne and Dayton.[2]

College career

Luther began his collegiate career at Pittsburgh and played sparingly as a freshman. As a sophomore, he averaged 5.2 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.[3] Following Luther's sophomore season, Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon left for TCU and was replaced by Kevin Stallings.[4] On December 17, 2016, Luther scored a career-high 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds in a 83-73 win against Rice.[5] He averaged 5.7 points and 3.9 rebounds per game as a junior but missed 12 games with a right foot injury sustained in practice.[6] Luther averaged 12.7 points and 10.1 rebounds per game as a senior but missed the Panthers' final 22 games after sustaining a season-ending foot injury. He was granted an additional year of eligibility by the NCAA and opted to transfer to Arizona.[4] As a redshirt senior at Arizona, Luther averaged 8.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game while shooting 37.5% from 3-point range. He started 20 of 32 games for the Wildcats, missing several games in the starting lineup due to a finger injury in the Maui Invitational.[7]

Professional career

After his graduation from Arizona, Luther signed with BK Ventspils of the Latvian league on August 12, 2019.[7] He averaged 18.0 points and 8.9 rebounds per game and shot 48.4% from 3-point range before the season was suspended in March 2020. On July 30, 2020, Luther signed with Darüşşafaka Tekfen of the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi.[8]

The Basketball Tournament

Luther joined Herd That, a team composed primarily of Marshall alumni, in The Basketball Tournament 2020.[9] On July 9, Luther tallied nine points and six rebounds and hit the game-winning layup in a 102-99 comeback win against The Money Team.[10] He scored 11 points as Herd That fell to Overseas Elite 93-76 in the quarterfinals.[11]

Personal life

Luther is the son of Bill Luther, who attended Duquesne. One of Luthers' uncles, Brian Shanahan, was a 1,000-point scorer at Duquesne.[12] Luther's cousin Mike Shanahan played college football for Pittsburgh as a wide receiver.[13] Luther's twin brother Collin played basketball at Elon, and his older brother bill played at Pitt-Johnstown.[14]

References
  1. "H.S. Basketball - Hampton Vs. Norwin". CBS Pittsburgh. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  2. "Ryan Luther Verbally Commits to Pitt". Hampton Township School District. October 25, 2013. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  3. Welser, Joel (March 9, 2016). "PITTSBURGH MEN'S BASKETBALL 2016 NCAA TOURNAMENT CAPSULE". College Sports Madness. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  4. Meyer, Craig (April 18, 2018). "Ryan Luther commits to Arizona, leaves Pitt as graduate transfer". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  5. "Artis nets 31 points as Pittsburgh beats Rice, 83-73". ESPN. Associated Press. December 17, 2016. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  6. Geller, Wyatt (July 11, 2017). "Luther must manage unproven Panthers". The Pitt News. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  7. Pascoe, Bruce (August 12, 2019). "Former Arizona Wildcats forward Ryan Luther joins Latvian club". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  8. Pascoe, Bruce (June 30, 2020). "Former Arizona forward Ryan Luther signs with Turkish club for 2020-21". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  9. Traylor, Grant (June 28, 2020). "Herd That banking on chemistry to push team through The Basketball Tournament". Charleston Gazette-Mail. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  10. Pascoe, Bruce (July 8, 2020). "Former Wildcat forward Ryan Luther hits layup to cap Herd That's comeback upset win in TBT". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  11. Brocato, Joe (July 11, 2020). "Herd That's run ends in TBT quarterfinals". WV Metro News. Retrieved July 13, 2020.
  12. White, Mike (October 24, 2013). "Hampton's Ryan Luther talks about Pitt commitment". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  13. Meyer, Craig (December 8, 2017). "Why Ryan Luther chose to stick around at Pitt". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  14. "Five things to know about Ryan Luther, Arizona's newest basketball player". Arizona Daily Star. April 19, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
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