Brandon Davies

Brandon Davies (born July 25, 1991) is an American-born naturalized Ugandan[1] professional basketball player for Olimpia Milano of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. He also represents the senior Ugandan national team. He was an all-conference college player at Brigham Young University. Davies earned an All-EuroLeague First Team selection in 2019.

Brandon Davies
Davies with Barcelona in 2022
No. 0 – Olimpia Milano
PositionCenter
LeagueLega Basket Serie A
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1991-07-25) July 25, 1991
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / Ugandan
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High schoolProvo (Provo, Utah)
CollegeBYU (2009–2013)
NBA draft2013 / Undrafted
Playing career2013–present
Career history
2013–2014Philadelphia 76ers
2014–2015Brooklyn Nets
2015Élan Chalon Sur Saône
2015–2016Pallacanestro Varese
2016–2017AS Monaco
2017–2019Žalgiris Kaunas
2019–2022FC Barcelona
2022–presentOlimpia Milano
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life and college career

Davies was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania but adopted by single mother Kathy Davies and raised in Provo, Utah.[2] He attended Provo High School, where his team won state titles in his sophomore and junior seasons. After considering schools such as California, Gonzaga, and Utah, Davies chose to play college basketball at Brigham Young.[3]

After playing a reserve role as a freshman in 2009–10, Davies became a key player for the Cougars as a sophomore. He served as the key inside player for the small, sharp-shooting 2010–11 Cougars (led by eventual National Player of the Year Jimmer Fredette). BYU raced to a 27–2 record and was ranked no. 3 in the AP Poll when Davies was suspended from the team for violating BYU's honor code by having premarital sex with his girlfriend.[2]

Davies was reinstated to the team as a junior and was named to the All-West Coast Conference team in each of his last two seasons at BYU. As a senior, Davies served as team captain and averaged 17.7 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.[3]

Professional career

Following his graduation from BYU, Davies was invited to participate in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament (PIT) pre-NBA draft camp. Davies performed well, averaging 20.7 points per game on 68% shooting and grabbing 9.3 rebounds per game. He was named MVP of the PIT.[4] Davies' performance earned him an invitation to the Chicago NBA Draft combine.[5] After going undrafted in the 2013 NBA draft, he joined the Los Angeles Clippers for the 2013 NBA Summer League.[6] On September 5, 2013, he signed with the Clippers,[7] but was later waived on October 21.[8]

Philadelphia 76ers (2013–2014)

On October 28, 2013, Davies signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.[9] He played in his first NBA game on November 2, 2013 against the Chicago Bulls, scoring two points in two minutes of action. On January 18, 2014, he fractured his right small finger, requiring surgery and up to a month of rehabilitation.[10]

On November, 5, 2014, Davies scored a career-high 20 points in an 89–91 loss to the Orlando Magic.[11]

Brooklyn Nets (2014–2015)

On December 11, 2014, Davies was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in exchange for Andrei Kirilenko, Jorge Gutiérrez, the Nets' second-round draft pick in 2020, the right to swap second-round picks in 2018, and cash considerations.[12] On January 6, 2015, he was waived by the Nets after appearing in seven games.[13]

Élan Chalon (2015)

On January 12, 2015, Davies signed with Élan Chalon of the LNB Pro League in Chalon-sur-Saône, France for the rest of the 2014–15 LNB Pro A season as a replacement for an injured player.[14] He helped Élan reach the league playoffs.

Pallacanestro Varese (2015–16)

In August 2015, Davies signed with Pallacanestro Varese in Varese, Italy for the 2015–16 season.[15]

AS Monaco (2016–17)

In July 2016, Davies signed with AS Monaco of the LNB Pro A and Basketball Champions League.[16]

Žalgiris Kaunas (2017–2019)

In the summer of 2017, Davies played in The Basketball Tournament on ESPN for Team Fredette. He competed for the $2 million prize, and for Team Fredette, he scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds in their first-round game, which they lost to Team Utah (Utah Alumni) 100–97.[17]

On June 23, 2017, Davies signed with a 1+1 contract with Lithuanian team Žalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League.[18] Over his two seasons with Žalgiris, Davies helped the team achieve much success, in particular in the EuroLeague. On May 9, 2019, Davies was named to the All-EuroLeague First Team, becoming the first Žalgiris player to win the award in 15 years since Arvydas Sabonis in 2004.

FC Barcelona (2019–2022)

On July 4, 2019, Davies signed a two-year deal with the Spanish club Barcelona.[19] In his second game with Barcelona, Davies recorded 24 points and 11 rebounds in a 95–87 win over Saski Baskonia.[20]

Olimpia Milano (2022–present)

On June 24, 2022, Davies signed a two-year contract with Italian champions Olimpia Milano of the Lega Basket Serie A, playing also the EuroLeague.

National team career

Coinciding with his move to Barcelona, Davies acquired a Ugandan passport, because under the Cotonou Agreement African players are not subject to the same limited quotas in the Liga ACB as American players.[21] As part of the arrangement, Barcelona agreed to release Davies to play some matches for the Uganda national team,[21] and in November 2021 he played in three 2023 World Cup qualifiers in Benguela.[22] (The Turkey team complained that Barcelona had not released Sertaç Şanlı for its qualifiers in Europe.[23])

Career statistics
Legend
  GP Games played  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     Led the league

Professional
Year Team League GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 Philadelphia NBA 5111.3.422.200.6422.1.5.5.22.8
2014–15 Philadelphia/Brooklyn NBA 2715.7.402.235.6493.11.1.7.35.3
Career NBA 7812.8.411.227.6442.5.7.5.23.7
2017–18 Žalgiris Kaunas Lithuanian League 4516.6.616.000.7625.21.6.9.611.3
2017–18 Žalgiris Kaunas EuroLeague 3617.4.577.000.8483.5.9.9.49.3
2018–19 Žalgiris Kaunas EuroLeague 3423.7.559.000.7625.52.01.0.414.2
2019–20 FC Barcelona Spanish League 2618.0.545.409.7684.51.0.9.511.7
Career All Leagues 21916.6.543.284.7613.91.2.8.48.7

Personal life

Davies is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.[24][25] He married Lenzie Quist of Riverside, California, in January 2015. They have a daughter, born in the summer of 2016.

References
  1. Brandon Davies receives Ugandan passport.
  2. Branch, John (March 12, 2011). "Kept Off Court, but Welcomed by B.Y.U. Fans and Teammates". The New York Times.
  3. "Brandon Davies BYU athletic profile". BYUCougars.com. Archived from the original on July 12, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  4. Reheuser, Rob (April 14, 2013). "Davies finishes up strong at Portsmouth Invitational". NBA.com.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. Call, Jeff (May 10, 2013). "BYU basketball: Brandon Davies receives invite to NBA draft combine in Chicago". The Deseret News.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  6. Shepherd, Jason (June 28, 2013). "Undrafted Davies will play for the Clippers in Summer League". ksl.com.
  7. "Clippers Sign Brandon Davies". NBA.com (Press release). Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. September 5, 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
  8. "Clippers waive forward Brandon Davies". insidehoops.com (Press release). October 21, 2013. Archived from the original on December 11, 2014. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
  9. "Sixers Sign Rookie Free Agent Brandon Davies". cbsnews.com. October 28, 2013. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  10. Wolf, Jason (February 6, 2014). "Davies has surgery on fractured finger, out at least a month". delawareonline.com. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  11. "Tobias Harris' jumper at buzzer lifts Magic to first win of season". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Associated Press. November 5, 2014. Retrieved December 13, 2014.
  12. Sapp, Demetris (December 11, 2014). "Nets Acquire Brandon Davies". NBA.com (Press release). Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  13. Plonchak, Kyle (January 6, 2015). "Brooklyn Nets Waive Brandon Davies". NBA.com (Press release). Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Retrieved May 15, 2023.
  14. "Brandon Davies signs with Elan Chalon". Sportando.com. January 12, 2015. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  15. "Brandon Davies, nuovo acquisto di Pallacanestro Varese". Archived from the original on 2019-07-04. Retrieved 2019-07-04.
  16. ""Brandon Davies vers Monaco" on BEBasket". Archived from the original on 2016-07-03. Retrieved 2016-07-08.
  17. "Bracket | The Basketball Tournament". thetournament.com. Archived from the original on 2019-05-14. Retrieved 2018-02-27.
  18. "Zalgiris Kaunas signs Brandon Davies to a 1+1 deal". Sportando.com. June 23, 2017. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  19. "Barcelona brings All-EuroLeague center Davies aboard". EuroLeague.net. 4 July 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2019.
  20. "Saski Baskonia 87 – FC Barcelona Basquet 95". EuroBasket. September 29, 2019. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  21. Aragón, Andrés (15 October 2019). "La liga ACB con menos jugadores españoles de la historia: sólo el 30%". El Mundo (in Spanish). Madrid. Retrieved 10 March 2022. Coincidiendo con su fichaje por el Barcelona, Brandon Davies se comprometió a jugar un par de amistosos con Uganda para obtener el pasaporte cotonou y no ocupar plaza de extracomunitario.
    • "Brandon Davies no ocupará plaza de extracomunitario". eurohoops.net (in Spanish). 13 August 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2022. Uganda es uno de los 78 países de África, el Caribe y el Pacífico integrados en el acuerdo 'cotonou' y, por tanto, el ex pívot del Zalgiris no ocupará plaza de extracomunitario.
  22. "African Qualifiers; Players; Brandon DAVIES". FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023. FIBA. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  23. Molina, Alex (28 November 2021). "Brandon Davies brilla con Uganda en plena polémica por las ventanas". Eurohoops (in Spanish). Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  24. "The Root article on Parker draft". Archived from the original on 2014-08-08. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  25. Brandon Davies: Is BYU’s Premarital Sex Controversy Good For College Sports?
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