Randolph Morris
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Position | Power forward/Center |
|---|---|
| Height | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) |
| Weight | 259 lb (117 kg) |
| League | NBA |
| Team | New York Knicks |
| Jersey | #5 |
| Born | January 2, 1986 Houston, Texas |
| Nationality | USA |
| High school | Landmark Christian H S |
| College | Kentucky |
| Draft | Not drafted, 2005 |
| Pro career | 2007–present |
| Awards | McDonald's All-American Team |
| Official profile | Info Page |
Randolph Morris (born January 2, 1986 in Houston, Texas) is an American professional basketball player currently with the NBA's New York Knicks.
Contents |
[edit] High school
Morris averaged 23.0 ppg, 16.0 rpg and 8.0 bpg as a senior for Atlanta’s Landmark Christian High School, earning him McDonald's All-American Team status. Randolph Morris was the #2 rated center and #10 overall prospect by Rivals.com in a year when a record eight high schoolers went directly to the NBA draft.[citation needed] Morris strongly considered a jump straight to the NBA as well, but decided to spend at least a year in school. Kentucky won a late recruiting battle, after drawing Morris away from early favorite Georgia Tech. Morris stated he chose Kentucky partly because of lower academics.[1] Morris, along with All-Americans Joe Crawford and Rajon Rondo, gave Kentucky the top-rated recruiting class in the nation.[2]
[edit] College
After a solid debut in his first year at Kentucky, Morris decided to declare for the 2005 NBA draft but not hire an agent. He averaged 8.8 points per game and 4.2 rebounds. Despite playing well for Kentucky and starting every game but one, he did not prove himself NBA ready and often got in foul trouble. Morris went undrafted and decided to attempt a return to Kentucky. The NCAA agreed to reinstate him, but not before sitting out the first half of the 2005-2006 season. Morris returned to Kentucky in January 2006, but could not help the team get out of its season-long slump. Nevertheless, he improved in almost every statistical category from his freshman year and was very impressive at times. As a sophomore, he averaged 13.3 points and 6 rebounds per game. In his junior season Morris made further progress, averaging 16.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.1 blocks per game, earning first team All-SEC honors.
[edit] Pro career
After his freshman year at Kentucky, Morris declared himself eligible for the 2006 NBA Draft. He was not drafted, but because he did not hire an agent, Morris was allowed to return to Kentucky to continue playing college basketball. At the same time, because the NBA's collective bargaining agreement prohibited him from re-entering into a future draft, Morris was also legally an NBA free agent, who could be signed at any time; he would be able to leave Kentucky in the middle of the college basketball season if signed by an NBA team.[3]
Morris took advantage of being an NBA free agent, and signed a two-year, $1.6 million contract with the New York Knicks on March 23, 2007, 5 days after Kentucky was eliminated from the NCAA Tournament.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Davis, Seth (May 31, 2004), College Basketball: Who's No. 1? , Sports Illustrated
- ^ Rivals.com Top 25 for 2004. Rivals.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-12.
- ^ Wojnarowski, Adrian (2006-12-11). The Problematic Prospect. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved on 2007-04-04.
- ^ Knicks sign Kentucky center Morris to 2-year deal. ESPN.com. Retrieved on 2007-03-23.
[edit] External links
|
|||||
