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Monté Morris

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This article is about the American basketball player. For the American rugby union player, see Laird Morris.

Monté Morris
Morris with the Washington Wizards in 2022
No. 23 – Phoenix Suns
PositionPoint guard
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (1995-06-27) June 27, 1995 (age 29)
Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight183 lb (83 kg)
Career information
High schoolFlint Beecher (Flint, Michigan)
CollegeIowa State (2013–2017)
NBA draft2017: 2nd round, 51st overall pick
Selected by the Denver Nuggets
Playing career2017–present
Career history
2017–2022Denver Nuggets
2017–2018→Rio Grande Valley Vipers
2022–2023Washington Wizards
2023–2024Detroit Pistons
2024Minnesota Timberwolves
2024–presentPhoenix Suns
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference

Monté Robert Morris (/ˈmɒnteɪ/ MON-tay;[1] born June 27, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Iowa State Cyclones.

Early life

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Morris was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and his mother is Latonia Morris. His mother nicknamed him "Man-Man" when he was born.[2] He grew up in Flint, Michigan attending Flint Beecher High School. Morris was childhood friends with future NBA player and later NBA teammate, Kyle Kuzma, as both attended Dailey Elementary School.[3] He was a four-year starter for the Beecher Buccaneers. Morris was a three-time winner of Michigan's Associated Press Class C Player of the Year Award and a three time all-state selection.[4] He led the Buccaneers in scoring, assists, and steals in all four seasons. He led Flint Beecher to back-to-back Class C Michigan state titles in 2012 and 2013. One of the nation's best point guards, Morris won Michigan's Mr. Basketball award in 2013.[5]

He was ranked No. 96[6] in the final Rivals.com national rankings and No. 89 in the Scout.com ratings as well as being a Parade All-American.[7] Morris was recruited to Butler, Illinois, Indiana, Arizona State, Cincinnati, Georgia Tech, USC, and Iowa State which he ultimately committed to.

College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Monte Morris
G 		Flint, MI Flint Beecher (MI) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jun 27, 2012 
Star ratings: Scout:4/5 stars   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 96, 21 (G)  ESPN: 84, 4 (MI), 17 (G)
  • 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:

  • "Iowa State 2013 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  • "2013 Iowa State Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  • "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved June 14, 2015.
  • "2013 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved June 14, 2015.

College career

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Freshman season

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Morris started the season on the bench but worked his way into the starting line-up against the Oklahoma Sooners on February 1, 2014, staying there ever since. Morris averaged 6.8 points, 3.7 assists, and 2.6 rebounds and dished out 134 assists, the third most by any freshman in school history. He shot 84.7 percent (61–72) at the free-throw line, the second-best mark by an ISU freshman, and was the only Big 12 freshman to make at least 25 threes (28–69) and shoot over 40 percent. He scored double figures in 13 games, including all three games in the NCAA tournament. Morris tallied a season-high 15 points in the Cyclones' NCAA Tournament win against NCCU and followed that with 13 against the North Carolina Tar Heels. He dished out five or more assists in 12 games and led all Big 12 freshmen with 46 steals, the fifth most by an ISU rookie. His 1.3 steals per game ranked seventh in the Big 12, and he had an ISU freshman record of 12 assists with no turnovers against West Virginia. He played 52 minutes of turnover-free basketball in ISU's triple-OT win at Oklahoma State and had 10 points and five assists, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 43 seconds left in the third overtime against the Cowboys. He broke the NCAA record and led the nation with a 4.79 assist-to-turnover ratio, including a 6.9 assist-to-turnover ratio in Big 12 play.[8]

Sophomore season

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Morris in 2016

Morris started all 34 games and averaged 11.9 points, second on the team. He also posted a Big 12-best 5.2 assists and 3.4 rebounds on his way to earning All-Big 12 Second-Team honors. He had second-most assists of any sophomore and 11th-most by any player in school history. Morris was second in the Big 12 in field goal percentage shooting 50.7 percent from the field, had 64 steals, the second-most by a sophomore and tied for the ninth-most by any player in a single season in school history. His 110 steals in the last two seasons were the most by any Big 12 player. His first-career 20-point game came against Texas Tech, he recorded his first double-double and just missed a triple-double with 11 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds against Kansas.[9] He tallied a career-high 24 points and hit a buzzer-beating 17-foot fadeaway to beat Texas in Big 12 quarterfinals.[10] He averaged 15.3 points to earn Big 12 All-Tournament team honors as the Cyclones won the Big 12 tournament for the second consecutive season and he did not commit a turnover in three games at the Big 12 Championship. He led the nation for the second consecutive season with a 4.63 assist-to-turnover ratio and finished season with 176 assists and just 38 turnovers.

Junior season

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On February 1, 2016, he was named one of 10 finalists for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award.[11] He was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy on February 11.[12]

Senior season

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Morris competing against Nevada in the NCAA tournament

Morris received preseason recognition on November 2, 2016, as the Associated Press named him to the preseason All-American team.[13] At the end of his senior season, Morris broke the NCAA record assist-to-turnover ratio from 4.79 he set his freshman year to the new record of 5.21.[14] In 2017, Morris led Iowa State to a 5th seed in the NCAA tournament and got into the second round before losing to Purdue.

Professional career

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Denver Nuggets (2017–2022)

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Morris was selected in the second round, 51st pick overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 2017 NBA draft. Following the Summer League he signed a two-way contract with the Nuggets. Under the terms of the deal he would split time between the Nuggets and a G League team that would be best designated for him.[15] For Morris, he was assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League on October 23, 2017.[16] On December 12, 2017, Morris made his NBA debut against the Detroit Pistons. He recorded an assist in three minutes of action. In three games with the Nuggets, he averaged 3.3 points per game. Morris averaged 18.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game with Rio Grande Valley.[17]

On December 29, 2020, Morris scored a career-high 24 points in a 125–115 loss to the Sacramento Kings.[18]

On February 16, 2022, Morris scored 13 points, including a game-winning three-point shot as time expired, in a 117–116 win over the Golden State Warriors.[19]

Washington Wizards (2022–2023)

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On July 6, 2022, Morris was traded, alongside Will Barton, to the Washington Wizards in exchange for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Ish Smith.[20] Morris made his Wizards debut on October 19, recording seven points, six rebounds, six assists and two steals in a 114–107 win over the Indiana Pacers.[21]

Detroit Pistons (2023–2024)

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On July 6, 2023, Morris was traded to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for a future second-round pick.[22] Due to a lengthy recovery from a quadriceps injury to begin the 2023–24 season, Morris played in just six games for the Pistons before being dealt away at the NBA trade deadline.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2024)

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On February 8, 2024, Morris was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in exchange for Troy Brown Jr., Shake Milton and a 2030 second-round pick.[23]

Phoenix Suns (2024–present)

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On July 5, 2024, Morris signed with the Phoenix Suns.[24]

National team career

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On March 20, 2021, Morris committed to play for the Nigerian national team as a naturalized player.[25]

Career statistics

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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  Bold  Career high
 *  Led the league

NBA

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Denver 3 0 8.4 .667 .000 1.000 .7 2.3 1.0 .0 3.3
2018–19 Denver 82* 6 24.0 .493 .414 .802 2.4 3.6 .9 .0 10.4
2019–20 Denver 73 12 22.4 .459 .378 .843 1.9 3.5 .8 .2 9.0
2020–21 Denver 47 13 25.5 .481 .381 .795 2.0 3.2 .7 .3 10.2
2021–22 Denver 75 74 29.9 .484 .396 .869 3.0 4.4 .7 .2 12.6
2022–23 Washington 62 61 27.4 .480 .382 .831 3.4 5.3 .7 .2 10.3
2023–24 Detroit 6 0 11.4 .364 .182 .500 2.0 1.3 .2 .2 4.5
Minnesota 27 0 15.1 .417 .424 .706 1.7 2.3 .7 .3 5.1
Career 375 166 24.6 .477 .391 .824 2.5 3.8 .8 .2 10.0

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019 Denver 14 0 16.0 .384 .000 .692 1.4 2.6 .4 .1 5.4
2020 Denver 19 4 21.4 .496 .300 .824 1.5 2.7 .6 .1 9.1
2021 Denver 10 1 28.6 .431 .400 .724 2.4 5.5 1.0 .2 13.7
2022 Denver 5 5 31.1 .490 .423 .750 2.2 5.4 1.2 .0 14.0
2024 Minnesota 9 0 7.4 .300 .071 1.000 .7 1.0 .2 .1 2.3
Career 57 10 20.0 .440 .301 .767 1.6 3.1 .6 .1 8.3

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 Iowa State 36 17 28.1 .430 .406 .847 2.6 3.7 1.3 .2 6.8
2014–15 Iowa State 34 34 33.9 .507 .395 .753 3.4 5.2 1.9 .4 11.9
2015–16 Iowa State 35 35 38.0 .487 .358 .729 3.9 6.9 1.8 .3 13.8
2016–17 Iowa State 35 35 35.3 .465 .378 .802 4.8 6.2 1.5 .3 16.4
Career 140 121 33.8 .476 .381 .780 3.7 5.5 1.6 .3 12.2

References

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  1. ^ "2023-24 start of season NBA pronunciation guide". NBA.com (Press release). October 24, 2023. Retrieved May 17, 2024.
  2. ^ "Monte Morris no longer little Man-Man". ESPN.com. September 25, 2014. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  3. ^ "NBA free agency 2022: Childhood friends Kyle Kuzma and Monte Morris finally playing together in NBA".
  4. ^ "Flint Beecher's Monte Morris named AP Class C All-State Player of the Year". Mlive.com. Associated Press. March 20, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  5. ^ "Beecher senior Monte Morris wins 2013 Mr. Basketball award over stellar field of finalists (with video)". Mlive.com. March 18, 2013. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  6. ^ "Monte Morris - Yahoo! Sports". Archived from the original on July 9, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
  7. ^ McLaughlin, Brian (May 18, 2013). "Meet PARADE's 2013 All-America Basketball Teams". Communitytable.com.
  8. ^ "Men's Basketball: Morris goes from overshadowed to budding star". Amestrib.com. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  9. ^ "Men's Basketball: Cyclones power way past Jayhawks". Amestrib.com. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  10. ^ "Watch: Monte Morris buzzer-beater lifts Iowa State over Texas in Big 12 tournament". Si.com.
  11. ^ Nortlander, Matt (February 1, 2016). "Cat Barber, Fred VanVleet missing from list of Cousy Award finalists". CBS Sports. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  12. ^ Payne, Terrence (February 11, 2016). "Naismith Trophy midseason list announced". Fox Sports. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
  13. ^ "Duke's Allen leads AP preseason All-America team". Foxsports.com. November 2, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  14. ^ Crawford, Kirkland (June 23, 2017). "2017 NBA draft: Four Michigan prep stars go; U-M's Walton, CMU's Keene denied". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  15. ^ "Nuggets Sign Rookie Monte Morris to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. July 21, 2017. Retrieved July 21, 2017.
  16. ^ "Denver Nuggets Assign Lydon/Transfer Craig, Morris to G League". NBA.com. October 23, 2017. Retrieved October 23, 2017.
  17. ^ "Final 2017-18 NBA G League stats for ex-Iowa collegians". The Gazette. March 27, 2018. Retrieved May 21, 2018.
  18. ^ "Nuggets vs. Kings - Game Preview - December 29, 2020 - ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  19. ^ "Inside Nuggets' Monte Morris' buzzer-beating 3-pointer vs. Warriors: "That's his nickname, Big Game Tae"". Denverpost.com. February 17, 2022. Retrieved March 4, 2022.
  20. ^ "Wizards Acquire Morris and Barton in Trade with Denver". nba.com. July 6, 2022. Retrieved July 6, 2022.
  21. ^ "BEAL, WIZARDS OPEN SEASON WITH 114-107 WIN OVER PACERS". NBA.com. Retrieved February 16, 2023.
  22. ^ "DETROIT PISTONS ACQUIRE MONTE MORRIS". NBA.com. July 6, 2023. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
  23. ^ "Minnesota Timberwolves Acquire Guard Monte Morris from Detroit Pistons". NBA.com. February 8, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  24. ^ "SUNS SIGN MONTE MORRIS". NBA.com. July 5, 2024. Retrieved July 6, 2024.
  25. ^ Colin Udoh (March 20, 2021). "Denver Nuggets' Monte Morris commits to play for Nigeria internationally". ESPN. Retrieved May 21, 2021.
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