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Maurice Ager

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Maurice Ager
Personal information
Born (1984-02-09) February 9, 1984 (age 40)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight202 lb (92 kg)
Career information
High schoolCrockett (Detroit, Michigan)
CollegeMichigan State (2002–2006)
NBA draft2006: 1st round, 28th overall pick
Selected by the Dallas Mavericks
Playing career2006–2010
PositionShooting guard
Number13, 15
Career history
2006–2008Dallas Mavericks
2006–2007Fort Worth Flyers
2008Tulsa 66ers
2008–2009New Jersey Nets
2009–2010Cajasol Sevilla
2010Maine Red Claws
2010Minnesota Timberwolves
Career highlights and awards
  • 2× Second-team All-Big Ten (2005, 2006)
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

Maurice Darnell Ager (born February 9, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans from 2002 until 2006. Ager led the Spartans to the NCAA Final Four as a junior in 2005 and averaged 14 points per game. He led the Big Ten Conference in scoring during his senior season. Ager was selected by the Dallas Mavericks with 28th overall pick of the 2006 NBA draft. He played parts of four seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Dallas Mavericks, New Jersey Nets and Minnesota Timberwolves. Ager also played in the NBA Development League and in Spain.

Ager became a record producer after his retirement from playing. He has lived in China and Vietnam where he ran basketball camps for children.

Early life

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Ager was raised in Detroit, Michigan.[1] His mother, Mattie Ager, was a doo-wop singer and married an architect and instrumentalist, Melvin Rucker.[1] Ager attended Crockett High School where he averaged 24 points, 7 rebounds and 4 assists as a senior on the basketball team.[1]

College career

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Ager attended Michigan State from 2002 to 2006. In his freshman year, he averaged 6.7 points per game as the Spartans advanced to the Elite Eight before losing to Texas.[2] As a sophomore in 2004, he increased his scoring average to 8.5 points per game while averaging 22.5 minutes per game.

In 2005, Ager was the top scorer for Michigan State, averaging 14.1 points per game while averaging 26.3 minutes per game.[3] He led the Spartans to the Final Four by defeating Kentucky in a double-overtime game in the Elite Eight. He was named to the Austin All-Regional team after averaging 16.8 points and 5 rebounds a game.[4] Ager scored 24 points against North Carolina in the Final Four, but the Spartans lost to the eventual national champions.[5]

Ager again led the Spartans in scoring in 2006, as he averaged 19.3 points per game as a senior. On November 22, 2005, at the Maui Invitational Tournament, Ager faced off against Gonzaga's Adam Morrison. Down by three, Ager sank a three-point shot at the buzzer to send the game into overtime. Despite Ager's team-high 36 points, Gonzaga knocked off the Spartans in triple overtime 109–106.[6] The next day Ager led the Spartans with 20 points to defeat Arizona 74–71 in overtime.[7]

Ager finished his career with 1,554 points with the Spartans.[8]

Professional career

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Ager was selected by the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA draft with the 28th overall pick.[9]

While with the Mavericks in 2006, Ager was assigned to the Fort Worth Flyers of the D-League.[10] Ager would appear in 32 games in his rookie season for the Mavericks. He appeared in 12 games for the Mavericks in 2007–08. On February 19, 2008, Ager was traded by the Mavericks to the New Jersey Nets in a multi-player deal involving point guard Jason Kidd.[11] During this time, he also played in the NBA's D-League. Ager would appear in 14 games for the Nets and 20 games in 2008–09. Following his stint with the Nets, he played in the D-League and Spain. After appearing four games for the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2010, he was waived on November 11, 2010.[12]

NBA 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

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2006–07 Dallas 32 1 6.7 .314 .333 .606 .7 .2 .1 .1 2.2
2007–08 Dallas 12 3 6.4 .185 .000 .833 .3 .3 .0 .1 1.3
2007–08 New Jersey 14 0 6.3 .421 .273 .167 .6 .3 .0 .0 2.6
2008–09 New Jersey 20 0 4.9 .349 .000 .500 .5 .2 .1 .1 1.7
2010–11 Minnesota 4 0 7.3 .545 .750 .000 .5 .3 .3 .0 3.8
Career 82 4 6.2 .339 .250 .566 .6 .2 .1 .1 2.1

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2007 Dallas 3 0 8.0 .556 .667 .500 1.0 .0 .0 .0 5.0
Career 3 0 8.0 .556 .667 .500 1.0 .0 .0 .0 5.0

Post-playing career

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Record production

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In 2010, Ager relocated to Los Angeles, California, and embarked on a career as a hip hop record producer.[1] In July 2011, he signed a non-exclusive deal with Akon's record label 50/50 Konvict Muzik.[1]

Ager received ballot consideration for the 56th Annual Grammy Awards for his single, "Far From Home."[13] Ager's single, "Forever I'm a Spartan," was released as an anthem for the Michigan State University football team in 2010.[14][15]

Basketball camps

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Ager lived in China from 2017 to 2019 and hosted basketball camps for children.[16] He moved to Hanoi, Vietnam, in 2019 and ran the Moe Ager Hoop School.[16]

Personal life

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Ager was raised as a devout Christian by his mother.[17] During his college career, his Michigan State head coach, Tom Izzo, moved team practices on Sunday to afternoons so Ager could attend morning church services.[17]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Palmer, Chris (September 12, 2011). "Maurice Ager's second act". ESPN. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  2. ^ "2002-03 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  3. ^ "2004-05 Michigan State Spartans Roster and Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  4. ^ "Maurice Ager - M. Basketball". Michigan State University Athletics. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  5. ^ "Maurice Ager Michigan State profile". Michigan State Spartans. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  6. ^ Dye, Dave (December 11, 2005). "Ager's stellar game does his talking now". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  7. ^ "Spartans beat out Wildcats in close game, finish third in Maui Invitational". CBSSports.com. November 23, 2005. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  8. ^ "Maurice Ager College Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com". Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  9. ^ "Mavericks sign first-round pick Maurice Ager". ESPN.com. July 1, 2006. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  10. ^ "You are being redirected..." Nba.com.
  11. ^ Beck, Howard (February 21, 2008). "New Nets Arrive, but Harris's Debut Is Delayed". The New York Times.
  12. ^ "Wolves waive Ager, look to sign free-agent PG". Espn.com. November 12, 2010. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  13. ^ "Former NBA first-round pick, Grammy nominee follows passions". Sporting News. July 11, 2015. Retrieved April 18, 2017.
  14. ^ "Ex-MSU basketball player Maurice Ager turns hip-hop music maker". mlive. Associated Press. July 6, 2010. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  15. ^ "Two Dreams, One Lifetime: The Maurice Ager Story". Sir Charles In Charge. November 2, 2015. Retrieved July 13, 2022.
  16. ^ a b Cowan, Peter (June 27, 2019). "Vietnamese hoop dreams with Moe Ager". Vietnam News. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  17. ^ a b Morrill, Julia (November 21, 2005). "FINAL FOUR REGULARS IN RECENT YEARS, THE SPARTANS ARE PRIMED FOR A RETURN TRIP". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
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