Kyle Wiltjer

Last updated

Kyle Wiltjer
Kyle Wiltjer - Penya-Unicaja by unniks-14.jpg
Wiltjer with Unicaja in 2018
No. 33Umana Reyer Venezia
Position Power forward
League Lega A
Personal information
Born (1992-10-20) October 20, 1992 (age 32)
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
NationalityCanadian / American
Listed height6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High school Jesuit (Beaverton, Oregon)
College
NBA draft 2016: undrafted
Playing career2016–present
Career history
2016–2017 Houston Rockets
2016–2017Rio Grande Valley Vipers
2017–2018 Olympiacos Piraeus
2018–2019 Unicaja Malaga
2019–2021 Türk Telekom
2021–2022 Lenovo Tenerife
2022–2023 Zhejiang Lions
2023–present Reyer Venezia
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Stats at Basketball Reference   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Medals
Men's Basketball
Representing Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
FIBA Americas U-18 Championship
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2010 San Antonio
Pan American Games
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2015 Toronto

Kyle Gregory Wiltjer (born October 20, 1992) is a Canadian-American professional basketball player for Reyer Venezia Mestre of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). He spent two seasons of college basketball with the Kentucky Wildcats before transferring to play with the Gonzaga Bulldogs in 2013. [1] A dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada, he has played for the Canada national team.

Contents

High school career

Born and raised in Portland, Wiltjer attended Jesuit High School in Beaverton, Oregon, where he led the school to three consecutive Oregon state championships.

Wiltjer played in the 2011 McDonald's All-American Game in Chicago. He also played in the 2011 Nike Hoop Summit in his hometown of Portland and in the 2011 Jordan Brand Classic in Charlotte.

College recruiting and career

Wiltjer was ranked as the No. 18 recruit in the class of 2011 in the ESPNU 100, the No. 25 recruit by Rivals.com, and the No. 22 recruit by Scout.com. He chose to play basketball for the University of Kentucky Wildcats and coach John Calipari on August 28, 2010. He had also considered Kansas, California, Texas, Gonzaga, Georgia Tech, and Wake Forest.

Although he was a five-star recruit according to all of the recruiting analysts, Kyle Wiltjer never started a game his freshman season at Kentucky, and did not play as many minutes as fellow freshmen Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Marquis Teague. He averaged only 11.3 MPG and 4.8 PPG, although his three-point percentage was an impressive 42.5%. The Kentucky Wildcats won the 2012 NCAA championship during Wiltjer's freshman year.

Wiltjer began the 2012–13 season as a starter. In his third game of the season, against Lafayette, he accumulated 23 points, two assists, and four rebounds. However, he would eventually settle into an off-the-bench role, being named the SEC's Sixth Man of the Year.

In April 2013, he had announced he would remain at Kentucky for his junior season. However, he eventually changed his mind, posting a letter on Kentucky's official athletic website on June 23 indicating that he would transfer in order to "compete the way I know I can. ... wherever that may be." A later report indicated that Wiltjer had drawn interest from three of the four Division I programs in his home state of Oregon (Oregon, Oregon State, Portland), Gonzaga, Stanford, and Texas. According to that report, "he left the door open to return to Kentucky if he can't find the right situation." [2] On July 19, multiple media outlets reported that Wiltjer had chosen Gonzaga. [3] [4] The transfer became official the next day, when Gonzaga received a signed copy of a financial aid agreement. After sitting out the 2013–14 season due to NCAA transfer rules, he had two remaining seasons of eligibility. [5]

In February 2015 he scored a career-high 45 points against Pacific. [6] Wiltjer led Gonzaga to its second ever Elite Eight appearance and a school record 35–3 record. He was named a Consensus Second-Team All-American, as well as First-Team All-WCC and WCC Newcomer of the Year. [7] In his first season with Gonzaga he appeared in 38 games averaging 16.8 points per game, 6.2 rebounds per game and 1.9 assists per game in 27.6 minutes per game. [8] After contemplating forgoing his remaining eligibility to enter the 2015 NBA draft, Wiltjer decided to return to Gonzaga for his senior year. [9]

Entering his second season with Gonzaga, Wiltjer was named CBS Sports' preseason player of the year. [10] Sports Illustrated projected Wiltjer as the preseason player of the year, scoring champion, and the top-usage player in all of NCAA Division 1 basketball. [11] He was named to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy on February 11. [12]

Professional career

Houston Rockets (2016–2017)

After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft, Wiltjer joined the Houston Rockets for the 2016 NBA Summer League. [13] On September 23, 2016, he signed with the Rockets. [14] Wiltjer appeared in four of the Rockets' first 25 games of the 2016–17 season, scoring a total of three points. On December 14, 2016, he scored a season-high seven points in a 132–98 win over the Sacramento Kings. [15] During his rookie season, Wiltjer had multiple assignments with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the Rockets' D-League affiliate. [16]

On June 28, 2017, the Los Angeles Clippers acquired Wiltjer, Patrick Beverley, Sam Dekker, Montrezl Harrell, Darrun Hilliard, DeAndre Liggins, Lou Williams and a 2018 Top 3 Protected first-round pick (which ended up being pick #30) from the Houston Rockets in exchange for Chris Paul. [17] He was later waived by the Clippers on July 15, 2017. [18]

Olympiacos (2017–2018)

On August 15, 2017, Wiltjer signed with the Toronto Raptors. [19] On October 7 he was waived by the Raptors. [20] On October 21, he signed with the Toronto Raptors' NBA G League affiliate, the Raptors 905. [21]

On October 29, 2017, Wiltjer signed with Olympiacos Piraeus of the Greek Basket League and the EuroLeague. [22] [23]

Unicaja (2018–2019)

On July 3, 2018, Wiltjer signed a one-year deal with Unicaja of the Spanish Liga ACB. [24]

Türk Telekom (2019–2021)

Wiltjer signed with Türk Telekom in July 2019. [25] He averaged 12.7 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game in the 2019–20 season, [26] and then averaged 18.5 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game in the 2020–21 season. [27]

Canarias (2021–2022)

On July 13, 2021, Wiltjer signed a one-year contract with Lenovo Tenerife of the Spanish Liga ACB. [27]

Zhejiang Lions (2022–2023)

On October 2, 2022, Wiltjer signed with the Zhejiang Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). [28]

Reyer Venezia (2023–present)

On September 21, 2023, Wiltjer signed with Reyer Venezia Mestre of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). [29]

National team career

Canada junior national team

As a member of the Canadian Under-18 junior national team, Wiltjer won a bronze medal at the 2010 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship. As a member of the Canadian university national team, he played at the 2013 World University Games.

Canada senior national team

With the senior Canada national basketball team, Wiltjer played at the 2015 Pan American Games, where he won a silver medal. [30]

In 2019, Wiltjer participated in the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup in China. Wiltjer was the team leader in point per game at 16.4. The team finished 21st out of 32 teams. [31] [32]

Career statistics

Legend
  GPGames 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 PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold Career high

Professional

NBA

Regular season
YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
2016–17 Houston 1403.1.286.308.500.7.1.2.1.9

Playoffs

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
2016–17 Houston 105.01.0001.000.0.0.0.03.0

EuroLeague

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPGPIR
2017–18 Olympiacos 2429.4.476.420.6671.4.1.2.14.53.3
Career2429.4.476.420.6671.4.1.2.14.53.3

College

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
2011–12 Kentucky 40011.6.438.432.8151.80.40.10.45.0
2012–13 Kentucky 331023.8.421.367.8104.21.50.40.410.2
2014–15 Gonzaga 383727.6.540.466.7896.21.90.50.716.8
2015–16 Gonzaga 363633.6.491.437.8576.31.50.40.820.4
Career1478323.8.487.425.8144.61.30.30.613.0

Awards and honors

High school

College

Personal life

Wiltjer's father, Greg, is a former Canadian professional basketball player [34] who was a member of the Canadian national basketball team at the 1984 Summer Olympics. [35] His paternal half-sister and Greg's daughter, Jordan Adams, is also a former professional player. [36] Both Greg and Adams also represented Canada. [37] [38] Through Adams, Wiltjer has two nieces. [39]

Wiltjer and his former girlfriend Charday Hunt, who was a Sacramento State Hornets player and later a Nike employee, married in Ios, Greece, in 2019. [40] [41]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kyle Lowry</span> American basketball player (born 1986)

Kyle Terrell Lowry is an American professional basketball player for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A six-time All-Star, he was named to the All-NBA Third Team in 2016 and won an NBA championship with the Toronto Raptors in 2019, their first and only title in franchise history. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Raptors players of all time due to his work with turning the franchise around, from the post-Vince Carter era to their first-ever championship in 2019. As starting point guard, Lowry played an integral role in the Raptors' success from 2012 to 2021. Lowry was also a member of the U.S. national team that won a gold medal in the 2016 Summer Olympics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goran Dragić</span> Slovenian basketball player (born 1986)

Goran Dragić is a Slovenian former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "the Dragon", he played professional basketball in Slovenia and Spain before entering the NBA in 2008. Dragić also played for the Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat, Houston Rockets, Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets, Chicago Bulls and the Milwaukee Bucks. He was an All-NBA Third Team selection and the NBA Most Improved Player with the Suns in 2014. He was named an NBA All-Star for the first time in 2018 with Miami. He led the senior Slovenian national team to its first FIBA EuroBasket title in 2017, while being named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

Gregory Hilko Wiltjer is a Canadian former professional basketball player, Olympian, NJCAA All-American and CIAU All-Canadian. He was drafted 43rd overall in the 1984 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. He spent 12 seasons playing professionally in Europe where he won the FIBA European Cup Winners' Cup with FC Barcelona (1985–86); and two Greek League Championships and two Greek Cups with Aris Thessaloniki.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin Daye</span> American basketball player (born 1988)

Austin Darren Daye is an American professional basketball player for New Taipei Kings of the Taiwan Professional Basketball League (TPBL). He played college basketball for Gonzaga before being drafted 15th overall by the Detroit Pistons in the 2009 NBA draft. He has played for the Pistons, the Memphis Grizzlies, the Toronto Raptors, the San Antonio Spurs and the Atlanta Hawks, while also spending time in Russia, Italy and the NBA Development League. Daye won an NBA championship with the Spurs in 2014. With Umana Reyer Venezia, Daye won the Lega Basket Serie A championship in 2019 and the Italian Basketball Cup in 2020; he was also named most valuable player of the 2019 LBA finals and the 2020 Italian Basketball Cup finals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kelly Olynyk</span> Canadian basketball player (born 1991)

Kelly Tyler Olynyk is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs, where he earned NCAA All-American honours in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Sacre</span> American-Canadian basketball player

Robert Sacre is an American-Canadian professional basketball player who is the assistant general manager for the Vancouver Bandits of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL). A dual citizen of the United States and Canada, he has played for the Canadian national basketball team. After playing college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs, he was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the last overall pick in the second round of the 2012 NBA draft. He played four seasons with the Lakers and three seasons with the Sun Rockers Shibuya in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cory Joseph</span> Canadian basketball player (born 1991)

Cory Ephram Joseph is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Orlando Magic of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He plays the point guard position and was previously the captain of the Canadian national team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anthony Bennett (basketball)</span> Canadian basketball player (born 1993)

Anthony Harris Bennett is a Canadian professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. He played college basketball for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) for one year. He was the first overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Cleveland Cavaliers, becoming the first Canadian to be drafted number one overall. He played only four seasons in the NBA, averaging 4.4 points, and is often considered the worst number-one pick in league history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kevin Pangos</span> Canadian basketball player

Kevin Joseph Pangos is a Canadian-Slovenian professional basketball player for GeVi Napoli of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). He spent his college basketball career playing for the Gonzaga Bulldogs of the West Coast Conference. He was named the 2015 WCC Player of the Year, as well as a third-team All-American by Sporting News. Pangos has also represented Canada on the international stage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domantas Sabonis</span> Lithuanian-American basketball player

Domantas Sabonis is a Lithuanian-American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Lithuanian national team. Son of the Hall of Fame player Arvydas Sabonis, Sabonis is a two-time All-NBA Team member, three-time NBA All-Star, and has led the league in rebounds twice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montrezl Harrell</span> American basketball player (born 1994)

Montrezl Dashay Harrell is an American professional basketball player for the Adelaide 36ers of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Louisville Cardinals where he received the Karl Malone Award in 2015 as a junior for being the top power forward in the nation. Harrell was selected in the second round of the 2015 NBA draft by the Houston Rockets. He was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 2017 where he was awarded as the NBA Sixth Man of the Year in 2020. Harrell spent the following three seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, Washington Wizards, Charlotte Hornets and Philadelphia 76ers. He missed the entire 2023–24 season after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury. Harrell signed with the 36ers in 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Dekker</span> American basketball player (born 1994)

Samuel Thomas Dekker is an American professional basketball player for the Joventut Badalona of the Liga ACB and EuroCup Basketball. Dekker played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers. After finishing college on a championship game run in the 2015 NCAA Tournament, Dekker was selected by the Houston Rockets with the 18th overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Przemek Karnowski</span> Polish basketball player

Przemysław Marcin "Przemek" Karnowski is the Arizona men’s basketball graduate assistant and a former professional basketball player.

Kyle Collinsworth is an American professional basketball player who last played for the San-en NeoPhoenix of the B.League. He played college basketball for Brigham Young University (BYU). During the 2014–15 season, Collinsworth broke the NCAA single-season record for triple-doubles with six, which also tied the NCAA career record. On March 16, 2016, Collinsworth recorded his twelfth career triple-double, extending the NCAA record he set earlier in the season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Killian Tillie</span> French basketball player

Killian Wiard Tillie is a French professional basketball player for Unicaja Malaga of the Liga ACB and the Basketball Champions League (BCL). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs. Tillie joined Gonzaga University beginning in the 2016–17 season.

The 2015–16 West Coast Conference men's basketball season began with practices in October 2015 and ended with the 2016 West Coast Conference men's basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena March 4–8, 2016 in Paradise, Nevada. The regular season began in November, with the conference schedule starting at the end of December.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rui Hachimura</span> Japanese-Beninese basketball player (born 1998)

Rui Hachimura is a Japanese professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and has played for the Japan national team. He plays both the small forward and power forward positions. After being selected ninth overall by the Washington Wizards in the 2019 NBA draft, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zach Collins</span> American basketball player (born 1997)

Zach Collins is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs. He was drafted by the Sacramento Kings with the 10th overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft and was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers on draft night. During his earlier career with the team he battled many injuries causing him to only play in 154 games in his first 4 seasons. He joined the Spurs as a free agent in August 2021.

Joël Ayayi is a French professional basketball player for JL Bourg of the LNB Pro A. He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Duane Notice</span> Canadian basketball player

Duane Notice is a Canadian basketball player for the Vancouver Bandits of the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL). He played college basketball for the University of South Carolina where he is the all-time leader in games played. He won the SEC Sixth Man of the Year award in 2016 and played in the 2017 Final Four. He also plays for the Canadian national team.

References

  1. Graves, Gary (June 23, 2013). "Kentucky F Kyle Wiltjer says he is transferring". CollegeBasketball.ap.org. Associated Press . Retrieved June 23, 2013.
  2. "Kyle Wiltjer may transfer from UK". ESPN.com. June 25, 2013. Retrieved June 25, 2013.
  3. Goodman, Jeff (July 19, 2013). "Sources: Kyle Wiltjer to Gonzaga". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  4. Borzello, Jeff (July 19, 2013). "Kentucky transfer Kyle Wiltjer headed to Gonzaga". CBSSports.com. Retrieved July 20, 2013.
  5. "Kyle Wiltjer Officially Joins Gonzaga Men's Basketball Team". GoZags.com (Press release). Gonzaga Athletics. July 20, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved July 23, 2013.{{cite press release}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. "Wiltjer's has career-high 45, No. 2 Gonzaga beats Pacific". USAToday.com. February 20, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
  7. 1 2 3 "WCC Announces 2015 Men's Basketball All-Conference Team". WCCSports.com. March 3, 2015. Archived from the original on March 5, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  8. "Kyle Wiltjer player profile". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 29, 2015.
  9. Vecenie, Sam (April 20, 2015). "Gonzaga forward Kyle Wiltjer returning for senior season". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  10. Parrish, Gary (October 6, 2015). "Gonzaga senior Kyle Wiltjer is CBS Sports' Preseason Player of Year". CBSSports.com. Retrieved October 6, 2015.
  11. Winn, Luke (October 13, 2015). "Player of the Year projections: Wiltjer, Simmons a cut above competition". SI.com. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  12. Payne, Terrence (February 11, 2016). "Naismith Trophy midseason list announced". FoxSports.com. Retrieved February 19, 2016.
  13. "Rockets to Compete in Samsung NBA Summer League 2016". NBA.com. July 1, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  14. "Rockets Announce Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. September 23, 2016. Retrieved September 23, 2016.
  15. "Kyle Wiltjer 2016–17 Game Log". Basketball-Reference.com. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  16. "2016–17 NBA Assignments". NBA.com. Archived from the original on January 26, 2017. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  17. "Press Release: L.A. Clippers Acquire Seven Players and Draft Pick, Including Beverley, Dekker, Harrell and Williams". NBA.com. June 28, 2017. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  18. Charania, Shams (July 15, 2017). "Clippers Waive Kyle Wiltjer". RealGM.com. Retrieved July 15, 2017.
  19. "Raptors Sign Kyle Wiltjer". NBA.com. August 15, 2017. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  20. "Raptors waive Rautins, Meeks, Wiltjer". Toronto Star . October 7, 2017. Retrieved October 7, 2017.
  21. "Raptors' Kyle Wiltjer: Signs with Raptors' G-League affiliate". CBSSports.com. October 21, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
  22. Olympiacos signs big man Wiltjer.
  23. Συμφώνησε με Γουίλτζερ ο Θρύλος. Olympiacos BC (in Greek). October 29, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2017.
  24. "Wiltjer, first singning of Unicaja / Web Oficial del Unicaja Baloncesto". www.unicajabaloncesto.com. July 3, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  25. Bourannis, Yiannis (July 19, 2019). "Kyle Wiltjer signed with Turk Telekom". TalkBasket.net. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  26. Varney, Dennis (March 26, 2020). "Catch up with 36 ex-Cats playing pro basketball in leagues outside the NBA". Lexington Herald-Leader . Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  27. 1 2 "El Lenovo Tenerifa Ficha a Kyle Wiltjer". cbcanarias.net (in Spanish). July 13, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
  28. "Kyle Wiltjer lands in China". Eurohoops. October 3, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  29. "Reyer completes signing of Kyle Wiltjer". euroleaguebasketball.net. September 21, 2023. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  30. Kyle Gregory WILTJER (CAN).
  31. "Canada at the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019".
  32. "2019 Stats – Canada".
  33. "USBWA names 2014–15 All-Americans". SportsWriters.net. Retrieved March 16, 2015.
  34. "Kyle Wiltjer Bio". GoZags.com. Archived from the original on February 1, 2018. Retrieved June 28, 2017.
  35. "Kyle Wiltjer". July 11, 2015.
  36. "Lobos Center Jordan Adams Selected In 2003 WNBA Draft". Golobos.com. University of New Mexico. April 25, 2003. Archived from the original on September 26, 2017.
  37. "Gregory Hilko WILTJER (CAN)". FIBA.
  38. "Jordan Adams Smith". Golobos.com. University of New Mexico. November 27, 2012. Archived from the original on September 26, 2017.
  39. Adams, Eric (March 16, 2020). "ENMU Graduate Creates New Mexico-Themed Subscription Box" (Interview). Interviewed by Desiree Cooper. Eastern New Mexico University. Retrieved April 6, 2022. We have two daughters, Rylee and Alayna.
  40. Kinsey, Joe (March 24, 2016). "Meet Charday Hunt – Kyle Wiltjer's Girlfriend". Busted Coverage. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  41. "Kyle Wiltjer combines message of equality with his love of fashion". TownAndCountryToday.com. Canadian Press. January 22, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2022. My wife (the couple was married last summer on the Greek island of Ios) is half white, half African American, and so we're an interracial couple. And we just want to promote a positive message, especially to the youth, that everyone should be equal. This sounds so simple, but that's really where all the ideas came from.