Lee Hyun-jung (basketball)

Last updated

Lee Hyun-jung
Lee Hyun-jung (cropped).jpg
Lee Hyun-jung at the United States Naval Academy in 2019
No. 2Illawarra Hawks
Position Shooting guard / small forward
League NBL
Personal information
Born (2000-10-23) October 23, 2000 (age 23)
Seongnam, South Korea
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school
College Davidson (2019–2022)
NBA draft 2022: undrafted
Playing career2018–present
Career history
2018–2019 BA Centre of Excellence
2023 Santa Cruz Warriors
2023–present Illawarra Hawks
Career highlights and awards
  • First-team All-Atlantic 10 (2022)
  • Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team (2020)
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea
FIBA Asia Under-16 Championship
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg 2015 Indonesia Team

Lee Hyun-jung (born October 23, 2000) is a South Korean professional basketball player for the Illawarra Hawks of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for the Davidson Wildcats of the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10).

Contents

Early life and career

Lee attended Samil Commercial School in Suwon, where he played basketball under the coaching of his father. [1] In middle school, Lee was only 170 centimeters and played as a guard, as he practiced dribbling and mid-range shooting. By the end of his middle school years, Lee grew to over 190 centimeters. He played as a center during defense and a guard during the offense. [2] He modeled his game after Klay Thompson. [3]

In 2018, Lee enrolled at the NBA Global Academy in Canberra, Australia. [4] While at the academy, he played for the BA Centre of Excellence in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL) in 2018 and then the NBL1 in 2019. [5] In conjunction with the NBA Global Academy and the Centre of Excellence, he attended Lake Ginninderra Secondary College, [6] where he learned to speak English. [4]

Lee committed to playing college basketball for Davidson over an offer from Washington State. He drew the attention of head coach Bob McKillop and his staff at a Basketball Without Borders event. [4] He would become the fourth player and the second men's player from South Korea to play NCAA Division I basketball. [7]

College career

As a freshman with the Davidson Wildcats in 2019–20, Lee appeared in 28 games off the bench and finished seventh among A-10 first-year players in scoring, averaging 8.4 points per game. [6] On February 7, 2020, he scored a season-high 20 points in a 73–62 loss to VCU. [8] He was subsequently named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team. [6] [9]

As a sophomore in 2020–21, Lee started all 22 games and finished second on the team in scoring and assists. He became the first-ever Wildcat to conclude the season shooting at least 50 percent overall, 40 percent from 3-point range and 90 percent from the free throw line. He twice scored a season-high 23 points. [6] He averaged 13.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. [6]

As a junior in 2021–22, Lee played in 34 games and made 33 starts, averaging 15.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game. [6] On December 1, 2021, he recorded a career-high 32 points and 14 rebounds against Charlotte. [10] [11] He was subsequently named first-team All-Atlantic 10. [12]

On April 26, 2022, Lee declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility. [13]

Professional career

Santa Cruz Warriors (2023)

After suffering a foot injury, [14] [15] Lee went undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft. [16]

On February 20, 2023, Lee was acquired by the Santa Cruz Warriors of the NBA G League. [17] In 12 games to complete the 2022–23 season, he averaged 5.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. [18]

Lee played for the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2023 NBA Summer League. [19]

Illawarra Hawks (2023–present)

On July 11, 2023, Lee signed a three-year deal with the Illawarra Hawks of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL). [19] On January 20, 2024, he had career-best night in the NBL with 24 points on 5-of-8 three-point shooting in a 96–89 loss to the Adelaide 36ers. [20]

National team career

Lee played for South Korea's junior national team at the 2015 FIBA Asia Under-16 Championship. He averaged 14 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, leading his team to its first gold medal at the tournament. [21] [22] Lee represented South Korea at the 2016 FIBA Under-17 World Championship and 2018 FIBA Under-18 Asian Championship. [1] He averaged 26 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 6 assists per game at the 2018 tournament. [23] He played for the senior team at the 2020 FIBA Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournaments and during the 2022 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers. [24]

Personal life

Lee's mother, Sung Jung-a, won a silver medal while representing South Korea in basketball at the 1984 Summer Olympics. His father, Lee Yoon-hwan, played semi-professionally before becoming a high school athletic director and coach. His older sister, Lee Ri-na, played for the South Korean under-16 national team. [25]

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 Bold Career high

College

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
2019–20 Davidson 28020.9.467.377.8573.1.8.6.18.4
2020–21 Davidson 222229.9.508.442.9004.02.5.5.413.5
2021–22 Davidson 343332.1.474.381.7776.01.9.7.315.8
Career845527.8.481.397.8234.51.7.6.212.7

NBA G League

YearTeamGPGSMPGFG%3P%FT%RPGAPGSPGBPGPPG
2022–23 Santa Cruz 12017.6.319.292.6004.21.7.8.35.5
Career 12017.6.319.292.6004.21.7.8.35.5

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References

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