Aaron Gray
 Gray with the Raptors in 2013 | |
| Detroit Pistons | |
|---|---|
| Position | Assistant coach |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | December 7, 1984 Tarzana, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) |
| Listed weight | 270 lb (122 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Emmaus (Emmaus, Pennsylvania) |
| College | Pittsburgh (2003–2007) |
| NBA draft | 2007: 2nd round, 49th overall pick |
| Selected by the Chicago Bulls | |
| Playing career | 2007–2014 |
| Position | Center |
| Number | 34, 33 |
| Career history | |
| As player: | |
| 2007–2010 | Chicago Bulls |
| 2010–2011 | New Orleans Hornets |
| 2011–2013 | Toronto Raptors |
| 2013–2014 | Sacramento Kings |
| 2014 | Detroit Pistons |
| As coach: | |
| 2015-present | Detroit Pistons (assistant) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Aaron Michael Gray (born December 7, 1984) is an American retired professional basketball player who played nine seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A heart condition forced him into early retirement at the end of the 2014–15 season. He is currently an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons though he is under a player contract for one more year. In July 2014, Gray married Loredana (Bartucci) Gray. The couple have a son, Aaron Joseph Gray, who was born in April 2015.
High school career
Gray played high school basketball at Emmaus High School in Pennsylvania's highly competitive Lehigh Valley Conference. Gray did not start playing for the varsity team until the middle of his sophomore season.
While at Emmaus, Gray was recruited by, and committed to attend, the University of Pittsburgh. He chose Pitt over Penn State and Rutgers, which also aggressively recruited him. In Gray's senior season, he won the Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year.
College career
While at Pitt, Gray was named an Associated Press Third Team All-American, after helping lead the University of Pittsburgh to the Sweet 16 in the 2007 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament in March 2007.
Professional playing career
At the NBA's 2007 pre-draft camp, Gray was the only player whose height measured at least seven feet without shoes.[citation needed] He was selected with the 49th overall pick by the Chicago Bulls in the 2007 NBA draft.
Chicago Bulls
Gray made his NBA debut with the Bulls on November 2, 2007 against the Philadelphia 76ers. On April 16, 2008 against the Toronto Raptors, he recorded 19 points, 22 rebounds and 2 assists in 35 minutes of play.[1] In the 2007–08 season, Gray scored 262 points and recorded 168 rebounds for the Bulls.
New Orleans Hornets
On January 25, 2010, the Bulls traded Gray to the New Orleans Hornets for Devin Brown.[2]
On July 15, 2010, the Hornets re-signed Gray.[3]
Toronto Raptors
On December 11, 2011, Gray was signed to a one-year contract by the Toronto Raptors.[4][5]
On July 27, 2012, Gray was re-signed by the Raptors.[6]
On January 28, 2013, Gray recorded a career high 22 points, along with 10 rebounds, in a 114-102 loss to Golden State Warriors.[7]
Sacramento Kings
On December 9, 2013, the Raptors traded Gray, along with Rudy Gay and Quincy Acy to the Sacramento Kings for Greivis Vásquez, Patrick Patterson, John Salmons, and Chuck Hayes.[8]
Detroit Pistons
On August 18, 2014, Gray signed with the Detroit Pistons.[9] On September 29, 2014, the Pistons announced Gray would miss training camp while rehabbing from a cardiac episode suffered following a voluntary workout in late August.[10] On October 26, 2014, he was waived by the Pistons.[11]
Coaching career
On June 19, 2015, Gray decided to retire after a blood clot was discovered in his heart in the summer of 2014,[12] subsequently joining Stan Van Gundy's staff at the Detroit Pistons as an assistant coach to work with the team's big men, and with the young prospects of the team's NBA D-League affiliate, the Grand Rapids Drive.[12]
NBA career statistics
| 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
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Chicago | 61 | 1 | 10.0 | .505 | .000 | .566 | 2.8 | .7 | .3 | .3 | 4.3 |
| 2008–09 | Chicago | 56 | 18 | 12.8 | .485 | .000 | .576 | 3.9 | .8 | .3 | .3 | 3.5 |
| 2009–10 | Chicago | 8 | 0 | 6.3 | .381 | .000 | .286 | 2.0 | .3 | .0 | .0 | 2.3 |
| 2009–10 | New Orleans | 24 | 0 | 10.9 | .557 | .000 | .857 | 3.8 | .8 | .4 | .5 | 3.6 |
| 2010–11 | New Orleans | 41 | 6 | 13.0 | .566 | .000 | .500 | 4.2 | .4 | .3 | .3 | 3.1 |
| 2011–12 | Toronto | 49 | 40 | 16.6 | .516 | .000 | .532 | 5.7 | .6 | .4 | .3 | 3.9 |
| 2012–13 | Toronto | 42 | 16 | 12.2 | .533 | .000 | .523 | 3.2 | .8 | .2 | .1 | 2.8 |
| 2013–14 | Toronto | 4 | 0 | 5.0 | .667 | .000 | .500 | 2.0 | .8 | 0 | 0 | 1.3 |
| 2013–14 | Sacramento | 33 | 6 | 10.2 | .431 | .000 | .556 | 3.1 | .6 | .3 | .2 | 1.8 |
| Career | 318 | 87 | 12.1 | .509 | .000 | .562 | 3.7 | .7 | .3 | .3 | 3.4 |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Chicago | 2 | 0 | 4.5 | .000 | .000 | .000 | .5 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 |
| 2011 | New Orleans | 6 | 0 | 14.5 | .692 | .000 | .375 | 3.5 | .3 | .3 | .3 | 3.5 |
| Career | 8 | 0 | 12.0 | .600 | .000 | .375 | 2.8 | .3 | .3 | .3 | 2.6 |
References
- ^ Bulls beat Raptors as Toronto barely uses starters
- ^ "HORNETS ACQUIRE AARON GRAY FROM BULLS". NBA.com. 2010-01-25. Retrieved 2010-01-25.
- ^ Hornets re-sign Aaron Gray
- ^ "Raptors sign center Aaron Gray". InsideHoops.com. December 11, 2011. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
- ^ "Raptors Sign Free-Agent Centre Aaron Gray". NBA.com. December 11, 2011. Retrieved March 2, 2013.
- ^ Raptors re-sign Gray, ink free-agent guard Lucas III
- ^ Notebook: Warriors 114, Raptors 102
- ^ "Kings Acquire Rudy Gay, Quincy Acy and Aaron Gray from Toronto". NBA.com. December 9, 2013. Retrieved December 9, 2013.
- ^ Pistons Sign Free Agent Forward Cartier Martin and Center Aaron Gray
- ^ Detroit Pistons Center Aaron Gray Out Indefinitely
- ^ Pistons waive center Aaron Gray
- ^ a b Ellis, Vince (June 19, 2015). "Aaron Gray stays upbeat after blood clot forces retirement". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com
- NBADraft.net Profile
- Pittsburgh bio
- DraftExpress.com Profile
- 1984 births
- Living people
- American expatriate basketball people in Canada
- Basketball players from California
- Basketball players from Pennsylvania
- Centers (basketball)
- Chicago Bulls draft picks
- Chicago Bulls players
- Emmaus High School alumni
- New Orleans Hornets players
- People from Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
- People from Tarzana, Los Angeles
- Pittsburgh Panthers men's basketball players
- Sacramento Kings players
- Toronto Raptors players