Andray Blatche

Andray Blatche

No. 7 – Washington Wizards
Position	Power forward / Center
Personal information
Born	(1986-08-22) August 22, 1986 Syracuse, New York
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)
Listed weight	260 lb (118 kg)
Career information
High school	Henninger (Syracuse), South Kent School (Connecticut)
NBA draft	2005: 2nd round, 49th overall pick
Selected by the Washington Wizards
Playing career	2005–present
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Andray Blatche (born August 22, 1986 in Syracuse, New York) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA).

High school

Blatche attended Henninger High School in Syracuse before attending the South Kent School in South Kent, Connecticut. He declared for the 2005 NBA Draft out of high school, and while originally thought of as a first-round prospect, he slipped to the second round and was taken by the Washington Wizards with their only selection, the 49th pick.

NBA career

Blatche was shot in a carjacking on September 25, 2005, and as a result missed training camp. He recovered successfully and played his first game with Washington versus Seattle on November 11, 2005, scoring five points in a 137–96 Wizards victory. Given that he did not play college basketball, the Wizards split Blatche's playing time between the Roanoke Dazzle, their then-affiliate in the NBA Development League, and the Wizards in the 2005–06 season.

With the injuries to Wizards centers Etan Thomas and Michael Ruffin, Blatche was occasionally pressed into service as a backup center in the 2006–07 season.

On August 17, 2007, the Wizards re-signed Blatche to a multi-year deal, terms of which were not disclosed.

During the 2007–08 season Blatche continued showing improvement, and with center Etan Thomas out with a season-ending heart condition, his minutes increased.

On January 9, 2010, Blatche was fined $10,000 by the Washington Wizards for participating in Gilbert Arenas' antics before a game on January 5, 2010 against the Philadelphia 76ers. Arenas was being investigated for a prior incident involving guns in the Wizards' locker room, but made light of the accusations by pointing his finger at his teammates, as if he were shooting them. His teammates were photographed smiling and laughing with him.

On February 28, 2010, he scored a career high 36 points on 17-31 shooting during the Wizards' 89-85 victory against the New Jersey Nets. Blatche has continued to be the starter on the team, and his stats significantly improved. He is a dominant rebounder, and he has shown that he can be a potent scorer.

Andray Blatche just missed a triple-double as he had 20 points, a career-high 13 assists, nine rebounds and two steals in the Wizards' 109-99 victory over the New Jersey Nets on April 4.

On September 24, 2010, Blatche received a contract extension that will pay him $35M over the next five years.

On March 20, 2012, the Wizards announced that they were benching Blatche indefinitely due to lack of conditioning.

Personal life

On the Sunday morning of September 25, 2005, three months after the Wizards selected him with the 49th overall pick in the NBA draft, Blatche was shot in an attempted carjacking that took place near his home in Alexandria, Virginia. A passenger, police said Blatche was ordered out of the car by men who emerged from a van and was shot before he could fully exit. Blatche's mother, Angela Oliver said he was shot once in the chest, but that the bullet did not hit any vital organs. He was released from hospital two days later. As a result of his injuries he missed the Wizards' training camp, although he could walk on his own three days after the shooting and one day after being released from the hospital. He appeared in only 29 games as a rookie.

On August 2, 2007, Blatche was charged with sexual solicitation in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C. after allegedly soliciting sex from an undercover police officer. The solicitation charge was dropped after Blatche followed court orders and attended a day-long seminar for men who solicit prostitutes.

Blatche was arrested on June 4, 2008, in Virginia on charges of reckless driving and driving on a suspended license for the third time. Blatche was going 86 mph in a 70 mph zone in a Mercedes on Interstate 85. He was released on bond.

In June 2011, Blatche established the Andray Blatche Foundation and went on a charity mission to Jamaica where he donated sneakers, basketballs and gave a $50,000 check to Jamaican schools.

NBA career statistics

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

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2005–06	Washington	29	0	6.0	.388	.231	.833	1.3	.3	.2	.2	2.2
2006–07	Washington	56	13	12.2	.437	.148	.612	3.4	.7	.3	.6	3.7
2007–08	Washington	82	15	20.4	.474	.231	.695	5.2	1.1	.6	1.4	7.5
2008–09	Washington	71	36	24.0	.471	.238	.704	5.3	1.7	.8	1.0	10.0
2009-10	Washington	81	36	27.9	.478	.295	.744	6.3	2.1	1.0	.9	14.1
2010-11	Washington	64	63	33.9	.445	.222	.777	8.2	2.3	1.5	.8	16.8
2011-12	Washington	26	13	24.1	.380	.286	.673	5.8	1.1	.8	.6	8.5
Career		409	176	22.7	.457	.238	.730	5.4	1.5	.8	.9	9.9

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2006–07	Washington	2	0	12.5	.667	.000	1.000	3.5	.0	.0	.0	4.5
2007–08	Washington	6	0	14.8	.429	.000	.333	3.3	.2	.3	1.0	3.7
Career		8	0	14.1	.481	.000	.385	3.4	.1	.2	.8	3.9

External links

• Template:NBA-profile
• Template:Basketball-reference
• nbadraft.net profile
• CollegeHoopsnet