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Bennedict Mathurin

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Bennedict Mathurin
Mathurin with Arizona in 2021
No. 00 – Indiana Pacers
PositionShooting guard / Small forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (2002-06-19) June 19, 2002 (age 22)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
CollegeArizona (2020–2022)
NBA draft2022: 1st round, 6th overall pick
Selected by the Indiana Pacers
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–presentIndiana Pacers
Career highlights and awards
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at NBA.com
Stats Edit this at Wikidata at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Canada
FIBA Under-19 World Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2021 Latvia Team

Bennedict Richard Felder Mathurin (born June 19, 2002) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats before being drafted sixth overall in the 2022 NBA draft by the Pacers. He was named a consensus second-team All-American and Pac-12 Player of the Year after his sophomore season.

Early life and career

Mathurin is a native of Montreal, Quebec and grew up playing ice hockey and football as a quarterback.[1] He competed for the Quebec provincial basketball team.[2] In 2018, Mathurin joined the NBA Academy Latin America in Mexico City, becoming its first Canadian-born player.[3] He committed to playing college basketball for Arizona, choosing the Wildcats over Baylor.[4] He was considered the best Canadian prospect in his class by North Pole Hoops.[5]

College career

On January 2, 2021, Mathurin posted 24 points and 11 rebounds in an 86–82 win over Washington State.[6] On January 14, he recorded 31 points and eight rebounds in a 98–64 win over Oregon State.[7] Mathurin averaged 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game, shooting 41.8 percent from three-point range. Despite gaining interest as a draft prospect, he decided to return for his sophomore season.[8] On December 11, 2021, Mathurin scored 30 points in a 83-79 win against Illinois.[9] He was named Pac-12 Player of the Year.[10]

On April 14, 2022, Mathurin declared for the 2022 NBA draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.[11][12]

Professional career

Indiana Pacers (2022–present)

Mathurin was selected with the sixth overall pick by the Indiana Pacers in the 2022 NBA Draft. He is the first ever player from Montreal to be selected as a lottery pick. He joined the seventh overall pick, Shaedon Sharpe, as the only Canadians drafted in the first round. Mathurin was the Pacers' highest pick the franchise has owned since selecting Rik Smits second overall in the 1988 NBA Draft.[13] On June 25, 2022, during a post-draft interview, Mathurin discussed LeBron James, stating “I want to see how great he is. I don’t think anybody is better than me. He’s going to have to show me he’s better than me.”[14]

On July 3, 2022, Mathurin signed his rookie contract with the Pacers.[15] Five days later, he made his NBA Summer League debut, recording 23 points and four rebounds in a 96–84 win over the Charlotte Hornets.[16]

National team career

Mathurin played for Canada at the 2021 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Riga and Daugavpils, Latvia after being cut from the Olympic team.[17] On July 4, 2021, he scored a team-high 30 points, shooting 11-of-15 from the field and 6-of-9 from three point range, in a 100–75 group stage win over Japan.[18] One week later, Mathurin scored 31 points to lead Canada to a 101–92 victory over Serbia in the third-place game and win the bronze medal.[19] He averaged 16.1 points and four rebounds per game in the tournament.[20]

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

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2020–21 Arizona 26 12 25.0 .471 .418 .846 4.8 1.2 .7 .1 10.8
2021–22 Arizona 37 37 32.5 .450 .369 .764 5.6 2.5 1.0 .3 17.7
Career 63 49 29.4 .456 .383 .789 5.3 2.0 .9 .2 14.8

Personal life

Mathurin is of Haitian descent.[21] His older sister, Jennifer, played college basketball for NC State.[3] When Mathurin was 12 years old, his 15-year-old brother died in a bicycle accident. He speaks English, French, Spanish and Creole.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Pascoe, Bruce (April 26, 2020). "With late brother as both memory and motivation, Arizona Wildcats commit Bennedict Mathurin charts course for basketball future". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  2. ^ Rose, Aaron (April 29, 2020). "Mathurin, Prosper pioneers at NBA Academy". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  3. ^ a b Holmes, C. J. (May 3, 2020). "The evolution of Ben Mathurin, and an inside look at the NBA academies". The Athletic. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  4. ^ Pascoe, Bruce (January 16, 2020). "Arizona Wildcats basketball lands commitment from Ben Mathurin". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  5. ^ Sbiet, Elias (January 16, 2020). "Bennedict Mathurin Commits to Arizona, Canadian NBA Prospect For The Wildcats". North Pole Hoops. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  6. ^ Kelapire, Ryan (January 15, 2021). "Freshman Bennedict Mathurin quickly becoming a star at Arizona". Arizona Desert Swarm. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  7. ^ Pascoe, Bruce (January 16, 2021). "Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin is developing into a 'special player,' and more attention is coming". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  8. ^ Pedersen, Brian (April 23, 2021). "Arizona wing Bennedict Mathurin to return for sophomore season". Arizona Desert Swarm. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  9. ^ "Wildcats G Bennedict Mathurin drops 30 points in Arizona's win at Illinois". Arizona Sports. Associated Press. December 11, 2021. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
  10. ^ "2021-22 Pac-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  11. ^ "Projected lottery pick Bennedict Mathurin declares for NBA draft". The Rookie Wire. 2022-04-14. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  12. ^ "Arizona top prospect Mathurin enters NBA Draft". The Athletic. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  13. ^ "Indiana Pacers Facing Their Most Important NBA Draft in Decades". Forbes.com. 2022-07-03. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  14. ^ "Pacers just drafted Mathurin says LeBron is "going to have to show me he's better than me"". yahoo!sports. 2022-06-15. Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  15. ^ "Pacers sign Bennedict Mathurin". NBA.com. 2022-07-03. Retrieved 2022-07-03.
  16. ^ "Hot Takes on Pacers' Bennedict Mathurin in 1st Game Since Calling out LeBron". bleacherreport.com. 2022-07-08. Retrieved 2022-07-08.
  17. ^ Pascoe, Bruce (June 28, 2021). "Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin dropped from Canada's senior team, expected to join U19 event". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  18. ^ Amacher, Ezra (July 4, 2021). "Bennedict Mathurin scores 30 points to lead Canada to win at FIBA U19 World Cup". SB Nation. Retrieved July 5, 2021.
  19. ^ Pascoe, Bruce (July 11, 2021). "Arizona's Bennedict Mathurin drops 31 points to lead Canada over Serbia for U19 bronze". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  20. ^ "Bennedict Richard Felder Mathurin (CAN)'s profile – FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup 2021". FIBA. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  21. ^ Pascoe, Bruce (January 15, 2020). "Haitian-Canadian wing Ben Mathurin to pick either Arizona or Baylor on Wednesday". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
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