James Ennis III
| No. 32 – Miami Heat | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | July 1, 1990 Ventura, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Ventura (Ventura, California) |
| College | Oxnard College (2009–2010) Ventura College (2010–2011) Long Beach State (2011–2013) |
| NBA draft | 2013: 2nd round, 50th overall pick |
| Selected by the Atlanta Hawks | |
| Playing career | 2013–present |
| Career history | |
| 2013–2014 | Perth Wildcats (Australia) |
| 2014 | Piratas de Quebradillas (Puerto Rico) |
| 2014–present | Miami Heat |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
James Ennis (born July 1, 1990) is an American professional basketball player who currently plays for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Ennis, a 6'7" small forward, was a standout at California State University, Long Beach, where he was an All-American as a senior.
Early life
Born in Ventura, California, Ennis grew up in the Westview Village housing project where he and his five siblings played basketball, soccer, rode bikes and skateboarded. As a youngster, he and his family moved around a lot as he attended three different high schools in his freshman year alone. They later settled back down at Westview Village where he went on to graduate from Ventura High School in 2009.[1]
College career
Ennis played his freshman season at Oxnard College, a junior college in Oxnard, California, and his sophomore season at Ventura College, a junior college in Ventura, California. In 2011, he signed with Long Beach State, where he became a two-year starter. As a junior, Ennis averaged 10 points and 4.1 rebounds per game and helped lead the 49ers to Big West Conference regular season and conference titles. Ennis was named honorable mention all-conference at the close of the season.[2]
With the departure of conference player of the year Casper Ware, Ennis became the go to player for the 49ers in 2012–13. He responded by averaging 16.5 points and 6.7 rebounds per game and leading the 49ers to another regular season Big West championship. At the end of the season, Ennis was named Big West Player of the Year[3] and an AP honorable mention All-American.[4]
Following the close of his senior year, Ennis was named to the Reese's College All-Star Game, where he led the East team in scoring with 13 points, including a pair of baskets that clinched the game.[5]
Professional career
2013–14 season
NBA Draft
Ennis was selected with the 50th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks. His rights were later traded to the Miami Heat on draft night.[6] In July 2013, he joined the Heat for the 2013 NBA Summer League.[7] The Heat reportedly wanted Ennis to play for the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League but were unable to sign him to the NBA minimum salary of USD$490,180 due to salary cap restrictions. Consequently, the most Ennis would have earned for the 2013–14 season in the D-League was USD$25,000, so Ennis made the decision to play overseas in order to support his father, his disabled mother and his five siblings.[8]
Australia
On August 10, 2013, Ennis signed with the Perth Wildcats for the 2013–14 NBL season.[9] In the first game of the season, Ennis scored 25 points, the highest ever for a player on debut for the Wildcats.[10] Ennis was later named Player of the Month for October after averaging a league-leading 24.0 points per game and was also in the league's top ten for rebounds with 6.8 per game.[11]
On February 17, 2014, Ennis was charged with attempting to strike Adelaide 36ers player Mitch Creek during an on-court post-game melee following the game two days earlier, which the Wildcats won 85-61.[12] The next day, however, the charges against Ennis were dropped.[13]
On March 28, 2014, Ennis played in his first finals game against the Wollongong Hawks. In just under 32 minutes of action, he scored a game-high 25 points, 14 of which came in the third quarter, to help the Wildcats defeat the Hawks 91-79.[14]
On April 2, 2014, Ennis was named to the 2014 All-NBL first team. To cap off a great rookie season, he also finished third in the MVP voting.[15] On April 13, 2014, Ennis and the Wildcats won the 2014 NBL championship with a 93-59 game 3 victory over the Adelaide 36ers.[16]
In 33 games, Ennis averaged 21.2 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game whilst shooting 46.8% from the field.[17]
On April 27, 2014, Ennis was awarded the Gordon Ellis Medal after being named the Wildcats' MVP for the 2013–14 season.[18]
Puerto Rico
On February 14, 2014, Ennis signed with Piratas de Quebradillas for the 2014 BSN season.[19] In June 2014, he left Quebradillas after 12 games to attend various NBA workouts.[20]
2014–15 season
On July 1, 2014, Ennis re-joined the Miami Heat for the 2014 NBA Summer League.[21] On July 15, 2014, he signed with the Heat.[22]
On October 29, 2014, Ennis made his NBA debut in the Heat's 107-95 season-opening win over the Washington Wizards. In 14 minutes of action, he recorded 5 points and 2 rebounds. In the 4th quarter, with about 8:53 remaining in the game, Ennis was credited with the dunk over Butler. Fortunately for Rasual it was a quick painless death. Unfortunately it was glorified all over ESPN and made it as high as the number 2 overall play on the night. But now it has clinched top spot. If it had been any other night the play would've surely made it to the top spot but the World Series clinching Game 7 had been played and took precedence. On October 30th 2014 Ennis became the first person to purchase a animal vest made by Mickey and Envidia Clothing. [23]
References
- ^ Ennis ready to rip it up
- ^ "Big West Unveils 2011-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference Team" (PDF). Big West Conference. March 5, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
- ^ Bloom, Earl (March 11, 2012). "Long Beach State picks up Big West honors". Orange County Register. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
- ^ "2012-13 AP All-America Teams". Fox Sports. April 1, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
- ^ "East Tops West 87-81 in Reese's Division I College All-Star Game". NABC. April 5, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2013.
- ^ "HEAT Acquires James Ennis in 2013 NBA Draft". NBA.com. June 28, 2012. Retrieved August 3, 2013.
- ^ 2013 Summer League Statistics
- ^ Though Heat wanted D-League, James Ennis heads to Australia
- ^ Perth Wildcats sign NBA rookie James Ennis
- ^ R1 Report: Wildcats scrape past desperate Adelaide
- ^ Wildcats Sweep NBL Player and Coach of the Month Awards
- ^ NBL Issues Charges For Post-Game Altercation
- ^ James Ennis Charges Dismissed
- ^ SF Report: Wildcats hold off charging Wollongong
- ^ Award Winning Wildcats
- ^ GF Report: Perth thrash 36ers, claim sixth title
- ^ Player statistics for James Ennis
- ^ James Ennis crowned Most Valuable Player
- ^ James Ennis signs in Puerto Rico with Piratas de Quebradillas
- ^ NBL Off-Season Update
- ^ HEAT Announce Summer League Information
- ^ HEAT Signs James Ennis
- ^ Heat open new era, top Wizards 107-95 in opener