Ben Strong (basketball)
Phoenix Suns | |
---|---|
Position | Player development |
Personal information | |
Born | Manassas, Virginia | September 18, 1986
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) |
Listed weight | 220 lb (100 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Chapel Hill (Chapel Hill, North Carolina) |
College | Guilford (2004–2008) |
NBA draft | 2008: undrafted |
Playing career | 2008–2016 |
Career history | |
As player: | |
2008–2010 | Maccabi Haifa B.C. |
2010 | Landstede Zwolle |
2010–2011 | Hapoel Kiryat Tivon |
2011–2013 | Iowa Energy |
2013–2014 | Delaware 87ers |
2014 | Austin Toros |
2014–2015 | Westchester Knicks |
2015 | Atletico Welcome |
2015 | Westchester Knicks |
2016 | Native Pride |
2016 | Nelson Giants |
As coach: | |
2016–2018 | Huntingdon College (assistant) |
2019–present | Phoenix Suns (player development) |
Career highlights and awards | |
|
Ben Strong (born September 18, 1986) is an American basketball coach and a retired professional basketball player. Strong is of Native American descent (Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians).[1]
Playing career
College basketball
Born in Manassas, Virginia,[2] Strong grew up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.[3] After graduating from Chapel Hill High School in 2004, he enrolled at Guilford College, a NCAA Division 3 school from Greensboro, North Carolina. He left Guilford ranked second all-time in scoring (2231) as well as in blocked shots (236) and seventh all-time in rebounding (927),[4] taking home various individual awards during his four-year college career, including NCAA Division 3 Player of the Year distinction.[5] Strong won one Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championship with Guilford and led the Quakers to two appearances in the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament. He set a NCAA Division III Tournament record by scoring 59 points in a triple-overtime win over Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) in March 2007.[6]
Professional basketball
Strong launched his professional career in 2008 with Maccabi Haifa B.C. in the Israeli Premier League.[7] After a stint in the Netherlands[8] and a return to Israel, he took his game to the NBA Development League, where he appeared in a total of 183 regular season (7.7 points, 5.5 rebounds per game) and two post season (20.5ppg, 11.5rpg) contests. In the autumn of 2015, he had a brief stop in Uruguay, playing for Atletico Welcome.[9]
Rounding out his professional career, Strong played his final season in New Zealand with the Nelson Giants[10] and was named Australiabasket.com All-New Zealand NBL Center of the Year.[11]
In 2018, he played for the "We are D3" team at The Basketball Tournament.[12]
Coaching career
After ending his playing career in 2016, he was named an assistant men's basketball coach at Huntingdon College in the fall of 2016,[13] before joining the Philadelphia 76ers’ staff as a player development specialist[14] in 2018.[15] On June 26, 2019, he joined the Phoenix Suns' staff as a player development coach.[16]
References
- ^ "Three American Indians to Watch in NBA D-League This Season". Native News Online. November 22, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Ben Strong". Guilford. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ Etter, Dan. "The Guilfordian : Ben Strong muscles his way into the spotlight". www.guilfordian.com. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Guilford College Basketball – Career History". Guilford. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Guilford's Ben Strong Named NABC NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Co-Player of the Year". Guilford. March 21, 2007. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Guilford shocks Lincoln in triple-OT thriller". Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ Halip, Matt. "The Guilfordian : Ben Strong adjusts to life and basketball in Israel". www.guilfordian.com. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Ben Strong verlaat Landstede Basketbal | Nieuws | Stichting Sportief Zwolle". sportiefzwolle.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ elpais.com.uy. "Ben Strong llega al Parque Rodó". www.ovaciondigital.com.uy (in European Spanish). Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Nelson Giants sign D-League player Ben Strong for National Basketball League". Stuff. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "NBL_2016 Basketball League NEW-ZEALAND - australiabasket.com". www.eurobasket.com. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "We are D3 falls in TBT opener". D3hoops. July 15, 2018. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
- ^ "Huntingdon". www.huntingdonhawks.com. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
- ^ "Front Office Directory". Philadelphia 76ers. Archived from the original on February 2, 2019. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
- ^ "Huntingdon MBB on Instagram: "Ben Strong, former Huntingdon College assistant coach, doing big things in his new role on staff with the Philadelphia 76ers @sixers ...…"". Instagram. Retrieved October 23, 2018.
- ^ "Phoenix Suns announce complete coaching staff". nba.com. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
External links
- 1986 births
- Living people
- American expatriate basketball people in Israel
- American expatriate basketball people in the Netherlands
- American expatriate basketball people in New Zealand
- American expatriate basketball people in Uruguay
- American men's basketball players
- Austin Toros players
- Basketball coaches from Virginia
- Basketball players from Virginia
- Centers (basketball)
- Club Atlético Welcome basketball players
- Delaware 87ers players
- Guilford Quakers men's basketball players
- Iowa Energy players
- Landstede Hammers players
- Maccabi Haifa B.C. players
- Native American basketball players
- Nelson Giants players
- Phoenix Suns assistant coaches
- People from Manassas, Virginia
- Power forwards (basketball)
- Sportspeople from the Washington metropolitan area
- Westchester Knicks players
- Basketball players from North Carolina
- People from Chapel Hill, North Carolina