Luke Babbitt

Luke Babbitt on 14 January 2011
No. 8 – Portland Trail Blazers
Small forward / Power forward
Personal information
Born	(1989-06-20) June 20, 1989 (age 23) Cincinnati, Ohio
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	225 lb (102 kg)
Career information
High school	Galena (Reno, Nevada)
College	Nevada (2008–2010)
NBA Draft	2010 / Round: 1 / Pick: 16th overall
Selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves
Pro career	2010–present
Career history
2010–present	Portland Trail Blazers
2010–2012	→Idaho Stampede (D-League)
Career highlights and awards
WAC Player of the Year (2010)

Luke Robert Babbitt (born June 20, 1989) is an American basketball player for the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA. He played college basketball at the University of Nevada-Reno for two seasons before declaring for the 2010 NBA Draft following his sophomore year.^[1] He was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the 16th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft, then traded to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Early life [edit]

Babbitt was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. At the age of nine his family moved to Reno, Nevada. Babbitt attended Galena High School, where he was a 3-time All-State performer and a 2-time Gatorade State Player of the Year in basketball. As a junior, Babbitt averaged 27.8 points and 9.5 rebounds per game while leading Galena to a state championship. Babbitt finished his high school career by scoring 2,616 points, breaking future college teammate Armon Johnson's Nevada state scoring record.^[2] Babbitt was ranked the #13 recruit in the nation according to ESPNU 100. He was recruited by University of Nevada-Reno, Ohio State University, Gonzaga University, University of Arizona and University of California, Los Angeles.^[1][3]

College career [edit]

After originally verbally committing to Ohio State, Babbitt backed out and decided to attend the University of Nevada-Reno.^[4] In his first game, Babbitt recorded a 20 point, 12 rebound double-double versus Montana State.^[5] He went on to average 16.9 points per game during his freshman year including a season-high 30 points on March 12, 2009 versus San Jose State.^[6] In his sophomore season, Babbitt led the team in scoring with 21.9 points per game. He scored a career-high 33 points in the Western Athletic Conference tournament semifinals on March 13, 2010 versus New Mexico State.^[7] Despite losing that game and ending their hopes of going to the NCAA Tournament, Nevada was invited to the NIT, where they lost in the second round to the University of Rhode Island.^[8] On April 20, 2010, Babbitt hired an agent and declared for the NBA Draft.^[9][10]

Professional career [edit]

At the 2010 NBA Draft he was selected as the 16th overall pick by the Minnesota Timberwolves. His rights were traded along with Minnesota forward Ryan Gomes to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Martell Webster.^[11] Babbitt signed his rookie contract with the Blazers on July 6, 2010.^[12] On December 8, 2010, the Trail Blazers assigned him to the Idaho Stampede of the NBA D-League.^[13] He was recalled ten days later.^[14] On March 3, 2011, he was re-assigned to the Idaho Stampede.^[15]

NBA career statistics [edit]

Regular season [edit]

Awards and recognition [edit]

• 2009–10 WAC All-Decade Team^[16]
• 2009–10 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-American^[17]
• 2009–10 AP All American Honorable Mention^[16]
• 2009–10 Naismith Award mid seasonfinalist^[18]
• 2009–10 WAC Player of the Year^[16]
• 2009–10 WAC 1st Team All- Conference^[16]
• 2008–09 WAC Freshman of the Year^[16]
• 2008–09 WAC 1st Team All- Conference^[16]
• 2008–09 WAC Newcomer of the Year^[16]
• 2008–10 2-Time WAC All-Tournament Team^[16]

References [edit]

External links [edit]

• Luke Babbitt Player profile