Alec Burks Explained

Alec Burks
Position:Shooting guard / small forward
Height Ft:6
Height In:5
Weight Lb:214
League:NBA
Team:Miami Heat
Number:18
Birth Date:20 July 1991
Birth Place:Grandview, Missouri, U.S.
High School:Grandview (Grandview, Missouri)
College:Colorado (2009–2011)
Draft Year:2011
Draft Round:1
Draft Pick:12
Draft Team:Utah Jazz
Career Start:2011
Years1:
Team1:Utah Jazz
Years2:2017
Team2:Salt Lake City Stars
Team3:Cleveland Cavaliers
Team4:Sacramento Kings
Team5:Golden State Warriors
Team6:Philadelphia 76ers
Years7:
Team7:New York Knicks
Years8:
Team8:Detroit Pistons
Team9:New York Knicks
Years10:–present
Team10:Miami Heat
Highlights:
  • First-team All-Big 12 (2011)
  • Big 12 Freshman of the Year (2010)
  • Big 12 All-Rookie Team (2010)
Bbr:burksal01

Alec Burks (born July 20, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Utah Jazz as the 12th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft. Burks primarily plays the shooting guard position.

He played for the Colorado Buffaloes men's basketball team during his college years and was most notably the school's first-ever Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year in 2010. As a sophomore, Burks was statistically the eighteenth-best scorer in the Division I. With Colorado, he missed only a single college game. Burks also gained national attention after being selected to the Big 12 First Team in his second season with the Buffaloes. He entered the 2011 NBA draft shortly after his sophomore year, projected to be a first-round draft pick despite playing just two seasons at Colorado.

High school career

Burks attended Grandview High School, where in 2009 he was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Missouri. As a senior, he averaged 23.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, 10.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He was also named the Kansas City Star and Metro Sports Player of the Year during his senior year.[1]

Prior to his senior year of high school, Burks signed with Colorado during the November 2008 signing period.

Considered a three-star recruit by 247Sports.com, Burks was listed as the No. 49 shooting guard and the No. 196 player in the nation in 2009.[2]

College career

In his freshman year at Colorado, Burks was awarded the 2010 Big 12 Conference Freshman of the Year, while also being named in the Big 12 All-Rookie team.

In his sophomore year, he was named in the All-Big 12 first team.

In April 2011, Burks decided to forgo his two remaining eligible college years to enter the NBA draft.[3]

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2011–2018)

Burks was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz.[4] On December 9, 2011, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Jazz.[5] On October 25, 2012, the Jazz exercised their third-year team option on Burks' rookie scale contract, extending the contract through the 2013–14 season.[6] On October 29, 2013, the Jazz exercised their fourth-year team option on Burks' rookie scale contract, extending the contract through the 2014–15 season.[7]

On January 13, 2014, Burks scored a career-high 34 points in a 118–103 win over the Denver Nuggets.[8]

On October 31, 2014, Burks signed a four-year, $42 million contract extension with the Jazz.[9] [10] On December 30, he was ruled out for the rest of the 2014–15 season due to a shoulder injury.[11]

On December 27, 2015, Burks was ruled out for six weeks with an ankle fracture.[12] Two days later, he elected to undergo surgery on his fractured left fibula.[13] On April 8, 2016, he returned to action after missing 50 games with the injury. In 13 minutes off the bench, he scored 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting in a 102–99 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers.[14]

On November 1, 2016, Burks was ruled out indefinitely after undergoing an arthroscopic procedure to debride his left ankle.[15] On January 9, 2017, he spent a day with Utah's D-League affiliate, the Salt Lake City Stars.[16] [17] He was reassigned to Salt Lake City on January 11,[18] and then recalled the next day after appearing in a game for the Stars.[19] On January 21, 2017, he came off the bench for the Jazz and scored a season-high 13 points in a season-high 18 minutes in a 109–100 win over the Indiana Pacers.[20] Seven days later, he set a new season high with 15 points in a 102–95 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.[21]

On November 30, 2017, Burks scored a season-high 28 points off the bench in a 126–107 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.[22] On December 4, 2017, he scored 27 points in a 116–69 win over the Washington Wizards for his third straight game with 20 or more—his best string since three straight 20-point games in February 2014.[23]

On November 5, 2018, Burks scored a season-high 22 points, alongside three assists, in a 124–111 loss to the Toronto Raptors.[24]

Cleveland Cavaliers (2018–2019)

On November 29, 2018, Burks was traded, along with two future second-round picks, to the Cleveland Cavaliers in exchange for Kyle Korver.[25] Burks made his Cavaliers debut the next day, recording 15 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals in a 128–95 loss to the Boston Celtics.[26] On December 3, he made a game-winning dunk with 3.2 seconds left to give the Cavaliers a 99–97 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[27] He also had 13 points and seven rebounds in the game.[28] On December 7, Burks tied his season high of 22 points, alongside seven rebounds and a season-high nine assists, in a 129–110 loss to the Sacramento Kings.[29] On January 13, 2019, he had 17 points and a season-high 13 rebounds in a 101–95 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.[30]

Sacramento Kings (2019)

On February 7, 2019, Burks was traded to the Sacramento Kings in a three-team trade involving the Houston Rockets.[31] He made his Kings debut a day later, recording nine points and four rebounds in a 102–96 win over the Miami Heat.[32]

Golden State Warriors (2019–2020)

On July 11, 2019, Burks signed with the Golden State Warriors.[33] He made his Warriors debut on October 30, recording seven points and two assists in a 121–110 loss to the Phoenix Suns.[34] On January 20, 2020, Burks scored a season-high 33 points, alongside seven rebounds, eight assists and three blocks, in a 129–124 overtime loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.[35] On January 30, he switched his jersey number from 8 to 20 out of respect for the late Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash four days earlier.[36]

Philadelphia 76ers (2020)

On February 6, 2020, Burks was traded, alongside Glenn Robinson III, to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for three future second-round picks.[37] Burks made his 76ers debut on February 11, recording two points and two assists in a 110–103 win over the Los Angeles Clippers.[38] The 76ers faced the Boston Celtics during their first round playoff series, but they were eliminated in a four-game sweep.

New York Knicks (2020–2022)

On November 22, 2020, Burks signed a one-year, $6 million contract with the New York Knicks.[39] [40] He made his Knicks debut on December 23, recording 22 points, four rebounds and three assists in a 121–107 loss to the Indiana Pacers.[41] On May 13, 2021, Burks scored a season-high 30 points, alongside ten rebounds and two assists, in a 102–98 win over the San Antonio Spurs.[42] He helped the Knicks qualify for the playoffs for the first time since 2013, and they faced the Atlanta Hawks during their first-round series. On May 23, Burks recorded 27 points, three rebounds and four assists in a 107–105 Game 1 loss.[43] The Knicks ended up losing the series in five games.

On August 18, 2021, Burks re-signed with the Knicks on a three-year, $30 million contract.[44] [45] On December 29, he scored a career-high 34 points, alongside four rebounds, two assists and three steals, in a 94–85 win over the Detroit Pistons.[46] The Knicks failed to qualify for the playoffs during the 2021–22 season, finishing with a 37–45 record.

Detroit Pistons (2022–2024)

On July 11, 2022, Burks was traded, alongside Nerlens Noel, to the Detroit Pistons in exchange for the draft rights to Nikola Radičević and a 2025 protected second-round pick.[47] Burks made his Pistons debut on November 11, recording 17 points and two rebounds in a 121–112 loss to the New York Knicks.[48]

On June 29, 2023, the Detroit Pistons exercised Burks' team option for the 2023–24 NBA season.[49] On January 16, 2024, Burks tied a career–high in points, registering 34 points while going 11–for–17 on field goals against the Washington Wizards.[50]

Return to the Knicks (2024)

On February 8, 2024, Burks and Bojan Bogdanović were traded to the New York Knicks in exchange for Ryan Arcidiacono, Malachi Flynn, Evan Fournier, Quentin Grimes and two second-round picks.[51] [52]

Miami Heat (2024–present)

On July 4, 2024, Burks signed with the Miami Heat.[53]

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 59 || 0 || 15.9 || .429 || .333 || .727 || 2.2 || .9 || .5 || .1 || 7.2|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 64 || 0 || 17.8 || .420 || .359 || .713 || 2.3 || 1.4 || .5 || .2 || 7.0|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 78 || 12 || 28.1 || .457 || .350 || .748 || 3.3 || 2.7 || .9 || .2 || 14.0|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 27 || 27 || 33.3 || .403 || .382 || .822 || 4.2 || 3.0 || .6 || .2 || 13.9|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 31 || 3 || 25.7 || .410 || .405 || .752 || 3.5 || 2.0 || .6 || .1 || 13.3|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 42 || 0 || 15.5 || .399 || .329 || .769 || 2.9 || .7 || .4 || .1 || 6.7|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Utah| 64 || 1 || 16.5 || .411 || .331 || .863 || 3.0 || 1.0 || .6 || .1 || 7.7|-| align="left" rowspan=3| | align="left" | Utah| 17 || 0 || 15.8 || .412 || .372 || .868 || 1.6 || 1.2 || .4 || .2 || 8.4|-

| align="left" | Cleveland| 34 || 24 || 28.8 || .400 || .378 || .806 || 5.5 || 2.9 || .7 || .5 || 8.4|-

| align="left" | Sacramento| 13 || 0 || 9.7 || .450 || .000 || .800 || 1.7 || .8 || .6 || .1 || 1.7|-| align="left" rowspan=2| | align="left" | Golden State| 48 || 18 || 29.0 || .406 || .375 || .897 || 4.7 || 3.1 || 1.0 || .4 || 16.1|-

| align="left" | Philadelphia| 18 || 1 || 20.2 || .461 || .416 || .829 || 3.1 || 2.1 || .7 || .0 || 12.2|-| align="left" | | align="left" | New York| 49 || 5 || 25.6 || .420 || .415 || .856 || 4.6 || 2.2 || .6 || .3 || 12.7|-| align="left" | | align="left" | New York| 81 || 44 || 28.6 || .391 || .404 || .822 || 4.9 || 3.0 || 1.0 || .3 || 11.7|-| align="left" | | align="left" | Detroit| 51 || 8 || 22.0 || .436 || .414 || .814 || 3.1 || 2.2 || .7 || .2 || 12.8|-| align="left" rowspan=2| | align="left" | Detroit| 43 || 0 || 20.9 || .394 || .401 || .903 || 2.6 || 1.6 || .5 || .3 || 12.6|-

| align="left" | New York| 23 || 1 || 13.5 || .307 || .301 || .727 || 1.7 || .9 || .3 || .0 || 6.5|- class="sortbottom"| align="center" colspan="2"| Career| 742 || 144 || 22.5 || .415 || .383 || .806 || 3.4 || 2.0 || .7 || .2 || 10.8

Playoffs

|-| align="left" | 2012| align="left" | Utah| 4 || 0 || 15.8 || .250 || .000 || .857 || 2.8 || .8 || .5 || .0 || 6.5|-| align="left" | 2018| align="left" | Utah| 9 || 0 || 13.4 || .469 || .450 || .867 || 2.7 || 1.9 || .4 || .1 || 9.1|-| align="left" | 2020| align="left" | Philadelphia| 4 || 0 || 23.7 || .327 || .188 || .778 || 3.8 || 1.8 || .3 || .8 || 10.5|-| align="left" | 2021| align="left" | New York| 5 || 0 || 25.6 || .429 || .333 || .737 || 5.0 || 2.6 || .2 || .0 || 14.0|-| align="left" | 2024| align="left" | New York| 6 || 0 || 20.1 || .500 || .429 || .844 || 3.3 || 1.0 || .2 || .2 || 14.8|- class="sortbottom"| align="center" colspan="2"| Career| 28 || 0 || 18.8 || .413 || .356 || .820 || 3.4 || 1.6 || .3 || .2 || 11.0

College

|-|style="text-align:left;"|2009–10|style="text-align:left;"|Colorado |30||30||30.2||.538||.352||.772||5.0||1.8||1.2||.4||17.1|-|style="text-align:left;"|2010–11|style="text-align:left;"|Colorado|38||37||31.4||.469||.292||.825||6.5||2.9||1.1||.3||20.5

Personal life

Burks is the son of Steve and Dina Burks. He also has an older brother, Steve Jr.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Alec Burks Bio. CUBuffs.com. November 6, 2011.
  2. Web site: Alec Burks Recruiting Profile. 247Sports.com. June 23, 2011.
  3. Web site: Alec Burks To Enter NBA Draft. CUBuffs.com. April 21, 2011. January 9, 2017.
  4. Web site: Jazz Selects Enes Kanter and Alec Burks in 2011 NBA Draft. NBA.com. June 23, 2011. June 23, 2011.
  5. Web site: Jazz Signs 2011 Lottery Picks. NBA.com. December 9, 2011. December 9, 2011.
  6. Web site: Jazz Exercises Team Options on Four Players. NBA.com. October 25, 2012. October 25, 2012.
  7. Web site: Jazz Exercises Team Options on Burks and Kanter. NBA.com. October 29, 2013. October 29, 2013.
  8. Web site: Matt. Payne. Notebook: Jazz 118, Nuggets 103. NBA.com. January 14, 2014. January 14, 2014.
  9. Web site: Bill. Lea. Jazz Sign Alec Burks to Multi-Year Contract Extension. NBA.com. October 31, 2014. October 31, 2014.
  10. Web site: Brian. Windhorst. Alec Burks gets 4-year extension. ESPN.com. November 1, 2014. November 1, 2014.
  11. Web site: Bill. Lea. Alec Burks Injury Update – December 30, 2014. NBA.com. December 30, 2014. December 30, 2014.
  12. Web site: Adrian. Wojnarowski. Sources: Jazz's Alec Burks sidelined at least six weeks. Yahoo.com. December 27, 2015. December 27, 2015.
  13. Web site: Adrian. Wojnarowski. Sources: Jazz's Alec Burks to have surgery on fractured fibula. Yahoo.com. December 29, 2015. December 29, 2015.
  14. Web site: John. Coon. Crawford scores 30, including winner to lead Clippers. NBA.com. April 9, 2016. April 9, 2016.
  15. Web site: Alec Burks Injury Update. NBA.com. November 1, 2016. November 1, 2016.
  16. Web site: Jazz Assign Alec Burks, Danté Exum and Raul Neto to Salt Lake City Stars. NBA.com. January 9, 2017. January 9, 2017.
  17. Web site: Jazz Recall Alec Burks, Danté Exum and Raul Neto from Salt Lake City Stars. NBA.com. January 9, 2017. January 9, 2017.
  18. Web site: Jazz Assign Alec Burks and Raul Neto to Salt Lake City Stars. NBA.com. January 11, 2017. January 11, 2017.
  19. Web site: Jazz Recall Alec Burks and Raul Neto from Salt Lake City Stars. NBA.com. January 12, 2017. January 12, 2017.
  20. Web site: Hill scores 30 vs. former team as Jazz beat Pacers 109-100. ESPN.com. January 21, 2017. January 22, 2017.
  21. Web site: Randolph, Gasol shine in Grizzlies' 102-95 win over Jazz. ESPN.com. January 28, 2017. January 29, 2017.
  22. Web site: Jazz overwhelm Clippers in fourth to win 126-107. ESPN.com. November 30, 2017. December 1, 2017.
  23. Web site: Burks scores 27, Jazz run away from Wizards 116-69. ESPN.com. December 4, 2017. December 4, 2017.
  24. Web site: Toronto Raptors vs Utah Jazz Nov 5, 2018 Game Summary . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  25. Web site: Cavaliers Acquire Alec Burks and Two Future Second Round Picks from Utah. NBA.com. November 29, 2018. November 29, 2018.
  26. Web site: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Boston Celtics Nov 30, 2018 Game Summary . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  27. Web site: Alec Burks' late dunk seals Cleveland Cavs' 99-97 win over slumping Brooklyn Nets . February 17, 2023 . WKYC.
  28. Web site: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Brooklyn Nets Dec 3, 2018 Game Summary . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  29. Web site: Sacramento Kings vs Cleveland Cavaliers Dec 7, 2018 Game Summary . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  30. Web site: Cavs stun Lakers 101-95 to end 12-game losing streak. ESPN.com. January 13, 2019. January 13, 2019.
  31. Web site: Cavs Acquire Brandon Knight, Marquese Chriss Plus Picks in Three-Team Trade. NBA.com. February 7, 2019. February 7, 2019.
  32. Web site: Miami Heat vs Sacramento Kings Feb 8, 2019 Game Summary . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  33. Web site: Warriors Sign Free Agent Guard Alec Burks. NBA.com. July 11, 2019.
  34. Web site: CURRY BREAKS LEFT HAND IN ANOTHER EMBARRASSING WARRIORS LOSS . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  35. Web site: LILLARD SCORES 61 AND BLAZERS BEAT WARRIORS 129-124 IN OT . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  36. Web site: Alec Burks Changes Jersey Number "Out of Respect" for the Late Kobe Bryant Warriors wing joins a growing list of players who will no longer wear No. 8 or 24. January 30, 2020. NBA.com. January 30, 2020.
  37. Web site: Team Acquires Burks, Robinson III. NBA.com. February 6, 2020.
  38. Web site: RICHARDSON, SIMMONS LEAD 76ERS PAST CLIPPERS 110-103 . February 17, 2023 . NBA.com.
  39. Web site: Knicks Sign Alec Burks . NBA.com . November 22, 2020 . November 22, 2020.
  40. Web site: The Knicks signed free agent guard Alec Burks to a one-year, $6 million deal . February 16, 2023 . SB Nation.
  41. Web site: SABONIS, OLADIPO LEAD PACERS PAST KNICKS ON OPENING NIGHT . February 16, 2023 . NBA.com.
  42. Web site: BURKS SCORES 30, RALLIES KNICKS PAST SPURS, 102-98 . February 16, 2023 . NBA.com.
  43. Web site: YOUNG HITS RUNNER WITH 0.9 LEFT TO LIFT HAWKS PAST KNICKS . February 16, 2023 . NBA.com.
  44. Web site: Knicks Re-Sign Alec Burks . February 16, 2023 . NBA.
  45. Web site: Knicks re-sign Alec Burks to 3 yr/$30M deal . February 16, 2023 . SB Nation.
  46. Web site: BURKS, KNICKS BENCH POWER PAST SHORT-HANDED PISTONS 94-85 . February 16, 2023 . NBA.com.
  47. Web site: DETROIT PISTONS ACQUIRE ALEC BURKS, NERLENS NOEL, DRAFT PICKS AND CASH CONSIDERATIONS. NBA.com. July 11, 2022. July 11, 2022.
  48. Web site: NEW YORK KNICKS HOLD ON FOR 121-112 WIN OVER DETROIT PISTONS . February 16, 2023 . NBA.com.
  49. Pistons PR. 1674483862863224840. The Detroit Pistons have picked up its team options for Isaiah Livers, Alec Burks and Eugene Omoruyi for the 2023-24 season.. Pistons_PR. June 29, 2023. August 2, 2023.
  50. Web site: Pistons' Alec Burks: Ties career high with 34 points. January 21, 2024. cbssports.com. en.
  51. Web site: New York Knicks Acquire Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks. NBA.com. February 8, 2024. February 8, 2024.
  52. News: Tim. Bontemps. Pistons trade Bojan Bogdanovic, Alec Burks to Knicks. ESPN.com. February 8, 2024. February 9, 2024.
  53. Web site: HEAT SIGN ALEC BURKS. NBA.com. July 4, 2024. July 4, 2024.