Alex Ducas Explained

Alex Ducas
Position:Shooting guard / small forward
Height Ft:6
Height In:7
Weight Lbs:220
League:NBA
Team:Oklahoma City Thunder
Number:88
Birth Date:2000 12, df=yes
Birth Place:Geraldton, Western Australia, Australia
High School:
College:Saint Mary's (2019–2024)
Draft Year:2024
Career Start:2016
Years1:2016–2019
Team1:Geraldton Buccaneers
Years2:2017–2019
Team2:BA Centre of Excellence
Years3:–present
Team3:Oklahoma City Thunder
Years4:2024–present
Team4:Oklahoma City Blue
Highlights:

Alexander Ducas (born 11 December 2000) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA G League. He began his career in the Australian state leagues before moving to the United States in 2019 to play college basketball for the Saint Mary's Gaels. He played five seasons for the Gaels and earned second-team All-WCC in 2022 and 2024.

Early life and career

Ducas was born and raised in Geraldton, Western Australia,[1] [2] where he attended Nagle Catholic College.[3]

In 2016, Ducas debuted for the Geraldton Buccaneers in the State Basketball League (SBL), averaging 2.27 points in 22 games.[4] In 2017, he played 13 games for the Buccaneers, averaging 5.67 points and 1.47 rebounds per game.[5] He also played five games for the BA Centre of Excellence in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL), averaging 2.4 points and 1.2 rebounds per game.[6] In 2018, he averaged nine points in three SBL games for the Buccaneers[7] before returning to the Centre of Excellence and averaging 12.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 14 SEABL games.[8]

In 2019, Ducas played nine games for the Centre of Excellence in the NBL1, averaging 21.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 steals per game.[9] He finished the year with the Buccaneers and helped them win the SBL championship.[10] In 13 games, he averaged 15.54 points, 3.92 rebounds and 3.08 assists per game.[11]

While in Canberra at the Centre of Excellence, Ducas attended Lake Ginninderra College.[12] [13]

College career

On 5 November 2019, Ducas made his debut for Saint Mary's, recording 3 points and 2 rebounds against Wisconsin.[14] As a freshman, Ducas appeared in 33 games, starting in 11 games – which was more games as a true freshman than any Gael since Matthew Dellavedova.[15] In his sophomore season, Ducas suffered an ankle injury, causing him to appear in only 14 games. Prior to his injury, Ducas averaged 11.3 points on 35.7% from three. He posted 10.3 points per game as a junior.[16] As a senior, Ducas averaged 12.5 points per game shooting 41.4% from beyond the arc.[17]

In his final season with Saint Mary's, Ducas started every single game for the third consecutive season, shooting a career-best 43.8% from three, making 81 – which was the ninth most in team history and second most in the WCC. Against Davidson, Ducas registered a season-high 23 points on 7 made threes.[18] With Saint Mary's, Ducas won the 2024 WCC tournament and was named a second team All-WCC honoree for the second time.[19] Ducas averaged 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.

As a fifth year guard, Ducas finished his collegiate career playing in a program-record 150 games and finished second all-time in program history with 278 threes.[20]

Professional career

Oklahoma City Thunder (2024–present)

After going undrafted in the 2024 NBA draft,[21] Ducas joined the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 2024 NBA Summer League[22] and on 16 July 2024, he signed a two-way deal with them.[23]

Career statistics

College

|-| style="text-align:left;"|2019–20| style="text-align:left;"|Saint Mary's| 33 || 11 || 15.1 || .478 || .414 || .750 || 2.2 || 0.4 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 3.6|-| style="text-align:left;"|2020–21| style="text-align:left;"|Saint Mary's| 14 || 9 || 22.0 || .413 || .328 || .842 || 4.4 || 0.5 || 0.5 || 0.1 || 7.9|-| style="text-align:left;"|2021–22| style="text-align:left;"|Saint Mary's| 34 || 34 || 29.8 || .409 || .387 || .820 || 3.7 || 0.9 || 0.9 || 0.2 || 10.3|-| style="text-align:left;"|2022–23| style="text-align:left;"|Saint Mary's| 35 || 35 || 31.3 || .433 || .414 || .868 || 4.3 || 1.0 || 0.9 || 0.4 || 12.5|-| style="text-align:left;"|2023–24| style="text-align:left;"|Saint Mary's| 34 || 34 || 28.1 || .453 || .438 || .774 || 5.6 || 1.9 || 0.7 || 0.2 || 9.9|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career| 150 || 123 || 25.8 || .433 || .406 || .828 || 4.0 || 1.0 || 0.7 || .2 || 9.0

Personal life

As of 2024, Ducas' father, Aaron, is an assistant coach for the Geraldton Buccaneers in the NBL1 West.[24]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Badkin. Liam. NCAA Aussie Player Focus – Alex Ducas. central.rookieme.com. 13 October 2023. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629150502/https://central.rookieme.com/basketball/ncaa-aussie-player-focus-alex-ducas/. 29 June 2024.
  2. Web site: O'Donoghue. Craig. Santa Maria. Jake. Alex Ducas remains strong prospect for Wildcats as they look to build defence. Geraldton Guardian. 17 February 2023. live. https://archive.today/20240629150102/https://www.geraldtonguardian.com.au/news/geraldton-guardian/alex-ducas-remains-strong-prospect-for-wildcats-as-they-look-to-build-defence--c-9762885. 29 June 2024.
  3. News: NCC basketball stars compete in national championship . 2 September 2024 . CEWA Stories . 3 May 2017.
  4. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2016. WA State Basketball League. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629151046/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=204749993&client=0-5011-83381-444186-23096615. 29 June 2024.
  5. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2017. WA State Basketball League. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629151155/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=204749993&client=0-5011-83381-444191-23096615. 29 June 2024.
  6. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2017. SEABL. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629151619/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=203587939&client=0-3363-150604-436967-20161522. 29 June 2024.
  7. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2018. WA State Basketball League. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629151757/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=204749993&client=0-5011-83381-477424-26151736. 29 June 2024.
  8. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2018. SEABL. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629152006/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=203587939&client=0-3363-150604-478980-20161522. 29 June 2024.
  9. Web site: Alex Ducas. usbasket.com. 29 June 2024. subscription.
  10. Web site: Harradine. Natasha. Aspiring Australian basketballer Alex Ducas leaves WA after COVID-19 repatriation. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 27 June 2020. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629152827/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-06-27/basketballer-alex-ducas-returns-to-the-us/12393676. 29 June 2024.
  11. Web site: Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2019. WA State Basketball League. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20240629152709/https://websites.mygameday.app/team_info.cgi?action=PSTATS&pID=204749993&client=0-5011-83381-515220-26389655. 29 June 2024.
  12. Web site: Lake News May 2018. Lake Ginninderra College. 2 September 2024.
  13. Web site: Lake News #1 2024. Lake Ginninderra College. 2 September 2024.
  14. Web site: Saint Mary's Gaels vs Wisconsin Badgers - Boxscore. ESPN.com. 7 July 2024.
  15. Web site: Santa Mary's Gaels: Alex Ducas's Bio. SMCGaels.com. 7 July 2024.
  16. News: Steve. Kroner. St. Mary’s forward Alex Ducas returning for a 5th season. San Francisco Chronicle. 11 April 2023. 16 July 2024.
  17. News: Randall. Sweet. Why Two-Way Signee Alex Ducas Could be More Than a Summer League Star for OKC Thunder. Sports Illustrated. June 30, 2024. July 16, 2024.
  18. Web site: Saint Mary's Gaels vs Davidson Wildcats - Boxscore. ESPN.com. 7 July 2024.
  19. Web site: WCC Announces 2023-24 Men's Basketball All-Conference Awards. WCCSports.com. 7 July 2024.
  20. Web site: MBB: Ducas Signs Two Way Deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder. SMCGaels.com. 27 June 2024. 7 July 2024.
  21. Web site: Paddick. Matthew. Geraldton's Alex Ducas set to sign with Oklahoma City Thunder in NBA following five years in US college system. Geraldton Guardian. 28 June 2024. dead. https://archive.today/20240630130121/https://www.geraldtonguardian.com.au/news/geraldton-guardian/geraldtons-alex-ducas-set-to-sign-with-oklahoma-city-thunder-in-nba-following-five-years-in-us-college-system-c-15174478. 30 June 2024.
  22. Web site: Thunder Announces 2024 Summer League Roster. NBA.com. 7 July 2024. 7 July 2024.
  23. Web site: Thunder Signs Alex Ducas to Two-Way Contract. NBA.com. 16 July 2024. 16 July 2024.
  24. News: Former country WA basketballer Alex Ducas lands NBA deal . 2 September 2024 . ABC News . 28 June 2024 . en-AU.