Jesse Edwards (basketball) explained

Jesse Edwards
Position:Center
Height Ft:6
Height In:11
Weight Lb:230
League:NBA
Team:Minnesota Timberwolves
Birth Date:18 March 2000
Birth Place:Amsterdam, Netherlands
High School:IMG Academy
(Bradenton, Florida)
College:
Draft Year:2024
Career Start:2024
Years1:–present
Team1:Minnesota Timberwolves
Years2:2024–present
Team2:Iowa Wolves
Highlights:
  • Third-team All-ACC (2023)
  • ACC All-Defensive team (2023)

Jesse David Edwards (born 18 March 2000) is a Dutch professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Syracuse Orange and the West Virginia Mountaineers. Standing at, he plays the center position. He also plays for the Netherlands men's national basketball team.

Early life and high school career

Edwards was born in Amsterdam to a Dutch mother and a British father. He grew up with two siblings.[1] He started playing basketball at age 14 and later joined the youth section of Apollo Amsterdam. After graduating Amsterdams Lyceum high school in the Netherlands, he went on to play on the Post Grad team for IMG Academy, a boarding school in Bradenton, Florida.

Recruiting

Edwards received offers by Georgia Tech and Providence, among others. He committed to playing college basketball for Syracuse in April 2019.[1]

College career

Edwards averaged 2.4 points and 1.7 rebounds per game as a freshman.[2] As a sophomore, he averaged 1.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.[3] On 5 December 2021, he recorded his first career double-double, after recording 11 points and 12 rebounds against Florida State.[4] On 8 February 2022, Edwards broke his left wrist during a game against Boston College, ending his season. He averaged 12 points and 6.5 rebounds per game as a junior, shooting 69.5 percent.[5] In the 2022–23 season, Edwards averaged 14.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per game, shooting 59.2 percent.[6]

In April 2023, Edwards transferred to West Virginia.[7]

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2024 NBA draft, Edwards signed a two-way contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves on 9 July 2024.[8]

National team career

In July 2021, Edwards joined the training camp of the Netherlands senior team for the first time, along with his brother Kai.[9] He was selected for the qualification games of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. On 2 July 2022, Edwards debuted in a 66–67 away loss against Iceland in which he had six points, seven rebounds, and two blocks in ten minutes of playing time.[10]

In August 2022, Edwards rejoined the national team to participate in international competitions which includes World Cup qualifying and the Eurobasket.[11] He was on the 12-man roster for EuroBasket 2022.[12]

Career statistics

College

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2019–20| style="text-align:left;"| Syracuse| 21 || 0 || 6.9 || .792 || — || .632 || 1.7 || .0 || .2 || .5 || 2.4|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21| style="text-align:left;"| Syracuse| 18 || 0 || 8.9 || .462 || — || .714 || 2.6 || .0 || .3 || .4 || 1.9|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2021–22| style="text-align:left;"| Syracuse| 24 || 24 || 28.0 || .695 || — || .598 || 6.5 || 1.0 || 1.1 || 2.8 || 12.0|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23| style="text-align:left;"| Syracuse| 32 || 32 || 32.5 || .592 || 1.000 || .729 || 10.3 || 1.6 || 1.4 || 2.7 || 14.5|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2023–24| style="text-align:left;"| West Virginia| 23 || 22 || 28.2 || .613 || .000 || .523 || 8.0 || 1.2 || .6 || 1.7 || 15.0|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 118 || 78 || 22.6 || .623 || .200 || .619 || 6.4 || .9 || .8 || 1.8 || 10.0

Personal life

His older brother Kai also plays basketball, currently plays for Landstede Hammers and played college basketball for Northern Colorado from 2016 to 2020.[1]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: James. Szuba. The Mad Professor: Jesse Edwards ready to make his mark with Syracuse basketball. Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician. 9 November 2021. 15 December 2021.
  2. Web site: Neil. Adler. Syracuse Basketball: Jesse Edwards is confident despite a lack of run. InsideTheLoudHouse.com. FanSided. 9 January 2021. 28 December 2021.
  3. Web site: Adam. Zagoria. After reaching the Sweet 16, the Syracuse roster is in flux. ZagsBlog.com. 31 March 2021. 28 December 2021.
  4. News: James. Szuba. Syracuse's Jesse Edwards records first career double-double before fouling out at Florida State. Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician. 5 December 2021. 22 December 2021.
  5. News: Syracuse basketball player Jesse Edwards breaks left wrist, out for season. ESPN. Associated Press. 10 February 2022. 11 February 2022.
  6. Web site: ESPN player bio. ESPN.com. 18 July 2024.
  7. News: Jonathan. Givony. West Virginia lands Syracuse transfer Edwards. ESPN.com. 16 April 2023. 23 April 2023.
  8. News: Timberwolves Sign Jesse Edwards to Two-Way Contract. NBA.com. 9 July 2024. 18 July 2024.
  9. Web site: Orange Lions op trainingskamp met veel talenten van college. Basketball.nl. 15 December 2021. nl.
  10. Web site: De Orange Lions hebben nagelaten hun uitgangspositie voor de volgende fase van de WK-kwalificatie een boost te geven.. Basketball.nl. 3 July 2022. nl.
  11. News: Edwards Joins Dutch National Team. Syracuse University Athletics. 13 August 2022. 15 August 2022.
  12. Web site: Netherlands announced final 12-player roster for EuroBasket. BasketNews.com. 30 August 2022.