Keon Ellis Explained

Keon Ellis
Position:Shooting guard
Height Ft:6
Height In:3
Weight Lbs:175
League:NBA
Team:Sacramento Kings
Number:23
Birth Date:8 January 2000
Birth Place:Eustis, Florida, U.S.
High School:
College:
Draft Year:2022
Career Start:2022
Years1:–present
Team1:Sacramento Kings
Years2:20222024
Team2:Stockton Kings
Highlights:
  • SEC All-Defensive Team (2022)
  • Second-team NJCAA DI All-American (2020)
  • Suncoast Player of the Year (2020)
  • First-team All-Suncoast (2020)
  • Second-team All-Suncoast (2019)

Keon Tyrese Ellis (born January 8, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Florida SouthWestern Buccaneers and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

High school career

Ellis played basketball for Eustis High School in his hometown of Eustis, Florida before transferring to Leesburg High School in Leesburg, Florida for his junior season.[1] He led Leesburg to back-to-back Class 6A state titles.[2] As a senior, Ellis averaged 12.7 points, 11 rebounds, and two assists per game, helping his team achieve a 29–1 record.[3] He signed to play college basketball for Gardner–Webb but instead opted to join Florida SouthWestern, a junior college program, for academic reasons.[4]

College career

As a freshman at Florida SouthWestern, Ellis averaged 8.3 points and three rebounds per game, earning Second Team All-Suncoast Conference honors.[3] [5] On January 4, 2020, he scored a school-record 41 points in a 92–77 win against St. Petersburg College.[6] In his sophomore season, Ellis averaged 18.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 2.1 steals per game, setting program single-season records in points and steals. He was recognized as a Second Team NJCAA Division I All-American and Suncoast Player of the Year.[7] [8] For his junior season, Ellis moved to Alabama, choosing the Crimson Tide over Iowa State, Kansas State and Western Kentucky.[9]

He averaged 5.5 points and four rebounds per game as a junior.[10] Ellis was named to the SEC All-Defensive Team as a senior.[11] He averaged 12.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and two steals per game.[12]

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, Ellis signed a two-way contract with the Sacramento Kings on July 2, 2022.[13] [14]

Ellis played in seven total games during the 2022 NBA Summer League, averaging 11.4 points on 44.1% shooting from the field and an impressive 46.9% from three, 3.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.0 steals per game.

On July 2, 2023, Ellis signed another two-way contract with Sacramento[15] and on February 9, 2024, he signed a multi-year contract with the Kings.[16] On April 9, Ellis scored a career–high 26 points in a loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder. On April 17, Ellis helped the Kings to a play-in tournament victory over the Golden State Warriors, with 15 points, five assists, four rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.[17]

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

|-| style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Sacramento| 16 || 0 || 4.4 || .438 || .500 || .571 || .5 || .4 || .3 || .1 || 1.5|-| style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Sacramento| 57 || 21 || 17.2 || .461 || .417 || .743 || 2.2 || 1.5 || .9 || .5 || 5.4|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 73 || 21 || 14.4 || .460 || .422 || .714 || 1.8 || 1.2 || .8 || .4 || 4.6

Play-in

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2024| style="text-align:left;"| Sacramento| 2 || 2 || 33.2 || .385 || .375 || 1.000 || 2.0 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.5 || 7.5|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan=2| Career| 2 || 2 || 33.2 || .385 || .375 || 1.000 || 2.0 || 3.0 || 1.5 || 2.5 || 7.5

College

NCAA Division I

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21| style="text-align:left;"| Alabama| 32 || 7 || 17.5 || .504 || .389 || .723 || 4.0 || 1.1 || 1.1 || .4 || 5.5

JUCO

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19| style="text-align:left;"| Florida SouthWestern| 33 || 6 || 18.3 || .442 || .291 || .767 || 3.0 || 2.2 || 1.5 || .6 || 8.3|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2019–20| style="text-align:left;"| Florida SouthWestern| 31 || 26 || 27.6 || .536 || .401 || .807 || 4.3 || 2.2 || 2.1 || 1.2 || 18.1|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 64 || 32 || 22.8 || .501 || .371 || .791 || 3.7 || 2.2 || 1.8 || .9 || 13.1

Personal life

Ellis' older brother, Antwon Clayton, played college basketball for Jacksonville before turning professional.[3]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Perper . Jake . Keon Ellis talks first state title, summer with Team MOAM and more . Prep Hoops . November 13, 2021 . June 16, 2017.
  2. Web site: Jolley . Frank . Next Level: Ellis’ play on hardwood earns offer from Alabama . . November 13, 2021 . February 12, 2020.
  3. Web site: Hall . Erik . Keon Ellis: 3 things to know about the Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball guard . . November 13, 2021 . March 18, 2021.
  4. Web site: Cruse . Hunter . Taking Chances: Keon Ellis’ path to Tuscaloosa . Crimson Crossover . November 13, 2021.
  5. Web site: 2018-19 Men's Basketball Awards . NJCAA Region 8 . November 13, 2021.
  6. Web site: Ellis Scores School Record 41 to Lead FSW Over St. Pete . Florida Southwestern College Athletics . November 13, 2021 . January 4, 2020.
  7. Web site: Keon Ellis Named Second Team NJCAA All-American . Florida Southwestern College Athletics . November 13, 2021 . April 6, 2020.
  8. Web site: 2019-20 Men's Basketball Awards . NJCAA Region 8 . November 13, 2021.
  9. Web site: Martin . Alex . FSW guard Keon Ellis commits to Alabama over Iowa State, Kansas State, Western Kentucky . . November 13, 2021 . April 16, 2020.
  10. Web site: Casagrande . Michael . What Keon Ellis brings to Alabama as unheralded guard posts monster stat . AL.com . November 13, 2021 . November 11, 2021.
  11. Men's Basketball All-SEC Teams & Awards Announced . . March 8, 2022 . March 8, 2022.
  12. News: Murphy . Mark . Auburn's Pearl wary of inconsistent but talented Tide . March 22, 2022 . 247 Sports . January 31, 2022.
  13. Web site: Kings Sign Neemias Queta And Keon Ellis To Two-Way Contracts. NBA.com. July 2, 2022. February 10, 2024.
  14. Web site: Kyle. Tucker. What Keon Ellis brings to the Sacramento Kings ‘He’s your classic 3-and-D guy’. TheAthletic.com. June 23, 2022. February 10, 2024.
  15. Web site: Sacramento Kings Re-Sign Keon Ellis to Two-Way Contract. NBA.com. July 2, 2023. July 2, 2023.
  16. Web site: Sacramento Kings Sign Keon Ellis. NBA.com. February 9, 2024. February 10, 2024.
  17. https://sports.yahoo.com/kings-ellis-puts-warriors-nba-225917192.html Kings' Ellis puts Warriors, NBA on notice in postseason debut