Leonard Miller (basketball) explained

Leonard Miller
Position:Small forward
Height Ft:6
Height In:10
Weight Lbs:210
League:NBA
Team:Minnesota Timberwolves
Number:33
Birth Date:26 November 2003
Birth Place:Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
High School:Bill Crothers Secondary School
(Markham, Ontario)
Draftyear:2023
Draftround:2
Draftpick:33
Draftteam:San Antonio Spurs
Career Start:2022
Team1:NBA G League Ignite
Years1:2022–2023
Years2:–present
Team2:Minnesota Timberwolves
Years3:2023–2024
Team3:Iowa Wolves
Highlights:

Leonard Miller (born November 26, 2003) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He previously played for the NBA G League Ignite.

Early life and high school career

Leonard Miller was born in Scarborough, Ontario, and played basketball, volleyball and golf during his childhood.[1] He played basketball for Bill Crothers Secondary School in Markham, Ontario, for grade 9 from 2017 to 2018 [2] and transferred to Thornlea Secondary School in Thornhill, Ontario, for grade 10, where he helped the team win the National Junior Circuit title in March 2019.[3] Miller transferred to Wasatch Academy in Mount Pleasant, Utah, to face stronger competition but received limiting playing time. He transferred to Victory Rock Prep in Bradenton, Florida, before missing several months with a broken right wrist in November 2020 that required surgery.[4] Miller opted to play a postgraduate season at Fort Erie International Academy in Fort Erie, Ontario after growing 6-4 guard to 6-10 guard/wing over an 18 month period, and had no college offers at the time he made the decision.[5] He became the team's star player and received over 25 offers from college programs. Miller led Fort Erie to an Ontario Scholastic Basketball Association title and was named league most valuable player.[4] He was selected to play for the World Team in the Nike Hoop Summit.[6] On April 23, 2022, he declared for the 2022 NBA draft.[7] On June 13th, 2022, he withdrew from the draft and decided to play with the NBA G League Ignite for the next season.[8]

Recruiting

Miller was considered a five-star recruit by Rivals and was ranked as the 2nd ranked prospect on On3 despite playing in Canada with On3 ranking him first with the highest upside in the recruiting class .[9] On May 31, 2022, he announced that he would pursue professional options instead of playing college basketball.[10]

Professional career

NBA G League Ignite (2022–2023)

On September 7, 2022, Miller signed a contract with the NBA G League Ignite.[11] He was named to the G League's inaugural Next Up Game for the 2022–23 season.[12]

Minnesota Timberwolves (2023-present)

Miller was drafted in the second round of the 2023 NBA draft with the 33rd overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs. He was then traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves on draft night. He made his summer league debut in Las Vegas on July 7, 2023.[13] The Timberwolves announced they had signed Miller to a contract on July 9 of that year.[14] He was assigned to the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League for the start of the 2023–24 G League season.

National team career

Miller won a silver medal with Canada at the 2019 FIBA Under-16 Americas Championship in Brazil, averaging 4.2 points per game.[15]

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

|-| style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"|Minnesota| 17 || 0 || 3.1 || .650 || .400 || .500 || 1.2 || .5 || .1 || .1 || 1.7|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career| 17 || 0 || 3.1 || .650 || .400 || .500 || 1.2 || .5 || .1 || .1 || 1.7

Playoffs

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2024| style="text-align:left;"|Minnesota| 3 || 0 || 2.3 || .000 || .000 || || 1.3 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"|Career| 3 || 0 || 2.3 || .000 || .000 || — || 1.3 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0

NBA G League

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2022–23| style="text-align:left;"| NBA G League| 14 || 11 || 28.1 || .500 || .275 || .793 || 8.6 || 1.6 || 1.2 || .6 || 15.1|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2023–24| style="text-align:left;"| Iowa| 12 || 11 || 26.7 || .528 || .327 || .933 || 6.4 || 1.9 || .8 || .9 || 16.2|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 26 || 22 || 27.4 || .513 || .305 || .841 || 7.6 || 1.7 || 1.0 || .8 || 15.6

Personal life

Miller's older brother, Emanuel, played college basketball for Texas A&M before transferring to TCU.[7]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Leonard Miller . Pro Insight . June 11, 2022 . November 23, 2021.
  2. Press, Canadian. “Canada’s Miller Continues Carving out Name with G League Ignite as Eyes Set on NBA.” Rdnewsnow.Com, 10 Feb. 2023, rdnewsnow.com/2023/02/10/canadas-miller-continues-carving-out-name-with-g-league-ignite-as-eyes-set-on-nba/.
  3. Web site: Mikre . Mickias . National Jr. Circuit Championships Recap – Thornlea crowned as 2019 Champions . North Pole Hoops . June 11, 2022 . March 6, 2019.
  4. Web site: Osman . Libaan . How Scarborough’s Leonard Miller became this year’s most intriguing NBA draft prospect . . June 11, 2022 . May 27, 2022.
  5. Web site: Kalbrosky . Bryan . Leonard Miller is suddenly the most intriguing NBA draft prospect, but it's what he does next that matters most . For The Win . June 11, 2022 . May 6, 2022.
  6. Web site: Pilgrim . Jack . Leonard Miller among top participants at Nike Hoop Summit . On3 . June 11, 2022 . April 6, 2022.
  7. Web site: Backus . Will . Leonard Miller, uncommitted prospect in 2022 class, declares for NBA Draft . . June 11, 2022 . April 23, 2022.
  8. Web site: 2022-06-13 . Miller opts for G League Ignite instead of draft . 2024-06-15 . ESPN.com . en.
  9. Web site: Leonard Miller - Recruiting Profile . 2024-06-15 . www.on3.com . en.
  10. Web site: Siegel . Brett . Potential First-Round Pick Leonard Miller To Skip College, Play Professionally . . June 11, 2022 . May 31, 2022.
  11. Web site: Mojave King, Leonard Miller officially signs contracts with G League Ignite. September 7, 2022. September 7, 2022 .
  12. Web site: Wolves' Garza And Ignite's Henderson Named Captains For NBA G League Next Up Game . March 8, 2023 . NBA G League.
  13. Web site: Leonard Miller, Josh Minott look like budding stars in Timberwolves' summer league opener - Sports Illustrated Minnesota Sports, News, Analysis, and More . Sports Illustrated . 2023-07-08 . Chris Schad . 2023-07-09.
  14. Web site: Timberwolves Sign Leonard Miller . . 2023-07-09 . 2023-07-09 . NBA.com . NBA .
  15. Web site: Leonard Miller (CAN)'s profile – FIBA U16 Americas Championship 2019 . . June 11, 2022.