Damien Jefferson (born October 3, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for Karşıyaka Basket of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL) and the Champions League. He played college basketball for the New Mexico Lobos and the Creighton Bluejays.
 Jefferson (right) with Creighton in 2019 | |
| No. 23 – Karşıyaka Basket | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward |
| League | Basketbol Süper Ligi Champions League |
| Personal information | |
| Born | October 3, 1997 East Chicago, Indiana |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Listed weight | 220 lb (100 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Central (East Chicago, Indiana) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2021: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2021–present |
| Career history | |
| 2021–2022 | Stockton Kings |
| 2022–2023 | Memphis Hustle |
| 2023–2024 | Filou Oostende |
| 2024–present | Karşıyaka Basket |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
High school career
editJefferson attended Central High School in East Chicago, Indiana. As a senior, he averaged 26.1 points and 8.1 rebounds per game and was named The Times of Northwest Indiana Player of the Year.[1] Jefferson led his team to a Class 4A sectional title and was named an Indiana All-Star.[2] He committed to playing college basketball for New Mexico, his father's alma mater.[3]
College career
editJefferson averaged 5.3 points and 2.3 rebounds as a freshman at New Mexico. For his sophomore season, he transferred to Creighton and sat out for one year due to transfer rules.[4] As a sophomore, Jefferson averaged 6.2 points and four rebounds per game before his season was cut short due to a high ankle sprain injury.[5] In his junior season, he averaged 9.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. Jefferson declared for the 2020 NBA draft before withdrawing and returning to college.[6] On December 17, 2020, he flirted with a triple-double, recording 10 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists in a 94–76 win over St. John's.[7] As a senior, Jefferson earned Second Team All-Big East honors.[8] He averaged 11.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. Jefferson declared for the 2021 NBA draft, forgoing an additional season of eligibility the NCAA granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[9]
Professional career
editJefferson joined the Sacramento Kings for the 2021 NBA Summer League, winning a summer league championship.[10] He joined the Stockton Kings as an affiliate player on October 25, 2021,[11] but was later waived on January 29, 2022. He was acquired by the Memphis Hustle on February 14.[12]
On July 31, 2023, Jefferson signed with Filou Oostende of the BNXT League.[13]
On August 11, 2024, he signed with Karşıyaka Basket of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL).[14]
Career statistics
edit| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 | New Mexico | 29 | 6 | 15.1 | .438 | .214 | .490 | 2.3 | 1.0 | .4 | .1 | 5.3 |
| 2017–18 | Creighton |  Redshirt
| ||||||||||
| 2018–19 | Creighton | 26 | 16 | 18.0 | .535 | .412 | .634 | 4.0 | .8 | .4 | .1 | 6.2 |
| 2019–20 | Creighton | 30 | 29 | 27.1 | .533 | .217 | .635 | 5.5 | 1.4 | .6 | .2 | 9.4 |
| 2020–21 | Creighton | 31 | 31 | 30.9 | .512 | .348 | .605 | 5.4 | 2.4 | 1.2 | .3 | 11.9 |
| Career | 116 | 82 | 23.0 | .509 | .304 | .592 | 4.4 | 1.4 | .7 | .2 | 8.3 | |
Personal life
editJefferson's father, Everette, played college basketball at New Mexico.[15]
References
edit- ^ Hanlon, Steve (March 31, 2016). "Times Boys Basketball Player of the Year: Damien Jefferson, E.C. Central". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Boyd, James (April 30, 2020). "EC Central grad, Creighton forward Damien Jefferson declares for NBA Draft". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Hanlon, Steve (September 21, 2015). "E.C. Central's Damien Jefferson visits New Mexico, verbally commits to play for the Lobos". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Nyatawa, Jon (June 22, 2017). "Former New Mexico guard Damien Jefferson announces he'll transfer to Creighton". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ "Damien Jefferson – 2020-21 – Men's Basketball". Creighton University Athletics. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Ferguson, Aaron (August 1, 2020). "East Chicago's Damien Jefferson withdraws from NBA Draft, returns to Creighton". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ DeMarinis, Matt (December 18, 2020). "Damien Jefferson is proving that he doesn't need a spotlight in order to shine". White & Blue Review. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Nyatawa, Jon (March 7, 2021). "Creighton's Marcus Zegarowski, Damien Jefferson and Denzel Mahoney earn Big East honors". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved March 23, 2021.
- ^ Goodman, Jeff (May 3, 2021). "Stadium's 2021 NBA Draft Entry Tracker". WatchStadium.com. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ Westrick, Sam (August 18, 2021). "Damien Jefferson is NBA Summer League Champion". 247Sports.com. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
- ^ "Stockton Kings Announce 2021-22 Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. October 25, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
- ^ "2021-22 NBA G League Transactions". NBA.com. February 14, 2022. Retrieved February 15, 2022.
- ^ "NEW PLAYER ANNOUNCEMENT". BCOostende.be. July 31, 2023. Retrieved July 31, 2023.
- ^ @KSKBasket (August 1, 2024). "Damien Jefferson Pınar Karşıyaka'mızda!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Tate, Van (October 24, 2016). "Lobos' Damien Jefferson has a big smile and big game". KRQE. Retrieved March 23, 2021.