Markquis Morris Nowell (born December 25, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Kansas State Wildcats, and previously the Little Rock Trojans. He holds the Division I NCAA Tournament single-game assists record, with 19 vs. Michigan State in the 2023 Sweet Sixteen.

Markquis Nowell
Nowell in 2023
No. 1 – Rio Grande Valley Vipers
PositionPoint guard
LeagueNBA G League
Personal information
Born (1999-12-25) December 25, 1999 (age 24)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Listed height5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Listed weight163 lb (74 kg)
Career information
High school
College
NBA draft2023: undrafted
Playing career2023–present
Career history
2023–2024Toronto Raptors
2023–2024Raptors 905
2024Raptors 905
2024–presentRio Grande Valley Vipers
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata

High school career

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Nowell began his high school career at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, New Jersey, under Hall Of Fame Coach Bob Hurley Sr. After receiving minimum playing time after his freshman year he decided to transfer schools to Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School for his sophomore and junior year, playing alongside Julian and Justin Champagnie. Nowell averaged 19.9 points and 8.1 assists per game as a junior.[1] He transferred to The Patrick School for his senior season and averaged 10.9 points per game despite missing a month with injuries.[2] He received no Division 1 offers out of high school before getting a look from Little Rock.[3]

College career

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As a freshman, Nowell averaged 11.1 points, 4.2 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game.[1] He averaged 17.2 points, 4.9 assists, and 3.0 rebounds per game as a sophomore. Nowell was named to the First Team All-Sun Belt.[4] He was suspended for two games in January 2020 due to disciplinary reasons.[5] As a junior, Nowell averaged 14.3 points, 6.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game but opted out of the season in February 2020. Following the season, he transferred to Kansas State.[2]

Nowell averaged 12.4 points and team-highs of 5.0 assists and 2.2 steals per game in the 2021–22 season. He was one of two players to return to Kansas State after Jerome Tang was hired as coach to replace Bruce Weber.[6] On January 10, 2023, Nowell was named Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association after scoring a career-high 36 points to go with nine assists and three steals in a 116–103 win against Texas.[7] He was named to the First Team All-Big 12 as well as the All-Defensive Team.[8] During the NCAA tournament, Nowell scored 17 points and recorded a then career-high 14 assists during a 77–65 first round win over Montana State.[9] On March 19, Nowell scored 27 points and dished out 9 assists in a Second Round win over the Kentucky Wildcats.[10] On March 23, during a Sweet 16 matchup against Michigan State, while playing with a sprained ankle, along with 20 points and 5 steals, Nowell recorded 19 assists in an overtime win, setting a new NCAA Tournament record for assists in a single game.[11] On March 25, Nowell scored 30 points and 12 assists in a losing effort against Florida Atlantic in the Elite 8 of the NCAA Tournament.[12]

Professional career

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Toronto Raptors / Raptors 905 (2023–2024)

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After going undrafted in the 2023 NBA draft, Nowell signed a two-way contract with the Toronto Raptors on July 3, 2023.[13] On July 15, he recorded 17 points, 12 assists and 3 rebounds in a 108–101 summer league win against the Golden State Warriors.[14] On March 4, 2024, he was waived by Toronto[15] and two days later, he joined Raptors 905.[16]

Rio Grande Valley Vipers (2024–present)

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On October 1, 2024, Nowell signed with the Houston Rockets,[17] but was waived on October 14.[18] On October 27, he joined the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.[19]

Career statistics

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Legend
  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
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2023–24 Toronto 1 0 3.5 .000 1.000 2.0 2.0 1.0 .0 2.0
Career 1 0 3.5 .000 1.000 2.0 2.0 1.0 .0 2.0

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Little Rock 25 18 30.4 .382 .354 .792 3.2 4.2 1.4 0.0 11.1
2019–20 Little Rock 28 26 33.5 .427 .391 .879 3.0 4.9 2.2 0.1 17.2
2020–21 Little Rock 15 8 30.5 .344 .333 .873 3.9 6.0 2.3 0.0 14.3
2021–22 Kansas State 27 21 30.4 .386 .307 .829 3.4 5.0 2.2 0.0 12.4
2022–23 Kansas State 36 36 36.9 .386 .355 .889 3.5 8.3 2.6 0.1 17.6
Career 131 109 32.9 .390 .353 .866 3.4 5.8 2.2 0.0 14.8

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "RELEASE: Weber Announces the Addition of Transfer Markquis Nowell". Rivals.com. April 1, 2021. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  2. ^ a b Green, Arne (April 1, 2021). "Kansas State basketball adds Little Rock transfer point guard Markquis Nowell". Salina Journal. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  3. ^ Sweeney, Kevin (January 11, 2023). "Markquis Nowell Has Put Kansas State—and Himself—on the Map". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  4. ^ Stoia, George (October 18, 2020). "Trojans' experience paying off". Northwest Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  5. ^ Lederman, Eli (February 10, 2020). "Nowell no longer a Trojan". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  6. ^ Green, Arne (January 6, 2023). "Point guard Markquis Nowell has helped lead Kansas State to blazing start in the Big 12". Topeka Capital-Journal. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  7. ^ "K-State's Nowell Named Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week". Big 12 Conference. January 10, 2023. Retrieved February 25, 2023.
  8. ^ "K-State's Tang Big 12 Coach of the Year, Johnson & Nowell 1st team". Rivals.com. March 5, 2023. Retrieved March 6, 2023.
  9. ^ Hot Shooting Propels 15/13 K-State Past Montana State, 77-65
  10. ^ [1]
  11. ^ [2]
  12. ^ Owens, Jason (March 25, 2023). "March Madness: Florida Atlantic survives Markquis Nowell, Kansas State in thriller for 1st Final Four berth". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved March 28, 2023.
  13. ^ "RAPTORS SIGN NOWELL TO A TWO-WAY CONTRACT". NBA.com. July 3, 2023. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  14. ^ "Warriors 101-108 Raptors (July 15, 2023) Box Score -ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  15. ^ "RAPTORS SIGN GUEYE TO TWO-WAY CONTRACT". NBA.com. March 4, 2024. Retrieved March 4, 2024.
  16. ^ "2023-2024 Raptors 905 Transaction History". RealGM.com. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
  17. ^ Joshi, Hiren (October 1, 2024). "Rockets Sign Two Players". NBA.com. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
  18. ^ Adams, Luke (October 14, 2024). "Rockets Waive Thon Maker, Markquis Nowell". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved October 14, 2024.
  19. ^ "Vipers Announce 2024-25 Training Camp Roster". OurSportsCentral.com. October 27, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
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