Shamorie Saequan Ponds (born June 29, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Astros de Jalisco of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). He played college basketball for the St. John's Red Storm.

Shamorie Ponds
No. 11 – Astros de Jalisco
PositionPoint guard
LeagueLNBP
Personal information
Born (1998-06-29) June 29, 1998 (age 26)
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Listed weight175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High schoolThomas Jefferson
(Brooklyn, New York)
CollegeSt. John's (2016–2019)
NBA draft2019: undrafted
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2020Toronto Raptors
2019–2020Raptors 905
2021Spars
2021–2022Delaware Blue Coats
2023–presentAstros de Jalisco
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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Ponds played high school basketball for Thomas Jefferson High School in Brooklyn, New York, where in 2016 he led the team to its first New York City title since 1954. He chose to attend nearby St. John's to play for coach Chris Mullin.[1][2]

Ponds was rated as a four-star recruit and ranked 37th overall recruit and 9th best point guard in the 2016 high school class.[3][4]

College career

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As a freshman, Ponds was one of the top freshmen in the Big East Conference, averaging 17.4 points and averaging 3.3 assists as the starting point guard for the Red Storm. At the close of the season, Ponds was named to the conference all-freshman team.[5]

Following his freshman year, Ponds became a top player in the Big East as a sophomore.[6] Ponds made a national name for himself with standout performances in back to back upset wins over fourth-ranked Duke, top-ranked Villanova,[7] as well as scoring 44 points, a Carnesecca Arena record, against the Marquette Golden Eagles. At the close of the season, Ponds was named first-team All-Big East and won the Haggerty Award as the top college player in the New York City metro area.[8][9]

Following his sophomore season, Ponds declared his eligibility for the 2018 NBA draft. He did not initially hire an agent.[10] He decided to return to St. John's for his junior season. Ponds averaged 19.7 points, 4.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 2.6 steals in 35.1 minutes per game as a junior. He left St. John's for the NBA after the season concluded.[11]

Professional career

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Toronto Raptors (2019–2020)

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After going undrafted in the 2019 NBA draft, the Houston Rockets signed Ponds to a contract to play in the 2019 NBA Summer League and take part in training camp.[12] He later had his contract converted to a two-way deal,[13] a decision which was later reversed.[14] On October 19, 2019, the Rockets released Ponds.[15]

On October 23, 2019, the Toronto Raptors announced they had signed Ponds to a two-way contract. Under the terms of the deal, he would split time between the Raptors and their NBA G League affiliate, the Raptors 905.[16] On November 27, 2019, Ponds made his NBA debut against the New York Knicks, scoring 4 points and making his first NBA basket. On December 31, 2019, Ponds set a new career high with 5 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers. On January 15, 2020, the Raptors waived Ponds.[17]

Spars (2021)

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On February 23, 2021, Spars of the Bosnian League announced they had signed Ponds to for the rest of the 2020–21 season.[18]

Delaware Blue Coats (2021–2022)

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Ponds was selected by the Delaware Blue Coats first overall in the 2021 NBA G League draft.[19]

Astros de Jalisco (2023–present)

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Ponds led the Astros de Jalisco to a CIBACOPA league title in 2023 and was named Finals MVP.[20]

Personal life

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Ponds is the son of Shawn Ponds and Lamell Brightwell. He has a brother named Shawn and two sisters, Shamell and Shaniaya.[21]

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

Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Toronto 4 0 2.8 .600 .500 1.000 .3 .5 .0 .3 2.3
Career 4 0 2.8 .600 .500 1.000 .3 .5 .0 .3 2.3

College

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2016–17 St. John's 33 33 33.6 .439 .375 .823 4.4 3.1 2.1 .2 17.4
2017–18 St. John's 30 30 37.0 .420 .253 .857 5.0 4.7 2.3 .1 21.6
2018–19 St. John's 33 33 35.1 .454 .353 .836 4.1 5.1 2.6 .3 19.7
Career 96 96 35.2 .437 .328 .840 4.5 4.3 2.3 .2 19.5

References

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  1. ^ Armstrong, Kevin (November 19, 2015). "Shamorie Ponds of Thomas Jefferson HS signs National Letter of Intent with St. John's". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  2. ^ Braziller, Zach (April 14, 2016). "Shamorie Ponds chose St. John's to 'put on a show for my city'". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  3. ^ "Shamorie Ponds – Basketball Recruiting – Player Profiles". ESPN.com. April 25, 2016. Retrieved April 25, 2016.
  4. ^ "Shamorie Ponds, 2016 Point guard - Rivals.com". n.rivals.com. January 7, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  5. ^ Braziller, Zach (March 8, 2017). "Why Shamorie Ponds can blame teammate for Big East snub". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  6. ^ Walsh, Peter (November 10, 2017). "Big City Dreams". Slam Magazine. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  7. ^ O’Donnell, Ricky (February 20, 2018). "How Shamorie Ponds became the basketball king of New York". SB Nation. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  8. ^ Weiner, Rick (March 4, 2018). "Shamorie Ponds named to All Big East First Team". Elitesportsny.com. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  9. ^ Marcus, Steven (April 25, 2018). "St. John's Shamorie Ponds wins Haggerty Award". Newsday. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  10. ^ Phillips, Scott (March 24, 2018). "St. John's guard Shamorie Ponds entering NBA Draft process without an agent". NBCSports.com. Retrieved May 15, 2018.
  11. ^ DuBose, Ben (October 22, 2019). "Rookie guard Shamorie Ponds joins Raptors on two-way contract". Rookie Wire. Retrieved December 12, 2019.
  12. ^ "Roster Update: Rockets GM Daryl Morey announced today the team has signed rookie free agent guards Chris Clemons, Shamorie Ponds and William McDowell-White. All three players will represent the Rockets at NBA Summer League 2019, which begins on Friday". Houston Rockets on Twitter. July 4, 2019. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
  13. ^ "Rookie guards Ponds, McDowell-White land Rockets' two-way deals". Rockets Wire. September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  14. ^ Adams, Luke (September 5, 2019). "Rockets Adjust Contracts For Ponds, McDowell-White". HoopsRumors. Retrieved September 7, 2019.
  15. ^ "Rockets Waive Ray Spalding, Two Others". Hoops Rumors. October 19, 2019. Retrieved October 21, 2019.
  16. ^ "Raptors Sign Ponds to Two-Way Contract". NBA G League. October 23, 2019. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  17. ^ "Raptors waive Shamorie Ponds". NBA. January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2020.
  18. ^ "Spars signed with Shamorie Ponds". druga.aba-liga.com. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  19. ^ "Lance Stephenson selected in G League draft". National Post. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
  20. ^ Flores, Vanessa (June 26, 2023). "Astros de Jalisco derrota a Rayos de Hermosillo y es bicampeón de Cibacopa 2023". Telediario.mx (in Spanish). Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  21. ^ "Shamorie Ponds - Men's Basketball". St. John's University Athletics. Retrieved July 26, 2024.
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