Joey Baker
| No. 45 – Grand Rapids Gold | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward / power forward |
| League | NBA G League |
| Personal information | |
| Born | September 13, 2000 Fayetteville, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Trinity Christian School (Fayetteville, North Carolina) |
| College | |
| NBA draft | 2023: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2023–present |
| Career history | |
| 2023–2024 | Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys |
| 2024–present | Grand Rapids Gold |
Joseph William Baker (born September 13, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils and the Michigan Wolverines. Baker was a four-star recruit in high school and the number 3 player in North Carolina according to ESPN.
High school career
[edit]Baker attended Trinity Christian School in Fayetteville, North Carolina.[1]
Recruiting
[edit]Baker was a four-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2019 class, before reclassifying to the 2018 class.[2] He was ranked No.41 overall recruit in the class of 2018.[3][4]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joey Baker SF | Fayetteville, NC | Trinity Christian School (NC) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Oct 29, 2017 | |
Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89 | ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 48 247Sports: 33 ESPN: 41 | ||||||
Sources:
| ||||||
College career
[edit]Duke (2018–2022)
[edit]Freshman season (2018-19)
[edit]On October 29, 2017, Baker committed to playing college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils over offers from Kansas, Tennessee and UCLA.[5] Baker would join a recruiting class that featured future NBA players RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish, and Zion Williamson,[6] as well as Tre Jones for the 2018–19 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team.[2] During his freshman year, Baker was set to redshirt for the entire season, until Coach K put him into the game against Syracuse to fill in for the injured Williamson on February 23, 2019.[7][8]
Sophomore season (2019-20)
[edit]On December 19, 2019, Baker put up a career high in points scored with 22 against the Wofford Terriers.[9]
Junior season (2020-21)
[edit]As a junior, Baker appeared in 23 games only averaging 2.9 points and 1.2 rebounds per game.[10]
Senior season (2021-22)
[edit]On October 11, 2021, Mike Krzyzewski named Baker team captain alongside Wendell Moore Jr. for the 2021-22 season.[11] As a senior, Baker averaged 4.5 points and 1.2 rebound per game.[12] On May 8, 2022, Baker completed his undergraduate degree in Political Science and graduated from Duke University.[13][14]
Michigan (2022–2023)
[edit]On June 18, 2022, Baker transferred to the University of Michigan as a graduate transfer for his final year of college basketball eligibility.[15][16] During the offseason Baker had offseason hip surgery.[17] Baker didn't celebrate Senior night with the 2021-22 Duke Blue Devils, because he anticipated playing his fifth year there, but he did celebrate it with the 2022–23 Michigan Wolverines on February 26 against Wisconsin.[18] In the opening round of the 2023 National Invitation Tournament, against Toledo on March 14, 2023, Baker posted season-highs in points (21), field goals made (eight), and three-pointers made (five) on 8–11 shooting.[19] Following the game, he announced that he was pursuing a retroactive redshirt from his freshman season for the 2018-19 Duke Blue Devils.[20] Baker later decided to hire an agent and pursue professional opportunities.[21][22]
Professional career
[edit]Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys (2023–2024)
[edit]After going undrafted in the 2023 NBA draft, Baker signed his first professional contract with Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) on September 14, 2023.[23]
Grand Rapids Gold (2024–present)
[edit]On March 4, 2024, Baker joined the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League.[24]
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–19 | Duke | 4 | 0 | 4.5 | .250 | .500 | .000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.8 |
| 2019–20 | Duke | 28 | 3 | 12.1 | .410 | .394 | .917 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 5.0 |
| 2020–21 | Duke | 23 | 1 | 11.5 | .310 | .314 | .750 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 2.9 |
| 2021–22 | Duke | 34 | 0 | 11.9 | .432 | .405 | .778 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 4.5 |
| 2022–23 | Michigan | 34 | 5 | 16.4 | .393 | .391 | .686 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 5.7 |
| Career | 123 | 9 | 12.9 | .393 | .383 | .756 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 4.5 | |
Personal life
[edit]His father, Michael Baker, served in the United States Army. His mother, Jennifer Baker, is a Special Education teacher.[25]
References
[edit]- ^ "Joey Baker Recruiting Profile". 247sports.com. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 1, 2018.
- ^ a b "Five-star F Joey Baker to join Duke a year earlier than expected". ESPN.com. May 2, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
- ^ "Joey Baker – Basketball Recruiting – Player Profiles". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "Joey Baker, 2018 Small Forward". Rivals.com. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "Joey Baker commits to Blue Devils; No. 13 in ESPN 60 for 2019 class". ESPN.com. October 29, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2017.
- ^ Moody, Aaron (May 26, 2018). "Five-star power forward Joey Baker signs with Duke as Class of 2018". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ "Coach K Unexpectedly Burns Joey Baker's Redshirt At Syracuse". thespun.com. February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
- ^ "Duke Freshman Joey Baker Loses Redshirt Season After Playing vs. Syracuse". bleacherreport.com. February 23, 2019. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
- ^ "Baker's Career Night Leads No. 4 Duke Past Wofford, 86-57". goduke.com. December 19, 2019. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ Naseri, Romana (March 27, 2021). "Duke men's basketball 2020-21 player review: Joey Baker". Duke Chronicle. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "Baker, Moore Named Duke Captains". Duke Blue Devils. October 11, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ Hurewitz, Micah (April 7, 2022). "Duke men's basketball 2021-22 player review: Joey Baker". Duke Chronicle. Retrieved January 2, 2024.
- ^ "Duke basketball: Joey Baker officially finished with Blue Devil career". balldurham.com. July 2, 2022. Retrieved July 2, 2022.
- ^ "Joey Baker graduates from Duke... on crutches". May 8, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
- ^ "Duke transfer Joey Baker discusses transfer to Michigan, fit with the Wolverines and more". 247sports.com. July 31, 2022. Retrieved July 31, 2022.
- ^ "Duke's Joey Baker Transferring to Michigan". SI.com. June 18, 2022. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
- ^ Zuniga, Alejandro (March 14, 2023). "Joey Baker, Hunter Dickinson overpower Toledo as Michigan advances in NIT". 247Sports. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ Kahn, Andrew (February 27, 2023). "On Senior Day, young Michigan team honors 'wise owl' Joey Baker". Mlive.com. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ Wyrot, Tom (March 14, 2023). "Sharp Shooting Propels Michigan to Win over Toledo in NIT First Round". MGoBlue.com. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ Shaw, Zach (March 14, 2023). "Michigan's Joey Baker pursuing sixth season of eligibility: 'We'll see what happens'". 247Sports. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
- ^ Backus, Will (April 10, 2023). "Michigan basketball: Duke transfer Joey Baker to sign with agent, pursue pro career for 2023-24 season". 247Sports. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ Garcia, Tony (April 10, 2023). "Michigan basketball's Joey Baker reportedly to pursue pro career". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved April 11, 2023.
- ^ ""Pieno žvaigždes" papildė du naujokai". BCPienoZvaigzdes.lt (in Lithuanian). September 14, 2023. Retrieved September 19, 2023.
- ^ Grand Rapids Gold [@NBAGrandRapids] (March 4, 2024). "Welcome to Grand Rapids 🏙️" (Tweet). Retrieved March 4, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ "'He knows what he wants': Duke's Joey Baker eager to show he's more than truncated freshman season". theathletic.com. June 5, 2019. Retrieved June 5, 2019.