Thon Maker

Thon Maker

No. 7 – Milwaukee Bucks
Position Power forward / Center
League NBA
Personal information
Born (1997-02-25) 25 February 1997
Wau, Sudan
(now South Sudan)
Nationality Australian / Sudanese
Listed height 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Listed weight 223 lb (101 kg)
Career information
High school Carlisle School (Martinsville, Virginia)
Orangeville Prep (Orangeville, Ontario)
NBA draft 2016 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10th overall
Selected by the Milwaukee Bucks
Playing career 2016–present
Career history
2016–present Milwaukee Bucks
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Thon Marial Maker (born 25 February 1997)[1] is a Sudanese-Australian professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He attended high school at Orangeville District Secondary School and played basketball for Canada's Athlete Institute. Coming out of high school, Maker was considered a five-star recruit by most basketball recruiting services.[2][3][4]

Early life

Maker was born in Wau,[1] a city located in what is now South Sudan. His uncle, a local administrator, arranged for Maker, his younger brother, Matur, and his aunt to escape the civil war to Uganda when Maker was five. From there, they were accepted as refugees by Australia; they then moved to Perth, Western Australia, where the family eventually settled down.[5]

When he was 14, Maker was discovered by Edward Smith, an Australian of African-American heritage who helps children from migrant backgrounds receive opportunities they otherwise wouldn't get. Smith had previously helped fellow Sudanese immigrants Ater Majok and Mathiang Muo. Playing soccer in the Perth suburb of Mirrabooka at the time he was discovered,[6] Smith offered his aunt to feed, clothe and educate Maker in Sydney. In Sydney, Maker played basketball for the St. George Basketball Association during 2011, where he dominated on the court and subsequently made friends off it. However, just before the team's playoffs, Maker and Smith left to attend a talent camp in Texas.[5]

High school career

Once in the United States, Maker attended two schools in Louisiana, including Metairie Park Country Day School,[7] before finally settling down at Carlisle School in Martinsville, Virginia.[5] During his freshman and sophomore years playing for Carlisle's varsity team, Maker averaged 22.2 points, 13.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.4 steals and 4.5 blocks over a total of 53 games.[8] As a sophomore, he earned 2013–14 Gatorade Virginia Boys Basketball Player of the Year honours after leading Carlisle to a state championship.[9]

On 5 September 2014, Maker and his brother enrolled at the Athlete Institute in Mono, Ontario where Edward Smith was already an assistant coach. In conjunction with the Athlete Institute, the brothers enrolled at Orangeville District Secondary School in the nearby town of Orangeville.[10]

On 18 February 2015, Maker announced his decision to reclassify into the 2015 class, which would have made 2014–15 his final year of high school.[11][12] He later participated in the 2015 Nike Hoop Summit in Portland, Oregon.[13][14] Playing alongside fellow Australian Ben Simmons in the April 11 game, Maker recorded 10 rebounds, two points and one block as the World Team defeated Team USA, 103–101.[15]

On 18 June 2015, Maker announced his decision to remain in the Class of 2016, and returned to Orangeville Prep for the 2015–16 season. Maker noted how stressful it was working toward entering the Class of 2015, with the issue centred on his workload and the pressure with "trying to get it all done at once".[16] He was being recruited by Arizona State, Florida State, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Notre Dame, St. John's and UNLV.[17]

On 3 April 2016, Maker declared his intentions to enter the 2016 NBA draft, a decision that required a ruling from the NBA to determine his eligibility.[18] To skip a year of college, Maker had to convince the NBA he graduated from Orangeville Prep in 2015. He successfully did so, proving he graduated from high school in June 2015[9] but stayed another year as a post-graduate student by his own choosing, fulfilling both the minimum age and one year removed requirements to the NBA's satisfaction. With a successful ruling, Maker became just the second player in more than a decade to make the leap from high school in North America straight to the draft[19] and the first to play in the NBA since the league introduced the "one-and-done" rule for high school students in 2005.[20][21]

Professional career

NBA Draft

Maker attended the 2016 NBA Draft Combine, where he was measured as the third-tallest player without shoes at 6'11.75"[22] and recorded the highest no-step vertical jump (32") of any player over 6'11" in NBA Draft Combine history.[23][24] In the days leading up to the draft, a number of teams ruled themselves out of selecting Maker in the first round over concerns that his age had been misrepresented, as some believed Maker to be between 21–23 years of age despite being officially listed as a 19-year-old.[25] Despite those concerns set around that time, he was selected with the 10th overall pick in the 2016 draft by the Milwaukee Bucks,[26][27] becoming the first high school player taken in the first round since the 2005 Collective Bargaining Agreement went into effect.[9]

Milwaukee Bucks (2016–present)

During the 2016 NBA Summer League, Maker averaged 14.2 points and 9.6 rebounds[28] in five games for the Bucks and subsequently earned All-NBA Summer League Second Team honours.[29] On 30 July 2016, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Bucks.[30] Maker made his NBA debut on 30 October 2016, entering the game with 95 seconds remaining in the final term of the Bucks' 98–83 loss to the Detroit Pistons;[31] he recorded one rebound.[32] Four days later, he came off the bench for the final minute of the Bucks' 125–107 win over the Indiana Pacers and hit two three-pointers.[33]

Personal life

Maker's parents, who descend from the Dinka people, still live in South Sudan[5] and are also both extremely tall; his father is 203 cm (6'8") and his mother 190 cm (6'3").[34] His brother, Matur, is a top recruit for the 2017 class.[35] Another brother, Maker Maker, plays soccer for South Melbourne FC's under-20 team.[36] A cousin of Maker's, Makur, attends West Hills Chaminade Prep School in Los Angeles.[37] Another cousin, Aliir Aliir, plays in the Australian Football League for the Sydney Swans.[38]

References

  1. 1 2 "This Australian Passport Might Put The Great Thon Maker Age Conspiracy To Rest Once And For All". Yahoo.com. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 30 June 2016.
  2. ↑ "Thon Maker". Rivals.com. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  3. ↑ "Thon Maker". 247Sports.com. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  4. ↑ Bedore, Gary (23 February 2015). "Jaylen Brown will take his time; Thon Maker details visit to KU". KUSports.com. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Sygall, David (11 August 2013). "Refugees escaping war are aiming for the stars". SMH.com.au. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  6. ↑ Croy, Liam (24 June 2016). "Mirrabooka schoolboy Thon Maker to play in the NBA". Yahoo.com. The West Australian. Retrieved 24 June 2016.
  7. ↑ Roser, Jerit (26 April 2016). "Former Country Day standout Thon Maker joins Ben Simmons in ESPN's latest NBA mock draft". NOLA.com. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
  8. ↑ "Thon Maker's Basketball Stats". MaxPreps.com. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  9. 1 2 3 Rohrbach, Ben (23 June 2016). "Thon Maker becomes first prep-to-pro first-round pick since 2005". Yahoo.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  10. ↑ Biancardi, Paul (5 September 2014). "Thon Maker heading to Canada". ESPN.com. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  11. ↑ Borzello, Jeff (18 February 2015). "Thon Maker plans to reclassify". ESPN.com. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  12. ↑ Vecenie, Sam (18 February 2015). "Top recruit Thon Maker set to graduate, reclassify into Class of 2015". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 18 February 2015.
  13. ↑ Vecenie, Sam (11 March 2015). "World Team roster announced for 2015 Nike Hoop Summit". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 11 March 2015.
  14. ↑ Uluc, Olgun (12 March 2015). "Simmons, Maker and Wynyard named to 2015 Nike Hoop Summit World Team". PickAndRoll.com.au. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
  15. ↑ Vecenie, Sam (11 April 2015). "World Team beats USA in Nike Hoop Summit behind Murray's 30". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  16. ↑ Dauster, Rob (18 June 2015). "Thon Maker to remain in the Class of 2016". NBCSports.com. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
  17. ↑ "Thon Maker – Basketball Recruiting – Player Profiles". ESPN.com. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  18. ↑ Wells, Adam (3 April 2016). "Thon Maker Will Declare for 2016 NBA Draft: Latest Comments and Reaction". BleacherReport.com. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  19. ↑ Blakely, A. Sherrod (2 May 2016). "GAUGING THE STOCK OF THON MAKER, THE NBA DRAFT'S MYSTERY MAN". CSNNE.com.au. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  20. ↑ Eisenberg, Jeff (14 April 2016). "Thon Maker being ruled draft-eligible highlights potential loophole". Yahoo.com. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  21. ↑ "Thon Maker ruled eligible for NBA Draft, US media give early verdict on Australian phenom's prospects". FoxSports.com.au. 15 April 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
  22. ↑ "Unofficially, the top three 2016 combine heights...". Twitter. 11 May 2016. Retrieved 11 May 2016.
  23. ↑ "Thon Maker has HIGHEST No-Step Vert(32") &...". Twitter. 13 May 2016. Retrieved 13 May 2016.
  24. ↑ Uluc, Olgun (14 May 2016). "Thon Maker NBA Draft Combine analysis – How the Australian fared at the pre-draft showcase". FoxSports.com.au. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  25. ↑ Scarito, Eddie (23 June 2016). "Draft Rumors – Morning: Maker, Young, Hawes". HoopsRumors.com. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  26. ↑ "Bucks draft Sudan native Thon Maker, 19, with 10th pick". ESPN.com. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  27. ↑ "BUCKS SELECT MAKER WITH 10TH PICK IN 2016 NBA DRAFT". NBA.com. 23 June 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  28. ↑ "Ben Simmons, Thon Maker named two of NBA Summer League's best players". ABC.net.au. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  29. ↑ "Wolves' Tyus Jones named 2016 Summer League MVP". NBA.com. 18 July 2016. Retrieved 18 July 2016.
  30. ↑ "BUCKS SIGN THON MAKER AND MALCOLM BROGDON". NBA.com. 30 July 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2016.
  31. ↑ "NBA Wrap: Maker debuts, Mills fires". News.com.au. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  32. ↑ "Bucks vs. Pistons – Box Score". ESPN.com. 30 October 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016.
  33. ↑ "Pacers vs. Bucks – Box Score". ESPN.com. 3 November 2016. Retrieved 3 November 2016.
  34. ↑ Bednall, Jai (22 October 2014). "Thon Maker, Australian basketball prospect, is a 7-footer that plays like a guard". News.com.au. Retrieved 22 October 2014.
  35. ↑ "Matur Maker". NBADraft.net. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
  36. ↑ Stamocostas, Con (1 July 2016). "Young star not desiring to emulate brother". FourFourTwo.com. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
  37. ↑ Sondheimer, Eric (25 August 2015). "Boys' basketball: 6–11 freshman Makur Maker enrolls at Chaminade". LATimes.com. Retrieved 13 September 2015.
  38. ↑ Horne, Ben (28 June 2016). "Aliir Aliir and Thon Maker revealed to be cousins as both chase their sporting dreams". DailyTelegraph.com.au. Retrieved 28 September 2016.

External links

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