Mike James (basketball, born 1975)

Michael Lamont James (born June 23, 1975) is an American retired professional basketball player who last played for the Texas Legends of the NBA Development League. He played college basketball for Duquesne. During his NBA Career he played for 11 different teams.

For the active basketball player, see Mike James (basketball, born 1990).
Mike James
James with the Wizards in 2009
Personal information
Born (1975-06-23) June 23, 1975
Copiague, New York
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight188 lb (85 kg)
Career information
High schoolAmityville (Amityville, New York)
CollegeDuquesne (1994–1998)
NBA draft1998 / Undrafted
Playing career1998–2015
PositionPoint guard
Number12, 7, 13, 5, 8
Career history
1998Long Island Surf
1998–1999UBC St. Pölten
1999–2000ESPE Châlons-en-Champagne
2000–2001SLUC Nancy Basket
2001Rockford Lightning
2001–2003Miami Heat
2003–2004Boston Celtics
2004Detroit Pistons
2004–2005Milwaukee Bucks
2005Houston Rockets
2005–2006Toronto Raptors
2006–2007Minnesota Timberwolves
2007–2008Houston Rockets
2008New Orleans Hornets
2008–2010Washington Wizards
2010Zhejiang Golden Bulls
2011Aliağa Petkim
2011–2012Erie BayHawks
2012Chicago Bulls
2013Texas Legends
2013Dallas Mavericks
2013–2014Chicago Bulls
2014–2015Texas Legends
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

He most recently played in the Big3 league for the Killer 3's.

College career

James played basketball at Duquesne University that saw him finish first all-time in steals (201), fifth in assists (348) and 10th in points (1,411) at the school and included being named to the all Atlantic 10 Conference 1st team in his senior year at the university.

Professional career

Time in Europe

James was not drafted by an NBA team, but remained positive and opted for a start in the European professional leagues instead. Mike enjoyed several stellar seasons as an integral player with both French and Austrian teams.

NBA

James began his NBA career when he signed as a free agent with the Miami Heat during the 2001–02 season. He has since played for the Boston Celtics, the Detroit Pistons, the Milwaukee Bucks, the Houston Rockets, the Toronto Raptors, the Minnesota Timberwolves, the New Orleans Hornets, the Washington Wizards, the Chicago Bulls, and the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 10.0 points per game for his career.

Detroit Pistons

James was a member of the Pistons' 2004 NBA championship team as a reserve. He and fellow reserve guard Lindsey Hunter formed a formidable defensive guard combination nicknamed the "Pit Bulls" by Rasheed Wallace, because of their aggressive nature on defense.

Toronto Raptors

As the starting point guard for the Raptors during the 2005–06 season, he averaged career highs of 20.3 points, 5.8 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game and shot 47% from the field including 44.2% from 3-point range which ranked among the league leaders.[1]

In spite of his strong play during the 2005–06 season for the Raptors, he was criticized as being somewhat of a one-dimensional player. Despite being an above-average shooter from the point guard spot, his playmaking abilities were called into question at times as well as his commitment to defense, in stark contrast to his "pit bull" days with the Pistons. The Minneapolis Star-Tribune wrote of his big 2005–06 season: "Previously, James had started only 68 games, so some scouts wondered if those numbers were an aberration. Others felt his impending free agency affected his play, prompting him to seek stats at the expense of play-making duties."

While playing for Toronto in the 2005–06 season, he reached a career high of 39 points in a win against the Detroit Pistons. On April 11, 2006, James became the first Raptor to score 30 or more points in 4 consecutive games.

Time in Minnesota and Houston

On July 11, 2006, James signed a free agent contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Much of the 2006–07 season was marred by mediocre play, which limited his minutes to 25, down from the 37 he averaged during his career year in Toronto.[1]

On June 14, 2007 it was officially announced that James and teammate Justin Reed would be traded to the Houston Rockets for Juwan Howard.[2]

Bouncing around the league

On February 21, 2008 it was announced that James and teammate Bonzi Wells would be traded to the New Orleans Hornets for Bobby Jackson, and Adam Haluska. This ended his second short tenure as a Houston Rocket.

Washington Wizards

James was traded on December 10, 2008 in a three team trade between the New Orleans Hornets, Memphis Grizzlies, and Washington Wizards.[3][4] The trade sent James and Javaris Crittenton to the Wizards and Antonio Daniels to the Hornets. The Grizzlies received a conditional first round draft pick from the Wizards.[5]

On March 1, 2010, it was announced that the Washington Wizards had reached a buy-out agreement with James and waived him. James averaged 9.3 points per game during his stint with the Wizards, in which he played 57 games.[6]

In February 2011 he signed with Aliağa Petkim in Turkey.[7]

D-League

James later joined the Erie Bayhawks in the NBA Development League. He was called up by the Chicago Bulls on January 11, 2012,[8] but released on January 28.[9] On February 14, James was re-signed by the Bulls on a 10-day contract to provide support while Derrick Rose was injured.[10] He was re-signed on a second 10-day contract on March 14.[11]

Chicago Bulls

On April 4, 2012, James signed by the Bulls for the rest of the season.[12]

Return to the D-League

On January 1, 2013, James was acquired by the Texas Legends of the D-League.[13][14]

Dallas Mavericks

He was signed to a 10-day contract by the Dallas Mavericks on January 8, 2013.[15][16][17] The Mavs signed him to a second 10-day contract on January 18, 2013.[18] He was then signed for the remainder of the season on January 28, after his second 10-day contract was up.[19] The Mavericks finished 41-41 and missed the playoffs for the first time since the 1999–2000 season.

Return to the Bulls

In September 2013, James re-signed with the Chicago Bulls.[20] On December 16, 2013, James was waived by the Bulls, after appearing in just seven games.[21] On January 22, 2014, he signed a 10-day contract with the Bulls, returning yet again for another stint.[22] On February 1, 2014, the Bulls decided not to sign James to a second 10-day contract after his first 10-day contract expired.[23] On April 10, 2014, he signed with the Bulls for the rest of the 2013–14 season.[24] On July 15, 2014, he was waived by the Bulls.[25]

Return to D-League

On November 3, 2014, James was reacquired by the Texas Legends.[26] On January 25, 2015, he recorded the Legends first triple-double of the season with 21 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds in the 115–111 win over the Delaware 87ers.[27]

NBA career statistics
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
 †  Won an NBA championship

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2001–02 Miami 1507.9.349.381.571.91.3.4.12.8
2002–03 Miami 78822.1.373.294.7321.93.2.8.17.8
2003–04 Boston 555530.6.418.381.8003.24.41.3.010.7
2003–04† Detroit 26019.7.401.364.8442.23.71.0.06.3
2004–05 Milwaukee 47024.8.446.382.7442.63.9.9.111.4
2004–05 Houston 27525.6.433.393.7643.22.9.9.112.4
2005–06 Toronto 797937.0.469.442.8373.35.8.9.020.3
2006–07 Minnesota 826525.2.422.372.8372.03.6.7.110.1
2007–08 Houston 33116.3.350.324.7861.61.6.5.16.5
2007–08 New Orleans 2108.7.344.3041.000.8.3.2.02.7
2008–09 New Orleans 809.3.320.750.500.91.0.3.02.5
2008–09 Washington 535029.7.387.367.8382.43.6.8.19.6
2009–10 Washington 4011.5.300.333.500.81.3.8.04.5
2011–12 Chicago 11010.9.408.600.875.92.6.4.24.8
2012–13 Dallas 452319.2.373.384.7931.63.1.6.16.1
2013–14 Chicago 1107.0.238.200.000.61.5.2.01.0
Career 59528624.1.417.379.8022.23.5.8.19.9

Playoffs
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2004† Detroit 2208.9.396.429.5631.21.1.2.02.6
2005 Houston 7024.4.468.000.9581.92.3.9.311.6
2008 New Orleans 407.0.333.4001.000.3.3.5.03.0
Career 33011.9.425.286.8101.21.2.4.14.5

See also

Personal life

James and his wife, Angela, have four daughters: Jadon Miciah (b. 2000), Amaya Noel (b. 2003), Michal Mikayla (b. 2006), and McKinley Joel (b. 2007). The family appeared in a 2008 episode of ABC's Supernanny.[28]

References
  1. Mike James Info Page Archived 2007-03-07 at the Wayback Machine, nba.com, accessed 29 May 2007.
  2. Stein, Marc (June 14, 2007). "Wolves, Rockets agree to Howard-James trade". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2007-06-14.
  3. "Wizards Complete Three-Team Trade". The Washington Post.
  4. "Washington Wizards get two guards in 3-team trade - ESPN". sports.espn.go.com. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  5. "Wizards Acquire Javaris Crittenton and Mike James". NBA.com. December 10, 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  6. "NBA.com: Wizards buy out guard Mike James, waive him". nba.com. Archived from the original on 2015-01-30. Retrieved 2014-11-11.
  7. Aliağa guardını buldu (in Turkish)
  8. "Bulls sign free agent guard Mike James". NBA.com. 2012-01-11. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  9. "Bulls waive guard Mike James". NBA.com. 2012-01-28. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  10. "Bulls sign Mike James to 10-day contract". NBA.com. 2012-02-14. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  11. "Bulls sign guard Mike James to a 10-day contract". NBA.com. 2012-03-14. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  12. "Bulls sign Mike James for remainder of the season". NBA.com. 2012-04-05. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  13. 2012–13 Transactions Archived 2011-11-01 at the Wayback Machine
  14. Mike James to audition for Mavs
  15. "Mavs sign veteran guard James to 10-day contract". NBA.com. January 8, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  16. "Texas Guard Mike James Signs with Dallas Mavericks". NBA.com. January 8, 2013. Archived from the original on October 26, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  17. "Mavericks sign Mike James to 10-day contract". ESPN.com. January 8, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  18. "Mavs sign guard Mike James to second 10-day contract". InsideHoops.com. January 18, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  19. "Mavericks sign Mike James for rest of season". InsideHoops.com. January 28, 2013. Retrieved 2013-10-15.
  20. "Patrick Christopher, Mike James, Dahntay Jones, Kalin Lucas, Dexter Pittman and D.J. White in Bulls training camp". Archived from the original on 2013-10-29. Retrieved 2013-09-28.
  21. Bulls waive guard Mike James
  22. BULLS SIGN JAMES TO 10-DAY CONTRACT
  23. Chicago Bulls roster down to 12 after Martin and James not re-signed
  24. BULLS SIGN JAMES AND AMUNDSON FOR REMAINDER OF THE SEASON
  25. BULLS WAIVE AMUNDSON, BREWER AND JAMES
  26. "Training Camp Roster". NBA.com. November 3, 2014. Archived from the original on November 6, 2014. Retrieved November 3, 2014.
  27. "Mike James Key Legends' Victory At 87ers". NBA.com. January 25, 2015. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  28. "Supernanny" James Family (TV Episode) – IMDb
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