Dante Lamar Cunningham (born April 22, 1987) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He played college basketball for Villanova before being selected with the 33rd overall pick in the

2009 NBA draft The 2009 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2009, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, the National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball p ...

by the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

Early life

Cunningham was born in

Clinton, Maryland Clinton is an unincorporated census-designated place (CDP) in Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Clinton was formerly known as Surrattsville until after the time of the Civil War, and Robeystown from 1865 to 1878. The population o ...

, to Searcy Blankenship and Ron Cunningham. His older sister Davalyn played in the WNBA.

High school career

Cunningham began his prep career at St. John's College High School in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

While a junior, he averaged 10 points per game and 7.4 rebounds. One of his teammates, Dwayne Anderson, would later play at Villanova with Cunningham. As a senior, Cunningham transferred to Potomac High School, which he led to a 27–0 season under Head Coach Rico Reed. He averaged 13 rebounds, 20 points, and four blocked shots per game at Potomac. He was honored as ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' Metropolitan Player of the Year.

College career

Dante Cunningham at the Palestra in Philadelphia PA in 2008

At Villanova Cunningham played in all 33 games and was a starter in four during his freshman year. In his senior year, Cunningham would go on to lead the team in scoring with 16.1 points and take home the

Big East The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

Most Improved Player award. He led the Wildcats to their first Final Four appearance since 1985. Cunningham was named to the 2008–2009 All Big East second team and the 2009 NCAA Tournament All Region .

Professional career

Portland Trail Blazers (2009–2011)

Cunningham was drafted 33rd overall by the

in the

. He played for Portland's Las Vegas Summer League team where he averaged over 18 points and 5 rebounds per game in four contests. On August 21, 2009, Cunningham signed his rookie scale contract with the Trail Blazers.

Charlotte Bobcats (2011)

On February 24, 2011, Cunningham was traded, along with

Joel Przybilla Joel Przybilla (; born October 10, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player who played the center position for 13 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). High school career Przybilla was born in Monticello, M ...

, Sean Marks and two future first-round draft picks, to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Gerald Wallace.

Memphis Grizzlies (2011–2012)

On December 20, 2011, Cunningham received a three-year, $7 million offer sheet from the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

. The Bobcats declined to match the offer and subsequently signed the contract with the Grizzlies.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2012–2014)

On July 24, 2012, Cunningham was traded to the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

in exchange for

Wayne Ellington Wayne Robert Ellington Jr. (born November 29, 1987) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is a player development coach for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Known for his shooting ability, ...

New Orleans Pelicans (2014–2018)

On December 4, 2014, Cunningham signed with the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

. On July 9, 2015, he re-signed with the Pelicans. On September 25, 2017, he re-signed with the Pelicans.

Brooklyn Nets (2018)

On February 8, 2018, Cunningham was traded to the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

in exchange for Rashad Vaughn.

San Antonio Spurs (2018–2019)

On July 20, 2018, Cunningham signed with the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

Fujian Sturgeons (2019–2020)

On December 11, 2019, Cunningham was listed in the squad of Fujian Sturgeons and made his debut for Fujian Sturgeons on the next day, scoring fourteen points and collecting eight rebounds in a 111–107 win over the Beijing Ducks. He averaged 15 points and 7 rebounds per game.

Cangrejeros de Santurce (2021)

On July 7, 2021, Cunningham signed with the Cangrejeros de Santurce of the

Baloncesto Superior Nacional The Baloncesto Superior Nacional, abbreviated as BSN, is the first-tier-level professional men's basketball list of basketball leagues, league in Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1929 and is organized by the Puerto Rican Basketball Federation. T ...

. In 10 games, he averaged 11.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 1.1 assists per game.

Le Mans Sarthe Basket (2021–2022)

On August 27, 2021, Cunningham signed with

Le Mans Sarthe Basket Le Mans Sarthe Basket, commonly known as MSB or Le Mans, is a professional basketball club that is from the city of Le Mans, France. The team plays in the French League and internationally in the Basketball Champions League. Established in 19 ...

of the

LNB Pro A LNB may refer to: Sport * Liga Nacional de Baloncesto, a professional basketball league in the Dominican Republic * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol, an Argentine basketball league * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol (Paraguay), Liga Nacional de Básquetb ...

Changwon LG Sakers (2022~)

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...

, 63 , , 2 , , 11.2 , , .495 , , – , , .646 , , 2.5 , , .2 , , .4 , , .4 , , 3.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 56 , , 9 , , 19.8 , , .433 , , .000 , , .711 , , 3.4 , , .5 , , .7 , , .6 , , 5.1 , - , align="left" , , align="left" , Charlotte , 22 , , 9 , , 24.0 , , .508 , , .111 , , .765 , , 4.0 , , .6 , , .7 , , .5 , , 9.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" , Memphis , 64 , , 5 , , 17.6 , , .516 , , – , , .652 , , 3.8 , , .6 , , .7 , , .5 , , 5.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, 80 , , 9 , , 25.1 , , .468 , , .000 , , .650 , , 5.1 , , .8 , , 1.1 , , .5 , , 8.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 81 , , 7 , , 20.2 , , .464 , , .000 , , .567 , , 4.1 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , .7 , , 6.3 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, 66 , , 27 , , 25.0 , , .457 , , .100 , , .617 , , 3.9 , , .8 , , .7 , , .6 , , 5.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 80 , , 46 , , 24.6 , , .451 , , .316 , , .695 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .4 , , 6.1 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 66 , , 35 , , 25.0 , , .485 , , .392 , , .593 , , 4.2 , , .6 , , .6 , , .4 , , 6.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 51 , , 24 , , 21.9 , , .440 , , .324 , , .556 , , 3.8 , , .5 , , .5 , , .3 , , 5.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, 22 , , 1 , , 20.3 , , .468 , , .383 , , .688 , , 4.8 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .6 , , 7.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, 64 , , 21 , , 14.5 , , .475 , , .462 , , .778 , , 2.9 , , .8 , , .4 , , .2 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 715 , , 195 , , 20.8 , , .469 , , .345 , , .649 , , 3.7 , , .7 , , .6 , , .5 , , 5.8

Playoffs

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2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

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, 5 , , 0 , , 8.4 , , .600 , , .000 , , .833 , , 2.6 , , .0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 4.6 , - , align="left" ,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

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2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

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, 4 , , 0 , , 18.8 , , .818 , , – , , 1.000 , , 4.5 , , .5 , , .8 , , 1.0 , , 5.3 , - , align="left" ,

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

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, 5 , , 0 , , 2.6 , , .667 , , 1.000 , , – , , 1.2 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.2 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 21 , , 0 , , 8.5 , , .600 , , .667 , , .889 , , 2.3 , , .1 , , .4 , , .3 , , 2.8

Personal life

On April 3, 2014, Cunningham was arrested for allegedly choking his girlfriend with whom he lived. Three days later, he was arrested on alleged domestic abuse charges. By August 18, 2014, charges were dropped, due to evidence Cunningham's then girlfriend had fabricated her accusations. Cunningham was included on a preliminary list for

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

Eurobasket 2009 The 2009 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2009, was the 36th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Poland, began on 7 September and concluded with the ...

qualifying matches in 2008. However, he was later ruled ineligible to compete for Britain after an investigation by British Basketball officials into his ancestral ties failed to prove his case to receive UK citizenship.MULLENS TO JOIN GB'S OLYMPIC TILT
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References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cunningham, Dante 1987 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in China American men's basketball players Brooklyn Nets players Charlotte Bobcats players Fujian Sturgeons players Le Mans Sarthe Basket players Memphis Grizzlies players Minnesota Timberwolves players New Orleans Pelicans players 21st-century American sportsmen People from Clinton, Maryland Basketball players from Prince George's County, Maryland Portland Trail Blazers draft picks Portland Trail Blazers players Power forwards San Antonio Spurs players Small forwards Villanova Wildcats men's basketball players St. John's College High School alumni Changwon LG Sakers players American expatriate basketball people in South Korea American expatriate basketball people in France Cangrejeros de Santurce basketball players