Kenneth Wayne Lofton Jr. (born August 14, 2002) 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 for the

Shanghai Sharks The Shanghai Sharks ( zh, s=上海久事大鲨鱼, t=上海久事大鯊魚, p=Shànghǎi Jǐushì Dàshāyú) are a Chinese Basketball Association team based in Shanghai. The Sharks, who share their colors with the New York Knicks, are best know ...

of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

(CBA). He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. He is a two-time all-conference selection in

Conference USA Conference USA (CUSA) is a collegiate athletic conference of member institutions in the Southern and Western United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports. CUSA's offices are located in Dallas, Texas. Mem ...

, including first-team honors as a sophomore in 2022.

High school career

Lofton played basketball for Memorial High School in

Port Arthur, Texas Port Arthur is a city in the state of Texas, United States of America, located east of metro Houston. Part of the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, the city lies primarily in Jefferson County, with a small extension in Orange County. ...

. He was initially a

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

and became a post player following a growth spurt. He won a 5A state title in his sophomore season. As a senior, he averaged 17 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists per game, leading his team to a share of the 21–5A district title. Lofton earned 5A All-State honors and was a

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American multinational fast food chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese chain Mixue Ice Cream & Tea. Brothers ...

nominee. He signed a

National Letter of Intent The National Letter of Intent (NLI) is a document used to indicate a student athlete's commitment to participating in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) colleges and universities in the United States. The NCAA Eligibility Center manag ...

to play college basketball for

Louisiana Tech Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana, United States. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – Hig ...

College career

On March 28, 2021, Lofton recorded a freshman season-high 27 points and 13 rebounds, making a game-winning shot with 0.3 seconds left, in a 76–74 win over Colorado State at the

National Invitational Tournament The National Invitation Tournament (NIT) is an annual men's college basketball tournament operated by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Since 2023, all rounds of the tournament are played at various sites across the country whi ...

(NIT) third place game. He was an All-Tournament Team selection. As a freshman, Lofton averaged 12.2 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, earning Third Team All-

and Freshman of the Year honors. He was named Conference USA Freshman of the Week nine times, tied for the third-most in league history. Lofton was the first Louisiana Tech freshman to lead the team in rebounding since

Paul Millsap Paul Millsap (born February 10, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player who played for 16 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward from Louisiana Tech University, Millsap was selected by the Utah Ja ...

in 2003–04. As a sophomore, Lofton was named to the First Team All-Conference USA. He averaged 16.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. On March 22, 2022, Lofton declared for the

2022 NBA draft The 2022 NBA draft (branded as the 2022 NBA Draft presented by State Farm for sponsorship reasons), the 76th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft, was held on June 23, 2022, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New ...

. He did not sign with an agent, allowing him the flexibility to return to Louisiana Tech.

Professional career

Memphis Grizzlies / Hustle (2022–2023)

After going undrafted in the

, Lofton signed a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless o ...

with 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 ...

on July 2, 2022. He made his NBA debut on October 22, 2022, scoring four points in a 137–96 loss to the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

. Lofton was named to the G League's inaugural Next Up Game, the league's version of the

NBA All-Star Game The National Basketball Association All-Star Game is the annual all-star game hosted each February by the National Basketball Association (NBA) and showcases 24 of the league's All-star, star players. Since 2022, it was held on the third Sunday of ...

, for the 2022–23 season. On March 31, 2023, Lofton was awarded the

NBA G League Rookie of the Year Award The NBA G League Rookie of the Year is an annual NBA G League (formerly known as the NBA Development League) award given since the league's 2001–02 NBDL season, inaugural season to the top rookie of the regular season. The league's head coache ...

. On April 8, 2023, the Grizzlies converted Lofton's deal into a standard, multi-year NBA contract. On April 9, 2023, Lofton scored a career-high 42 points and put up a career-high 14 rebounds in a 115–100 loss to the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Confer ...

in his first game as a starter. He also became the first player in NBA history to put up at least 40 points and 10 rebounds in a player's first career start, since starts were officially tracked since the 1970–71 season. On December 18, 2023, Lofton was waived by the Grizzlies.

Philadelphia 76ers / Delaware Blue Coats (2023–2024)

On December 23, 2023, Lofton signed a two-way contract with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, also known colloquially as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlan ...

and their G League affiliate, the

Delaware Blue Coats The Delaware Blue Coats are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Wilmington, Delaware. They are the G-League affiliates of the Philadelphia 76ers. The Blue Coats play their home games at Chase Fieldhouse. The Bl ...

. On March 1, 2024, Lofton was waived.

Utah Jazz (2024)

On March 11, 2024, Lofton signed with the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

. However, he was waived on July 24. On August 15, 2024, Lofton signed with the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

, but was waived on October 17.

Shanghai Sharks (2024–present)

On October 29, 2024, Lofton signed with the

of the

National team career

Lofton represented the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

at the 2021 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Latvia. He averaged 13.1 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, helping his team win the gold medal. Lofton led the US in a come-from-behind victory against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in the final, with 15 of his team-high 16 points coming in the second half to secure an 83–81 win in the gold medal game.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 24 , , 1 , , 7.3 , , .527 , , .353 , , .593 , , 2.1 , , .8 , , .2 , , .1 , , 5.0 , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan=3, , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 15 , , 0 , , 6.6 , , .378 , , .300 , , .533 , , 1.0 , , .9 , , .2 , , .2 , , 2.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 2 , , 0 , , 4.4 , , .167 , , .000 , , , , 1.5 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, 4 , , 0 , , 22.7 , , .600 , , .333 , , .818 , , 5.0 , , 4.8 , , .8 , , .5 , , 13.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 45 , , 1 , , 8.3 , , .497 , , .317 , , .623 , , 2.0 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , .2 , , 4.8

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 4 , , 0 , , 3.0 , , .375 , , .000 , , .500 , , .8 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 4 , , 0 , , 3.0 , , .375 , , .000 , , .500 , , .8 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.8

College

, - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;",

, 32 , , 28 , , 22.8 , , .567 , , – , , .596 , , 7.5 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , .7 , , 12.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;",

, 33 , , 33 , , 27.0 , , .539 , , .200 , , .672 , , 10.5 , , 2.8 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , 16.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 65 , , 61 , , 24.9 , , .550 , , .200 , , .637 , , 9.0 , , 2.1 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , 14.3

Personal life

Rumors of his father being former professional baseball player

Kenny Lofton Kenneth Lofton (born May 31, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. Lofton was a six-time All-Star (1994–1999), four-time Gold Glove Award winner (1993–1996), and at retirement, was ranked 15th among ...

are false. Kenneth Sr. served in the military and worked for the US postal service for 18 years. His older sister, Kennedi, played college basketball for Southern. His grandfather, Gene "Rock" Duhon, was a

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

athlete at

Southern University Southern University and A&M College (Southern University, Southern, SUBR or SU) is a Public university, public historically black colleges and universities, historically black land-grant university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States. It i ...

, where he was named to the Track Hall of Fame, and competed at United States Olympic Trials.

References

External links

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs bioUSA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lofton, Kenneth Jr. 2002 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Texas Delaware Blue Coats players Louisiana Tech Bulldogs basketball players Memphis Grizzlies players Memphis Hustle players Philadelphia 76ers players Power forwards Salt Lake City Stars players Sportspeople from Port Arthur, Texas Undrafted NBA players Utah Jazz players Shanghai Sharks players American expatriate basketball people in China