Bonzie Alexander Colson II (born January 12, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for Fenerbahçe of the Turkish

Basketbol Süper Ligi The Basketball Super League (; TBSL), also known as the Türkiye Sigorta Basketbol Süper Ligi for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional basketball division of the Turkish basketball league system. It replaced the former Turkish Bas ...

(BSL) and the

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

. 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

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

Early development

Colson, the son of a former

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

player who went into college coaching, played high school basketball in that state at St. Andrew's School in Barrington, as well as AAU basketball with Boston Area Basketball Club. He developed as a pure post player, but was abnormally short for the position—during a basketball camp in summer 2013, he measured at in shoes. Despite his physical stature, advanced statistics showed him to be unusually effective in the frontcourt; in July 2013, Colson had the top

player efficiency rating The player efficiency rating (PER) is John Hollinger's all-in-one basketball rating, which attempts to collect or boil down all of a player's contributions into one number. Using a detailed formula, Hollinger developed a system that rates ever ...

(PER) among frontcourt players in Nike's Elite Youth Basketball League. While Colson was largely ignored by major programs as a frontcourt prospect, Notre Dame assistant

Martin Ingelsby Martin Ingelsby (born November 24, 1978) is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach for the University of Delaware. Ingelsby played basketball at Archbishop Carroll High School and Notre Dame. He was a standout point gu ...

, who went on to become head coach at

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic and South Atlantic states, South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders Maryland to its south and west, Pennsylvania to its north, New Jersey ...

, had a very different view, based on Colson's production in both high school and AAU play, as well as a disproportionate wingspan of . When Colson visited Notre Dame in September 2013, the coaching staff made Nike's PER study a major part of its pitch, convincing him that the Fighting Irish program, devoted to offensive efficiency, would be the best fit for a player of his type. He would commit to Notre Dame that October.

College career

In Colson's freshman season at Notre Dame, he came off the bench for 31 of his 32 appearances. He recorded a 17-point performance in a win over

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

in the semi-final game of the ACC Tournament. At the end of the season, he was named Notre Dame Newcomer of the Year. Colson appeared in 36 games in his sophomore season, starting in 24. He recorded the first 30-point game of his career on January 16, 2016, leading Notre Dame to its first victory over Duke at

Cameron Indoor Stadium Cameron Indoor Stadium is an indoor arena located on the campus of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. The 9,314-seat facility is the primary indoor athletic venue for the Duke Blue Devils and serves as the home court for Duke Duke Blue ...

. In his junior season, Colson became Notre Dame's leading scorer (17.8 points per game; 9th in the ACC), led the ACC in rebounding (10.1 per game) and was eighth in blocks per game (1.4), and was named to the All-ACC first team. He was also the first player shorter than 6' 7" to lead the ACC in rebounding since 1958. Prior to the 2017–18 season, Colson was named the preseason ACC Player of the Year and a first-team preseason All-American by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

. After missing 15 games during the regular season with a broken foot, Colson broke his left foot again in Notre Dame's NIT tournament game against

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with ca ...

. In 2017–18, he averaged 19.7 points per game (3rd in the ACC), 10.1 rebounds (3rd), 1.7 steals (6th), and 2.2 blocks (5th).

Professional career

Canton Charge (2018–2019)

On September 18, 2018, Colson signed with the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

. On October 13, he was waived by the Cavaliers, but was added to the roster of the Cavs'

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

affiliate, the

Canton Charge The Cleveland Charge are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cleveland, and are affiliated with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Since 2024, the team plays its home games at Public Auditorium in downtown Cleveland, thoug ...

. In his first G League game, a 101–89 loss to the

Wisconsin Herd The Wisconsin Herd are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and are affiliated with the Milwaukee Bucks. The Herd play their home games at Oshkosh Arena. History On June 29, 2016, it was anno ...

, Colson led the team with 23 points and 15 rebounds, shooting 10-of-18 from the floor. For the G League team, in 23 games he averaged 15.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks per game.

Milwaukee Bucks (2019)

On January 15, 2019, Colson was signed to 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 ...

by the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), East ...

. Under the terms of the deal, he split time with the Bucks' G League affiliate, the

. For the G League team, in 23 games he averaged 14.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game. Colson made his NBA debut on February 25, 2019, against 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 ...

, playing three minutes in the Bucks 117–106 win. On March 31, Colson started his first NBA game against the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

and in that game, he managed to score 15 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in 41 minutes of playing time. On July 21, 2019, Colson was waived by the Bucks.

Darüşşafaka (2019–2020)

On July 30, 2019, Colson signed with Darüşşafaka. Colson and the team mutually parted ways on April 24, 2020. Colson averaged 12.2 points and 5.1 rebounds per game in the Turkish League and 10.8 points and 5.0 rebounds in EuroCup play.

SIG Strasbourg (2020–2021)

On August 31, 2020, Colson signed with

SIG Strasbourg Strasbourg Illkirch-Graffenstaden Basket, most commonly known as SIG Basket or SIG Strasbourg, is a French professional basketball club that is based in Strasbourg. The club, founded in 1929, competes domestically in the French Pro A League. The ...

. He was named player of the week on October 14, after posting 24 points, nine rebounds and two assists in a win against

Orléans Loiret Basket Orléans Loiret Basket, formerly known as Entente Orléanaise and Entente Orléanaise 45 Loiret, is a professional basketball club that is based in the city of Orléans, France. "45" is the number of Loiret. The club plays in the LNB Pro B, French ...

. In 49 games he averaged 18.1 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 0.6 blocks per game. In games in the Jeep Elite he was 2nd in the league with 18.4 points per game. He was selected

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

for the regular season of

2020–21 Basketball Champions League The 2020–21 Basketball Champions League was the 5th season of the Basketball Champions League (BCL), the premier European-wide professional basketball competition for clubs launched and managed by FIBA. The season began on 15 September 2020 and ...

Pınar Karşıyaka (2021–2022)

On July 10, 2021, Colson signed with

Pınar Karşıyaka Pınar is a common feminine Turkish given name A Turkish name consists of an ''ad'' or an ''isim'' (given name; plural ''adlar'' and ''isimler'') and a ''soyadı'' or ''soyisim'' (surname). Turkish names exist in a "full name" format. While th ...

of the

Turkish Super League Turkish may refer to: * Something related to Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities in the former Ottoman Empire * The ...

In 42 games he averaged 15.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 0.8 blocks per game. In games in the Turkish Super League he was 7th in the league with 16.9 points per game, 7th with 7.0 rebounds per game, 7th with 1.6 steals per game, and 9th with 0.8 blocks per game.

Maccabi Tel Aviv (2022–2024)

On June 22, 2022, he signed with

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv () is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such as football, basketball, j ...

of the

Israeli Basketball Premier League Ligat HaAl (, lit., ''Supreme League or Premier League''), or the Israeli Basketball Premier League, is a professional basketball league in Israel and the highest level of basketball in the country. The league's name is abbreviated as either BSL ...

Fenerbahçe (2024–present)

On June 28, 2024, Colson signed a three-year deal with Turkish powerhouse Fenerbahçe Beko. On May 25, 2025, he helped Fenerbahçe to their second EuroLeague championship in

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

Playing style

In a 2016 story, ''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...

'' writer Luke Winn called Colson "one of college basketball's greatest anomalies." While Colson was not much larger than in high school—by then, he claimed to be tall with a wingspan—Notre Dame was frequently playing him as a

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

alongside four guards, three of them taller than Colson. As early as his high school and AAU days, according to Winn, "he knew how to work angles to get off all kinds of funky shots" and "played with a chip on his shoulder due to being ignored by many big-time schools". In his final two seasons at Notre Dame, Colson began to include three-pointers in his skill set, enabling him to also play as a stretch four in some Notre Dame lineups. He began this process in summer 2016, when he spent five days in California with NBA player

Jared Dudley Jared Anthony Dudley (born July 10, 1985) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A forward, he played college basketball fo ...

, whom Colson had known as a young boy while his father was coaching Dudley at

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private university, private Catholic Jesuits, Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1863 by the Society of Jesus, a Catholic Religious order (Catholic), religious order, t ...

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

, 8 , , 2 , , 12.3 , , .333 , , .238 , , .889 , , 3.8 , , .4 , , .6 , , .1 , , 4.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 8 , , 2 , , 12.3 , , .333 , , .238 , , .889 , , 3.8 , , .4 , , .6 , , .1 , , 4.9

EuroLeague

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

2022–23 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2",

, 39 , , 31 , , 26.1 , , .506 , , .376 , , .775 , , 5.6 , , .6 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , 10.7 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , 40 , , 40 , , 28.5 , , .489 , , .387 , , .794 , , 5.3 , , .6 , , 1.3 , , .4 , , 12.6 , , 14.1 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;", 2024–25† , style="text-align:left;", Fenerbahçe Beko , 39 , , 35 , , 18.3 , , .478 , , .357 , , .658 , , 3.5 , , .5 , , .6 , , .1 , , 6.7 , , 6.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 118 , , 106 , , 24.2 , , .545 , , .375 , , .763 , , 4.8 , , .6 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 10.0 , , 11.3

EuroCup

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Darüşşafaka , 16 , , 9 , , 22.4 , , .404 , , .459 , , .849 , , 5.0 , , .6 , , .9 , , .9 , , 10.8 , , 11.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 16 , , 9 , , 22.4 , , .404 , , .459 , , .849 , , 5.0 , , .6 , , .9 , , .9 , , 10.8 , , 11.1

Basketball Champions League

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

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

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

, 14 , , 14 , , 29.5 , , .455 , , .324 , , .814 , , 5.9 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , 18.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;",

Karşıyaka Karşıyaka () is a municipality and district of İzmir Province, Turkey. Its area is 51 km2, and its population is 346,264 (2022). The district extends for twelve kilometres along the northern and eastern coastline of the tip of the Gulf of ...

, 9 , , 9 , , 34.7 , , .446 , , .342 , , .917 , , 7.2 , , 2.1 , , 1.7 , , .8 , , 15.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 23 , , 23 , , 31.5 , , .452 , , .330 , , .843 , , 6.4 , , 1.9 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , 16.9

Domestic leagues

{, class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size:100%; text-align:right;" ! Year ! Team ! League ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2", 2018–19 , , style="text-align:left;",

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

G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

, , 23 , , 28.9 , , .489 , , .385 , , .667 , , 7.8 , , 1.6 , , .7 , , 1.5 , , 15.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, , 23 , , 32.8 , , .420 , , .288 , , .773 , , 6.0 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .8 , , 14.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , , style="text-align:left;", Darüşşafaka , , style="text-align:center;", TBSL , , 23 , , 22.2 , , .515 , , .368 , , .900 , , 5.2 , , 1.0 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , 12.2 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

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

LNB Élite The LNB Élite, currently known for sponsorship reasons as Betclic Élite, is a professional basketball league in France and is the highest level of the French basketball system. The competition has existed since 1921. Since 1987, the Ligue Nat ...

, , 35 , , 29.2 , , .521 , , .342 , , .839 , , 5.1 , , 2.0 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , 18.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", TBSL , , 32 , , 32.7 , , .494 , , .364 , , .724 , , 7.0 , , 1.5 , , 1.5 , , .8 , , 16.2 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;",

† , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 27 , , 22.0 , , .515 , , .385 , , .804 , , 4.5 , , .8 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , 10.8 , - , style="text-align:left;background:#AFE6BA;", 2023–24† , , style="text-align:left;",

, , style="text-align:center;", Ligat HaAl , , 22 , , 25.2 , , .455 , , .311 , , .848 , , 5.0 , , .5 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , 11.9

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;", Notre Dame , 32 , , 1 , , 12.1 , , .595 , , .143 , , .754 , , 2.7 , , .4 , , .6 , , .7 , , 5.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;", Notre Dame , 36 , , 24 , , 25.3 , , .532 , , .333 , , .774 , , 6.7 , , .9 , , .9 , , 1.0 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", Notre Dame , 36 , , 36 , , 32.1 , , .526 , , .433 , , .783 , , 10.1 , , 1.6 , , 1.1 , , 1.4 , , 17.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", Notre Dame , 21 , , 21 , , 32.4 , , .503 , , .293 , , .761 , , 10.1 , , .9 , , 1.7 , , 2.2 , , 19.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 125 , , 82 , , 25.1 , , .528 , , .350 , , .772 , , 7.2 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.2 , , 13.1

References

External links

*
Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio

TBLStat.net Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Colson, Bonzie 1996 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Basketball players from Massachusetts Basketball players from Washington, D.C. Canton Charge players Darüşşafaka Basketbol players Fenerbahçe men's basketball players Karşıyaka basketball players Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. players Milwaukee Bucks players Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball players Power forwards Small forwards Sportspeople from New Bedford, Massachusetts Undrafted NBA players Wisconsin Herd players