Dwayne Lee Bacon Jr. (born August 30, 1995) 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 Zenit Saint Petersburg of the

VTB United League The VTB United League () is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2009. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, it is the first tier of Russian ...

. He has also played for the

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

and the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NB ...

in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). Bacon 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

Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University (FSU) located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I, prima ...

High school career

Dwayne Bacon attended the McKeel Academy in his native

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Located along Interstate 4, I-4 east of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, it is the List of municipalities in Florida, most populous city in Polk County. As of the 2020 ...

until transferring to the

IMG Academy IMG Academy is a University-preparatory school, preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. The organization is set across over 600 acres (243 ha) and features programs consisting of sport ca ...

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698, up from 49,546 at the 2010 census. It is a pri ...

for his junior season. At McKeel Academy, Bacon averaged 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 steals as a sophomore in 2012–2013. He led McKeel to a 17–8 overall record and to the FHSAA championship tournament regional semifinals in 2013. In his junior season of 2013–2014 at IMG Academy Bacon was IMG's leading scorer. In his only season at IMG he averaged 19.3 ppg and led in assist with 4.0 apg while shooting 42% from the field and 70% from the free throw line in 12 games played. Bacon transferred to the Oak Hill Academy for his senior season. On September 5, 2014. Dwayne Bacon committed to

Florida State Florida State University (FSU or Florida State) is a Public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preeminent university in the s ...

over offers from Oklahoma State,

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology (commonly referred to as Georgia Tech, GT, and simply Tech or the Institute) is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Established in 1885, it has the lar ...

, and Auburn. In his senior year at Oak Hill, Dwayne Bacon led Oak Hill to an undefeated regular season with a record of 45–0 and averaged 24.4 points per game, 4.4 rebounds per game, 3.4 assists per game, and 2.2 steals per game. He was ranked 14th on ESPN 100. Bacon played for the Showtime Ballers AAU program based in Orlando for three seasons.

College career

Bacon signed with

on September 5, 2015. As a freshman at Florida State, Bacon received the National Freshman of the week honors from CBS Sports on November 21. He was a three-time ACC rookie of the week (Nov 16, Dec 21 and 28). In his first career game Bacon had 23 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 assist. Bacon achieved his first career win over Charleston Southern with 20 points and 10 rebounds. He appeared in every game during the 2015–16 season for the Seminoles and averaged 15.8 points and 5.8 rebounds over 28.8 minutes per game. On March 23, Bacon announced via Twitter that he would test his draft status for the 2016 NBA draft. He did not hire an agent and retained his amateur status and the ability to return to Florida State for the 2016–17 season. However, on March 28 he announced he will return to college. During his sophomore season, Bacon was named a member of the All-ACC second team for his work with Florida State that season. After his team was eliminated from the 2017 NCAA tournament, Bacon declared for the 2017 NBA draft (with a commitment that he'd sign with an agent soon afterward) on March 22, 2017.

Professional career

Charlotte Hornets (2017–2020)

On June 22, 2017, Bacon was selected by 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 ...

with the 40th overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft. He was later traded to the

on draft night. On July 6, he signed with the Hornets. Bacon made his NBA debut on October 18, recording eight points, two rebounds and two assists in a 90–102 loss to the

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

. On November 3, he scored a season-high 18 points, alongside seven rebounds, in a 101–108 loss to 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 ...

. Bacon played in 53 games his rookie season and made six starts. He averaged 3.3 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. On March 26, 2019, Bacon scored a season-high 24 points, alongside six rebounds and three steals, in a 125–116 overtime win over the

. During his sophomore season, Bacon only played in 43 games and made 13 starts due to a stint in the

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 ...

with the Hornets' affiliate team, the Greensboro Swarm. However, his numbers improved statistically, with him averaging 7.3 points per game. On November 2, 2019, Bacon scored a season-high 25 points, alongside six rebounds, two assists and two steals, in a 93–87 win over the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

. During his third season, Bacon regressed statistically, averaging only 5.7 points per game. In June 2020, he stated that instead of staying with the Hornets, he would "go elsewhere."

Orlando Magic (2020–2021)

On November 24, 2020, Bacon signed with his hometown team, the

. He made his Magic debut on December 23, recording three rebounds and three assists in a 113–107 win over the

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

. On May 7, 2021, Bacon logged a career-high 28 points, alongside four rebounds and two assists, in a 112–122 loss to the

. During the 2020–21 season, Bacon appeared in all of the Magic's 72 games, made 50 starts, and averaged a career-high 10.9 points per game. On August 8, Bacon was waived by the Magic. On August 19, 2021, Bacon signed with the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

. He was waived on October 14.

AS Monaco (2021–2022)

On October 26, 2021, Bacon signed with AS Monaco of the French

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 ...

. On September 26, 2022, Bacon signed with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division (NBA), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

. He was waived on October 8.

Panathinaikos (2022–2023)

On October 21, 2022, Bacon signed a two-year deal (with several opt-out clauses for the club) with Panathinaikos of the

Greek Basket League The Greek Basketball League (GBL), and also known as the Stoiximan Greek Basketball League (GBL) for sponsorship reasons, is the Greek basketball league system, first tier level professional basketball league in Greece. It is run by the ...

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 ...

. On April 28, 2023, Bacon was prematurely released from the team in the middle of the

play-offs due to a series of disciplinary violations that the player had committed throughout the season. In 27 EuroLeague games, Bacon averaged 16.6 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2 assists (with 1.3 turnovers), playing around 31 minutes per contest. Additionally, in 17 domestic league matches, he averaged 13.2 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists, playing around 24 minutes per contest.

Leones de Ponce (2024)

On May 23, 2024, Bacon signed with the Leones de Ponce 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 ...

Zenit Saint Petersburg (2024–present)

On August 7, 2024, Bacon signed with the Zenit Saint Petersburg of the

. In the 2024-25 season, Bacon was named MVP for the month of March of the

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 53, , 6, , 13.5, , .375, , .256, , .899, , 2.3, , .7, , .3, , .0, , 3.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 43, , 13, , 17.7, , .475, , .437, , .739, , 2.1, , 1.1, , .3, , .1, , 7.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Charlotte , 39, , 11, , 17.6, , .348, , .284, , .660, , 2.6, , 1.3, , .6, , .1, , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Orlando , style="background:#cfecec;", 72*, , 50, , 25.7, , .402, , .285, , .824, , 3.1, , 1.3, , .6, , .1, , 10.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 207, , 80, , 19.4, , .402, , .314, , .780, , 2.6, , 1.1, , .5, , .1, , 7.3

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2021–22 , style="text-align:left;",

Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...

, 29 , , 3 , , 25.1 , , .461 , , .419 , , .803 , , 3.1 , , 1.1 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 14.0 , , 10.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2022–23 , style="text-align:left;", Panathinaikos , 27 , , 27 , , 30.5 , , .444 , , .297 , , .810 , , 3.5 , , 2.0 , , .7 , , .1 , , 16.6 , , 12.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 56 , , 30 , , 27.5 , , .453 , , .346 , , .807 , , 3.3 , , 1.5 , , .9 , , .1 , , 15.2 , , 11.6

Domestic leagues

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34, , 32, , 28.8, , .447, , .281 , , .714, , 5.8, , 1.5 , , 1.0, , .0 , , 15.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35, , 35, , 28.8, , .452, , .333, , .754, , 4.2, , 1.7, , 1.0, , .1, , 17.2 , - class=sortbottom , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 69, , 67, , 28.8, , .449, , .312, , .733, , 5.0, , 1.6, , 1.0, , .1, , 16.5

Personal life

His younger brother, Raheem, professionally known as "350Heem," was a rap artist. On July 28, 2023, Raheem was shot and killed after his album release party in

, which Dwayne attended. Bacon dated YouTube star and content creator Nique Brown (born January 1999). He has children with MacKenzie Hyatt.

References

External links

Florida State Seminoles bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bacon, Dwayne 1995 births Living people American men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Monaco AS Monaco Basket players Basketball players from Polk County, Florida Charlotte Hornets players Florida State Seminoles men's basketball players Greensboro Swarm players IMG Academy alumni Leones de Ponce basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans New Orleans Pelicans draft picks Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Virginia) alumni Orlando Magic players Panathinaikos B.C. players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Small forwards Sportspeople from Lakeland, Florida United States men's national basketball team players 21st-century American sportsmen