James Kelly (born August 12, 1993) 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 who last played for the

Birmingham Squadron The Birmingham Squadron are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Birmingham, Alabama, and are affiliated with the New Orleans Pelicans. The Squadron play their home games at Legacy Arena. The team began play in 20 ...

of 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 ...

. 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

Owens Community College Owens Community College (OCC) is a Public college, public community college with campuses in Perrysburg Township, Wood County, Ohio, Perrysburg and Findlay, Ohio. Owens was founded in 1965 in Toledo and chartered in 1967. The Findlay campus op ...

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private university, private research university in Coral Gables, Florida, United States. , the university enrolled 19,852 students in two colleges and ten schools across over ...

and

Marshall University Marshall University is a public university, public research university in Huntington, West Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1837 and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States, chief justice of the Uni ...

before playing professionally in South Korea, Israel and Greece.

High school career

Kelly started playing basketball junior year of high school, after a four-inch growth spurt. He attended Pioneer High School in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

, where he averaged 15 points, eight rebounds, two steals, two blocks and one assist per game and was named the league MVP.

College career

Kelly played two years at

, where he averaged 17.9 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks per game, becoming the first player in program history to record 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, 100 steals and 100 blocks in his career. Kelly was named First Team All-Ohio Community College Athletic Conference (OCCAC), First Team All-Region XII and NJCAA D-II Second Team All-American as a sophomore. His time at Owens resulted in a National Top 100 Junior College Ranking and he was considered one of the top Junior College recruits in the country for the 2013 class. In his junior year, Kelly played at

, after deciding between Michigan State, West Virginia, and New Mexico. He went on to average 6.0 points, 3.7 rebounds in 17.9 minutes, shooting 40.5 percent from 3-point range. On May 16, 2014, Kelly was transferred from Miami to

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia *Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria ** Marshall railway station Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Is ...

, but sat out first season at Marshall per NCAA Transfer rules. In his senior year at Marshall, Kelly led the team in scoring (20.1 points per game), rebounding (9.8 per game), steals (1.3 per game) and blocks (1.1 per game), becoming one of two players in Herd history to record at least 600 points and 300 rebounds in a single season, the first player to do so at Marshall in over Four Decades. Kelly was named three-time Conference USA Player of the Week (On December 28, January 11 and February 22), C-USA Newcomer of the Year and First-team All-C-USA. He is considered to have one of the best single seasons in Marshall History and one of the greatest players to ever play for Marshall. At the conclusion of the season he was invited to play at the Portsmouth 64 which features the top seniors in the country.

Professional career

Inchon ET Land Elephants (2016–2017)

After going undrafted in the

2016 NBA draft The 2016 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2016, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN, and was live streamed for the first time in NBA draft history by The Vertical. National Basketball Association (NBA) ...

, Kelly joined 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 ...

for the

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

. On July 20, 2016, Kelly was selected with the 8th overall pick in the 2016 Korean Basketball League Draft by the

Incheon ET Land Elephants The Daegu KOGAS Pegasus () is a professional basketball club in the Korean Basketball League (KBL). Founded in 1994, the team has been playing in the KBL since the inaugurate 1997 season. Since 2021, the club is based at Daegu Gymnasium in Daegu ...

. In 34 games played for the Elephants, Kelly finished as the KBL fifth-leading scorer with 23.2 points, and also averaged 10.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.5 steals and 1 block per game.

Changwon LG Sakers (2017–2018)

On November 7, 2017, Kelly signed a one-year deal with the

Changwon LG Sakers Changwon LG Sakers are a professional basketball team located in the city of Changwon in South Gyeongsang Province, South Korea. They play in the Korean Basketball League (KBL), and their home arena is Changwon Gymnasium which has a capacity for ...

. On December 7, 2017, Kelly recorded a double-double with a career-high 46 points and 12 rebounds, shooting 21-of-30 from the field, in a 93–94 loss to

Anyang KGC The Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters () is a professional basketball club in the Korean Basketball League, based at Anyang Gymnasium in the city of Anyang. The club has won four KBL championship titles ( 2011–12, 2016–17, 2020–21, and 2 ...

. In 45 games played for the Sakers, Kelly finished as the KBL third-leading rebounder with 11 per game, and also averaged 21.3 points, 1.4 assists and 1 steal per game.

Hapoel Gilboa Galil (2018–2019)

On July 9, 2018, Kelly signed with the French team

Levallois Metropolitans Metropolitans 92 is a French professional basketball club that is based in Levallois-Perret, in the Paris metropolitan area. The club currently plays in the LNB Pro A, the highest-tier level in French basketball. The club was established in 2007 ...

. However, one month later, he parted ways with Levallois before appearing in a game for them. On September 3, 2018, Kelly signed with the Israeli team

Hapoel Gilboa Galil Hapoel Gilboa Galil () is a professional basketball club that is based in north-east Israel. The club plays its home game in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball) in a 2,250-seat arena in Gan Ner. History T ...

for the 2018–19 season. On February 4, 2019, Kelly recorded 26 points, shooting 12-for-16 from the field, along with six rebounds, four assists and three blocks, leading Gilboa Galil to an 89–87 win over

Ironi Nahariya Ironi Nahariya Basketball Club () known for sponsorship reasons as Ironi Rain Nahariya () is a professional basketball club based in city of Nahariya in northern Israel. The team plays in the Liga Leumit (the second tier of Israeli basketball) and ...

. He was subsequently named Israeli League Round 17 MVP. In 33 games played for Gilboa Galil, he averaged 15.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game, while shooting .578 (211-of-365) from the floor.

Maccabi Rishon LeZion (2019–2020)

On November 19, 2019, Kelly signed a one-month deal with Maccabi Rishon LeZion as an injury cover for

Darryl Monroe Darryl Monroe Jr. (born January 30, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Changwon LG Sakers of the Korean Basketball League (KBL). A power forward/ center, he played college basketball for Central Florida CC and George Maso ...

. On December 18, 2019, Kelly recorded a season-high 27 points, while shooting 12-of-17 from the field, along with 12 rebounds, four assists and four steals for 40 PIR in a 96–92 overtime win over

ratiopharm Ulm Ratiopharm Ulm, officially stylized as ratiopharm ulm, is a professional basketball club based in Ulm, Germany. The club has two teams, one professional team, which plays in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the major German professional league an ...

. He was named the EuroCup round 10 MVP.

Detroit Hustle (2021)

In 2021, Kelly signed with the Detroit Hustle of

The Basketball League The Basketball League (TBL), formerly North America Premier Basketball (NAPB), is a professional basketball league. The league began operating in North America in 2018 with eight teams, and has since expanded. TBL's regular season runs from Feb ...

Aris Thessaloniki (2021–2022)

On October 26, 2021, Kelly signed with

Aris Aris or ARIS may refer to: People * Aris (surname) Given name * Aris Alexandrou, Greek writer * Aris Brimanis, ice hockey player * Aris Christofellis, Greek male soprano * Aris Gavelas, Greek sprinter * Aris Konstantinidis, Greek architect * ...

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 ...

. In 14 games (he was absent for a period of two months due to a pressing family matter overseas), he averaged 14.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 0.6 blocks and 1.4 steals, playing around 27 minutes per contest.

Birmingham Squadron (2022–2023)

On November 4, 2022, Kelly was named to the opening night roster for the

References

External links

Marshall Thundering Herd bio

RealGM profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kelly, James 1993 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in South Korea American men's basketball players Aris B.C. players Basketball players from Ann Arbor, Michigan Birmingham Squadron players Centers (basketball) Changwon LG Sakers players Hapoel Gilboa Galil players Daegu KOGAS Pegasus players Junior college men's basketball players in the United States Maccabi Rishon LeZion basketball players Marshall Thundering Herd men's basketball players Miami Hurricanes men's basketball players Power forwards Pioneer High School (Ann Arbor, Michigan) alumni 21st-century American sportsmen