James Monteinez Wiseman ( ; born March 31, 2001) is an American professional

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player who last played for the

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of the

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(NBA). He played

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for the Memphis Tigers. Listed at , he plays the center position. Wiseman began high school at The Ensworth School in his hometown of

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before transferring to Memphis East High School, where he was coached by former NBA player Penny Hardaway for his first year. As a senior, Wiseman was a consensus five-star recruit, with most recruiting services ranking him number one in the 2019 class. He claimed multiple national player of the year awards and played in the

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after his final season. In college, Wiseman joined Memphis to play for Hardaway, who had become the Tigers' coach. Early into his freshman season, he was suspended by the

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(NCAA), which deemed that Hardaway had acted as a booster by facilitating Wiseman's move to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

in 2017. He served part of the suspension before withdrawing from school to prepare for the 2020 NBA draft, where he was drafted with the second overall pick by the

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. He won an

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with the team in

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, despite being injured and not appearing in any games during the season. He was then traded 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 ...

in 2023, before signing with the

in 2024. He is known as an NBA

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High school career

Entering his freshman season for The Ensworth School in

, Wiseman stood and weighed . He was a teammate of future

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player Jordan Bone. By June 2016,

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ranked Wiseman among its top 25 players in the 2020 recruiting class. In 2016, he played for the St. Louis Eagles

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team. As a sophomore in 2016–17, he guided Ensworth to the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) Division II-AA semifinals. He averaged about 20

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and 10 rebounds per game and was named MaxPreps Sophomore All-American honorable mention. In May 2017, Wiseman joined Team Penny, founded by former NBA player Penny Hardaway, on the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) circuit. In August, he announced his transfer to Memphis East High School in

, where Hardaway was promoted to head coach. On November 16, 2017, the TSSAA ruled Wiseman ineligible for his junior season because an "athletic coaching link" existed between him and Hardaway. However, on December 13, he was cleared to play because the TSSAA rule was "not clear in its application". During the season, Wiseman rose to become the number one overall recruit by ESPN in the 2019 class. On March 17, 2018, he led Memphis East to a TSSAA Class AAA championship, leading all scorers with 19 points. He averaged 18.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks per game, earning MaxPreps Junior All-American third team recognition. Entering his senior season, Wiseman remained at Memphis East instead of transferring to a prep school, citing "the East High tradition" and the improvements he made as a junior with the program. On March 1, 2019, he recorded a triple-double of 27 points, 20 rebounds, and 10 blocks to help his team win the Region 8AAA championship. Memphis East finished as TSSAA Class AAA runners-up to Bearden High School, even though Wiseman posted 24 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks in his final high school game. After averaging 25.8 points, 14.8 rebounds, and 5.5 blocks as a senior, he was named Gatorade National Player of the Year and Morgan Wootten National Player of the Year. Wiseman also won the Tennessee Class AAA Mr. Basketball award while appearing in the

, the Jordan Brand Classic, and the

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. He shared

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(MVP) accolades with Cole Anthony at the Jordan Brand Classic. In October 2019, after Wiseman had moved on to the

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, the TSSAA's original ruling of ineligibility for the 2017–18 season was upheld by a Memphis judge, who ruled that the TSSAA coaching link rule was not too vague and did not violate Wiseman's property rights as an athlete.

Recruiting

Wiseman was a consensus five-star recruit out of high school and was considered the top recruit in the 2019 class by

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and

. On November 20, 2018, he committed to Memphis despite strongly considering

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. As a result, he reunited with former high school coach Penny Hardaway, who had become the team's head coach in the previous season. On November 29, Wiseman signed a

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to play college basketball for Memphis.

College career

Wiseman was projected to be the first overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft. In August 2019, a minor shoulder injury kept Wiseman from joining Memphis for a series of preseason

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s in

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. He missed his team's two preseason games in October after sustaining an ankle injury. On November 5, Wiseman made his regular season debut with 28 points, 11 rebounds, and three blocks in 22 minutes as the Tigers defeated South Carolina State, 97–64. On November 8, Wiseman's lawyers announced that the

(NCAA) ruled him ineligible to play for Memphis. The

stated that head coach Penny Hardaway had paid for $11,500 in moving expenses to help him and his family move to the city of Memphis in 2017. According to Wiseman's lawyer, Leslie Ballin, the NCAA deemed that Hardaway, a Memphis alumnus, had acted as a booster. On the same day, a Shelby County judge granted Wiseman a temporary

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against the NCAA's ruling, allowing him to keep playing. Less than two hours later, he had 17 points and nine rebounds to lead Memphis past UIC, 92–46. Wiseman's lawyers filed a lawsuit against the NCAA to restore his eligibility before withdrawing the case six days later in hopes of reaching an agreement. On November 20, the NCAA ruled that Wiseman would be eligible to return on January 12 after serving a 12-game suspension if he donated $11,500 to a charity of his choice. On December 19, 2019, after missing seven games due to suspension, Wiseman announced that he would leave Memphis, hire an

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and prepare for the 2020 NBA draft, effectively ending his college career. He was one of the highest-rated prospects in his class, according to draft analysts. Wiseman was considered a potential number one pick.

Professional career

Golden State Warriors (2020–2023)

Wiseman was selected with the second overall pick in the 2020 NBA draft by the

. On December 22, 2020, he made his NBA debut with 19 points, six rebounds, and two steals in a 125–99 loss to the

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. On January 27, 2021, Wiseman scored a season-high 25 points, along with six rebounds, in a 123–111 win over the

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. On April 11, it was revealed that Wiseman suffered a torn right meniscus. On April 15, he underwent successful surgery to repair the injury, and was subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the season. On March 9, 2022, Wiseman was assigned to the

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, Golden State's

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affiliate team, to play games before returning to the NBA. On March 16, he was recalled by Golden State, but was assigned to Santa Cruz again a day later. However, on March 19, Wiseman suffered a setback in his rehab and was shut down by Golden State. On March 25, he was ruled out for the remainder of the season. Despite being injured during the season, Wiseman won an

with the Warriors when they defeated the

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in six games. On July 10, 2022, Wiseman made his return from injury in the

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, putting up 11 points, two rebounds, and two blocks in an 86–85 win over the

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. On December 21, Wiseman scored a career-high 30 points in a 143–113 loss to the

. On December 30, 2022, Wiseman sprained his ankle during a 3-on-3 scrimmage and subsequently did not play in the following games for Golden State.

Detroit Pistons (2023–2024)

On February 9, 2023, Wiseman was traded to the

in a four-team trade involving the

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and

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, with Golden State reacquiring

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from Portland. He made his Pistons debut on February 15, recording 11 points and five rebounds in a 127–109 loss to the

Indiana Pacers (2024–2025)

On July 5, 2024, Wiseman signed a 2-year contract with the

. On October 23, Wiseman tore his left Achilles tendon in the season-opening game against the

. On February 6, 2025, Wiseman was traded to the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), E ...

alongside cash considerations in exchange for a 2026 top 55 protected second-round pick, but was waived shortly after.

National team career

Wiseman averaged 11.4 points and 5 rebounds per game for the

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at the

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. He helped his team win the gold medal over

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. Wiseman was unable to join the United States for the 2018 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup because he was injured.

Career statistics

NBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 39 , , 27 , , 21.4 , , .519 , , .316 , , .628 , , 5.8 , , .7 , , .3 , , .9 , , 11.5 , - , rowspan=2 style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 21 , , 0 , , 12.5 , , .628 , , .500 , , .684 , , 3.5 , , .7 , , .1 , , .3 , , 6.9 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

, 24 , , 22 , , 25.2 , , .531 , , .167 , , .712 , , 8.1 , , .7 , , .2 , , .8 , , 12.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 63 , , 6 , , 17.3 , , .613 , , .000 , , .706 , , 5.3 , , .9 , , .2 , , .6 , , 7.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

, 1 , , 0 , , 4.6 , , .500 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 6.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 148 , , 55 , , 18.9 , , .560 , , .262 , , .683 , , 5.6 , , .7 , , .2 , , .7 , , 9.1

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 3 , , 3 , , 23.0 , , .769 , , .000 , , .704 , , 10.3 , , .3 , , .3 , , 3.0 , , 19.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 3 , , 3 , , 23.0 , , .769 , , .000 , , .704 , , 10.3 , , .3 , , .3 , , 3.0 , , 19.7

References

External links

*
USA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wiseman, James 2001 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Nashville, Tennessee Centers (basketball) Detroit Pistons players East High School (Memphis, Tennessee) alumni Golden State Warriors draft picks Golden State Warriors players Indiana Pacers players McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Tigers men's basketball players Santa Cruz Warriors players The Ensworth School alumni