Justin D'John Simon (born May 6, 1996) 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

MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg BG Ludwigsburg, for sponsorship reasons MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg (), is a professional basketball club that is based in Ludwigsburg, Germany. The club currently plays in the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), the first tier of basketball in Germany. Fo ...

of the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the German basketball league system, highest level Sports league, league of professional club basketball in German ...

(BBL). He played college basketball for St. John's.

High school career

Simon spent the first three years of his high school career at

Temecula Valley High School Temecula Valley High School, known by locals as TV, is a public high school for grades 9 to 12 in Temecula, California. The school opened in 1985 as the city's first high school. When it was built, it was a part of the Elsinore Union High Schoo ...

in his hometown of

Temecula, California Temecula (; , ; Luiseño language, Luiseño: ''Temeekunga'') is a city in southwestern Riverside County, California, United States. The city had a population of 110,003 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and was Municipal corpora ...

. In his junior season, Simon averaged 17.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game, which earned him spots on the all-state underclass and the Division II all-state first teams, in addition to being named the Southwestern League MVP. He also received an invitation to the Men's U-18 National Team training camp. Simon spent his senior season at

Brewster Academy Brewster Academy is a co-educational independent boarding school located on in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, United States. It occupies of shoreline along Lake Winnipesaukee. With around 350 students, it serves grades nine through twelve and po ...

Wolfeboro, New Hampshire Wolfeboro is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,416 at the 2020 census. A resort area situated beside Lake Winnipesaukee, Wolfeboro includes the village of Wolfeboro Falls. History The town was grant ...

, where he blossomed into a consensus top-40 national recruit in the class of 2015. In leading the team to a 34–1 record, the NEPSAC Class AAA title and the National Prep Championship, Simon averaged 12.5 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game.

Recruiting

Simon finished high school as a four-star recruit and the 37th ranked player in the class of 2015, according to ESPN. Simon received over 20 Division I scholarship offers from the likes of

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 ...

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

, and

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

, but ended up selecting

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

College career

Arizona

In his freshman season at

, Simon struggled to find playing time. Early in the season, Simon received an increased amount of minutes due to

Allonzo Trier Allonzo Brian Trier (born January 17, 1996) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats. As a sophomore in 2016–17, he earned secon ...

being injured, but his time on the court soon fell off as he failed to see the court in seven of the team's last 11 games. Simon did not start in a game all season and saw action in just 24 contests. In 7.5 minutes per game, Simon averaged 2.3 points and 1.2 rebounds per game. After the season, Simon announced his intention to transfer. He had interest from several programs, including

Oklahoma State Oklahoma State University (informally Oklahoma State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States. The university was established in 1890 under the legislation of the Morrill Act. Originally known ...

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in some religions * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

, and

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

, but ended up choosing St. John's.

St. John's

Simon sat out the 2016-17 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Simon had a breakout sophomore season, tallying 20 double-digit scoring performances and nine double-doubles in 33 games, all of which he started. He averaged 12.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 2.5 steals per game, and was the only player in the

Big East The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

to rank in the top five in rebounding, assists, and steals. Simon ranked eighth nationally in steals with 82. In his junior season, Simon's offensive production declined slightly but he developed into one of the nation's best defenders. In 34 games, 33 of which he started, Simon averaged 10.4 points and 5.1 rebounds all while leading the team in blocked shots with 22 and ranking third on the team in steals with 50. After the season, Simon was named Big East Defensive Player of the Year. On April 9, 2019, Simon announced he was forgoing his senior season to declare for the

2019 NBA draft The 2019 NBA draft was held on June 20, 2019. It took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible p ...

Statistics

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

, 24 , , 0 , , 7.5 , , .500 , , .333 , , .429 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , .3 , , .3 , , 2.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", St. John's , style="text-align:center;" colspan="11",

Redshirt , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", St. John's , 33 , , 33 , , 36.1 , , .473 , , .417 , , .661 , , 7.1 , , 5.1 , , 2.5 , , .8 , , 12.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", St. John's , 34 , , 33 , , 32.9 , , .462 , , .289 , , .608 , , 5.1 , , 3.2 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , 10.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 91 , , 66 , , 27.3 , , .470 , , .351 , , .620 , , 4.8 , , 3.1 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , 8.9

Professional career

Windy City Bulls (2019–2020)

Simon was not selected in the draft, but was invited to play for 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 ...

' Summer League team. In five games, he averaged 6.8 points and four rebounds in 21 minutes per game. On September 12, 2019, Simon signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Bulls and was added to the team's training camp roster. On October 21, Simon was waived from the Bulls' roster and was subsequently assigned to the team's

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

Windy City Bulls The Windy City Bulls are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, and are affiliated with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls play their home games at Now Arena, from Chicago. It became the thirte ...

. He averaged 12.8 points per game in the G League.

Illawarra Hawks (2020–2021)

On August 14, 2020, Simon signed a one-year deal with the

Illawarra Hawks The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) are an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home game ...

of the Australian National Basketball League (NBL).

Ratiopharm Ulm (2021)

On August 19, 2021, Simon signed a six-week contract with

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 ...

of the German

(BBL) as an injury replacement for

Karim Jallow Karim Johannes Jallow (born April 13, 1997) is a German professional basketball player for Ratiopharm Ulm of the German Basketball Bundesliga. Early life Jallow was born in Munich, Germany as the first child of a German mother and a Gambian fa ...

Riesen Ludwigsburg (2021–2022)

On October 3, 2021, Simon signed with

of the BBL. On May 8, 2022, he helped Riesen finish third in the

2021–22 Basketball Champions League The 2021–22 Basketball Champions League was the 6th season of the Basketball Champions League (BCL), the premier European professional basketball competition for clubs launched by FIBA. The season began on 5 October 2021 and ended on 15 May 2 ...

when he recorded 27 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and 3 steals against

Hapoel Holon Hapoel Holon Basketball Club (), is a professional basketball club based in Holon, Israel. The team plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball), and internationally in the Basketball Champions League. The ...

, becoming the first player in BCL history to record more than 25 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. He also set a new record for points in a BCL Final Four game.

Sydney Kings (2022–2023)

On July 18, 2022, Simon signed with the

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales, and play their home games at Qudos Ba ...

in Australia for the

2022–23 NBL season The 2022–23 NBL season was the 45th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of ten teams contested in the 2022–23 season. Australian broadcast rights to the season are held by ESPN in the second sea ...

Scaligera Verona (2022–2023)

On March 20, 2023, Simon signed with Scaligera Verona of the LBA.

Bnei Herzliya (2023)

On July 18, 2023, Simon signed with

Bnei Herzliya Bnei Herzliya Basket (, lit. ''Sons of Herzliya''), is a professional basketball club that is based in Herzliya, in central Israel. The club plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, the top division of Israeli basketball. History The club w ...

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 ...

. He terminated his contract with the club on November 19, 2023.

Paris Basketball (2023–2024)

On December 1, 2023, he joined

Paris Basketball Paris Basketball is a French professional basketball club based in Paris. The club currently plays in the LNB Élite, the first division of basketball in France, and the EuroLeague since 2024–25. Founded in 2018, Paris plays its home games a ...

of the

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 ...

and EuroCup as an injury replacement for Sebastian Herrera. In his first season with the club he won the 2024 EuroCup.

Return to Riesen Ludwigsburg (2024–present)

On September 15, 2024, he signed with

of the

(BBL) for a second stint.

Personal life

Simon's father Ken played football at

Fresno State California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) is a public university in Fresno, California, United States. It is part of the California State University system. The university had a fall 2020 enrollment of 25,341 students. It offers 60 ba ...

and his mother Felicia played basketball and ran track at

UC Irvine UC may refer to: Education In the United States * University of California system * University of Charleston, West Virginia * University of Chicago, Illinois * University of Cincinnati, Ohio * Upsala College, East Orange, New Jersey (''defunct ...

. Simon has two brothers and a sister.

References

External links

*
St. John's Red Storm bio

G League Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Justin 1996 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in Australia American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Germany American men's basketball players Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players Basketball players from Riverside County, California Brewster Academy alumni Illawarra Hawks players Paris Basketball players People from Temecula, California Ratiopharm Ulm players Riesen Ludwigsburg players Scaligera Basket Verona players Small forwards St. John's Red Storm men's basketball players Sydney Kings players Windy City Bulls players