Naji Maurice Marshall ( ; born January 24, 1998) 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

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

of 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). 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

Xavier Musketeers The Xavier Musketeers are the 19 teams representing Xavier University in intercollegiate athletics, including men's and women's basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming, tennis, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field. The Mus ...

Early life

Marshall was born in

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, sometimes referred to by its initials A.C., is a Jersey Shore seaside resort city (New Jersey), city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, Atlantic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Atlantic City comprises the second half of ...

but moved to Maryland at the age of 9. He is the son of Maurice Marshall, who was a professional boxer and is now a basketball coach at an elementary school, and Rayna Whitted, who works at

Providence Hospital Providence Hospital may refer to: *Providence Hospital (Columbia, South Carolina) *USA Health Providence Hospital in Mobile, Alabama * Providence Hospital (Southfield), Michigan *Providence Hospital (Washington, D.C.) in Washington, D.C. *Providence ...

in Washington, D.C. His name means "strong warrior" in Arabic and was a nickname of his father's. Marshall has five brothers and one sister and grew up playing football and basketball. In middle school, he played in Atlantic City's Triple-B summer youth league. He played his first season of high school basketball at

Takoma Academy Takoma Academy is a parochial, co-educational high school located in Takoma Park, Maryland operated by the Potomac Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It is a part of the Seventh-day Adventist education system, the world's second largest Ch ...

. As a sophomore, he transferred to Eleanor Roosevelt High School to play under coach Brendan O'Connell but was academically ineligible his first year. As a senior, Marshall averaged 17

points A point is a small dot or the sharp tip of something. Point or points may refer to: Mathematics * Point (geometry), an entity that has a location in space or on a plane, but has no extent; more generally, an element of some abstract topologica ...

, nine

rebounds 'Rebound' is a term used in sports to describe the ball (or puck or other object of play) becoming available for possession by either opponent after an attempt to put the ball or puck into the goal has been unsuccessful. Rebounds are generally ...

, four assists and two steals per game. He led Eleanor Roosevelt to a 23–3 record and scored 27 points to lead the Raiders past

Perry Hall High School Perry Hall High School (PHHS) is a public high school in Baltimore County, Maryland, Baltimore County, Maryland, United States, established in 1967 enrolling about 2,000 students a year. Located in the northeastern Baltimore suburb of Perry Hall ...

69–59, in the Maryland 4A state semifinals. He decided to attend the

Hargrave Military Academy Hargrave Military Academy (HMA) is a private school, private, all-male, Military school, military boarding school located in the town of Chatham, Virginia. Hargrave is affiliated with the Baptist General Association of Virginia emphasizing Chr ...

as a

postgraduate Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor' ...

student to improve his academics. Marshall averaged 20.7 points and 11.4 rebounds per game at Hargrave Military Academy. He competed for DC Premier on the

Amateur Athletic Union The Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) is an amateur sports organization based in the United States. A multi-sport organization, the AAU is dedicated exclusively to the promotion and development of amateur sports and physical fitness programs. It h ...

(AAU) circuit. Marshall received scholarship offers from

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

, and

Virginia Tech The Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, commonly referred to as Virginia Tech (VT), is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States ...

, but committed to playing college basketball for Xavier because he liked the culture. He was considered to be a four-star prospect by three recruiting sites, and ESPN ranked him as the 20th best small forward in his class.

College career

Marshall contributed 12 points and four rebounds in his collegiate opening game against

Morehead State Morehead State University (MSU) is a public university in Morehead, Kentucky, United States. The university began as Morehead Normal School, which opened its doors in 1887. The Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics, a two-yea ...

. He scored a season-high 21 points in a 89–77 win over Georgetown on February 21, 2018. Marshall was named to 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 ...

All-Freshman team. As a freshman, Marshall averaged 7.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game and made 18 starts. In the summer before his sophomore season, Marshall worked on improving his jump shot and his conditioning. Marshall earned his first Big East player of the week honors on December 31, 2018, after scoring 19 points, grabbing a career-high 14 rebounds, and dished out four assists in a 74–65 win against DePaul. After scoring 28 points in a win at

Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

on February 20, 2019, and recording 17 points in a win over Villanova on February 24, Marshall was again named Big East player of the week. On February 28, Marshall scored a career-high 31 points as Xavier defeated St. John's 84–73. Marshall missed a game against St. John's with an ankle injury on March 9. He was named to the Second Team All-Big East by the coaches as a sophomore. Marshall averaged 14.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game, shooting 39.4 percent from the field and 27.7 percent from behind the arc. After the season, he declared 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 ...

but withdrew his name and returned to Xavier. Coming into his junior season, Marshall was named to the preseason First Team All-Big East and was on the watchlist for the

Julius Erving Award The Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's collegiate small forward. Following the success of the Bob Cousy Award which had been awarde ...

. On December 7, Marshall tied his career-high of 31 points in a 73–66 win over

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

in the

Crosstown Shootout The Crosstown Shootout is an annual men's college basketball game played between the University of Cincinnati Bearcats and Xavier University Musketeers. The two schools are separated by in Cincinnati, making the archrivalry one of the closes ...

. He sat out a game against Western Carolina on December 18 with a stomach virus. On February 1, 2020, Marshall contributed 19 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in a 74–62 upset of tenth-ranked Seton Hall despite playing with the flu. Marshall hit the game-winning three-pointer with 4.5 seconds left in a 66–63 win at Georgetown on March 1, finishing with 20 points and 10 rebounds. At the conclusion of the regular season, Marshall was named to the First Team All-Big East. He averaged 16.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game. Following the season, Marshall declared for the

2020 NBA draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecticut, wi ...

. On April 9, he announced he was signing with an agent, thus forgoing his remaining season of collegiate eligibility. Marshall scored 1,277 points in three seasons as a Musketeer.

Professional career

New Orleans Pelicans (2020–2024)

After going unselected in the

, Marshall signed 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 ...

with 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 ...

of the

(NBA) and their

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 Erie BayHawks on December 8, 2020. On January 15, 2021, Marshall made his NBA debut against 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 began receiving consistent minutes in April due to a rash of injuries to players. On May 7, 2021, the Pelicans signed him to a multi-year contract. In his rookie season, Marshall averaged 7.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game for the Pelicans, shooting 39.2 percent from the field. In January 2022, he and

Trey Murphy III Kenneth "Trey" Murphy III (born June 18, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Rice Owls and the Virginia Cavaliers. Wit ...

were assigned to the Pelicans'

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

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 ...

Dallas Mavericks (2024–present)

On July 6, 2024, Marshall signed a three-year, $27 million contract with the

. On December 28th, 2024, Marshall was suspended for 4 games after an altercation with

Jusuf Nurkić Jusuf Nurkić ( ; born 23 August 1994) is a Bosnian professional basketball player for the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 16th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft, be ...

. On March 25, 2025, Marshall scored a career-high 38 points along with seven rebounds in a 128–113 loss to 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 ...

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, 32 , , 10 , , 21.9 , , .392 , , .349 , , .707 , , 4.6 , , 2.8 , , .8 , , .3 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 55 , , 4 , , 13.4 , , .405 , , .200 , , .796 , , 2.6 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , .1 , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 77 , , 21 , , 23.3 , , .433 , , .303 , , .789 , , 3.6 , , 2.5 , , .7 , , .2 , , 9.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 66 , , 1 , , 19.0 , , .463 , , .387 , , .791 , , 3.6 , , 1.9 , , .7 , , .2 , , 7.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 69 , , 31 , , 27.8 , , .508 , , .275 , , .813 , , 4.8 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 13.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 299 , , 67 , , 21.4 , , .456 , , .302 , , .786 , , 3.8 , , 2.3 , , .8 , , .2 , , 8.8

Playoffs

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2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

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, 6 , , 0 , , 9.4 , , .700 , , , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , .2 , , .2 , , 3.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

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, 4 , , 0 , , 21.0 , , .429 , , .400 , , 1.000 , , 2.8 , , 1.3 , , .5 , , .5 , , 9.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 10 , , 0 , , 14.0 , , .500 , , .400 , , 1.000 , , 1.7 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , .3 , , 5.4

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", Xavier , 35 , , 18 , , 21.8 , , .530 , , .349 , , .753 , , 4.4 , , 1.6 , , .7 , , .3 , , 7.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", Xavier , 33 , , 33 , , 35.9 , , .394 , , .277 , , .722 , , 7.2 , , 3.4 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 14.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Xavier , 31 , , 31 , , 35.7 , , .445 , , .286 , , .710 , , 6.3 , , 4.0 , , 1.3 , , .4 , , 16.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 99 , , 82 , , 30.9 , , .439 , , .289 , , .725 , , 5.9 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 12.9

References

External links

Xavier Musketeers bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marshall, Naji 1998 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen American men's basketball players Basketball players from Atlantic County, New Jersey Birmingham Squadron players Dallas Mavericks players Erie BayHawks (2019–2021) players New Orleans Pelicans players Small forwards Sportspeople from Atlantic City, New Jersey Undrafted NBA players Xavier Musketeers men's basketball players