Nickey Maxwell Van Exel (born November 27, 1971) is an American professional

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coach and former player who last served as an assistant coach for the

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

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). Van Exel played for six NBA teams from 1993 through 2006. He was an

NBA All-Star The National Basketball Association (NBA) All-Star Game is an annual exhibition basketball game. It is the main event of the NBA All-Star Weekend. Traditionally, the All-Star Game featured a conference-based format, featuring a team composed of ...

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 ...

in 1998. Van Exel 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 Cincinnati Bearcats, earning third-team

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors as a senior in 1993. He was selected by the Lakers in the second round of the 1993 NBA draft. In his first season, he was named to the

NBA All-Rookie Second Team The NBA All-Rookie Team is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) honor given since the 1962–63 NBA season to the top rookies during the regular season. Voting is conducted by the NBA head coaches who are not allowed to vote for play ...

Early life and education

Van Exel was raised primarily by his mother, Joyce. He attended St. Joseph High School, a private high school in

Kenosha, Wisconsin Kenosha () is a city in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Wisconsin, fourth-most populous city in Wisconsin, with a population of 99,986 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. S ...

. He played from 1987 to 1989 and scored 1,282 points, including 772 as a senior. He led the WISAA (private schools) state tournament in scoring as a junior and senior when his team lost in the finals both years. He was named to the Associated Press all-state team as a senior.

College career

Van Exel wanted to play

, but his grades weren't high enough to qualify for a top-flight program, so he went to junior college at Trinity Valley Community College for two years. He applied himself to his studies and qualified to enroll at the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati, informally Cincy) is a public university, public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1819 and had an enrollment of over 53,000 students in 2024, making it the ...

and play for Bearcats coach

Bob Huggins Robert Edward Huggins (born September 21, 1953), nicknamed "Huggy Bear", is an American college basketball coach. He was the head coach at Walsh, Akron, Cincinnati, Kansas State, and West Virginia. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial ...

. Prior to Van Exel's arrival, the Bearcats had gone 18–12. In 1991–92, with Van Exel as starting point guard averaging 12.3 points and 2.9 assists per game, the Bearcats went 29–5, won their league tournament, and won four NCAA tournament games to advance to the NCAA Final Four, where they were defeated by

Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

and their "Fab Five." In his senior year, Van Exel led Cincinnati with 18.3 points and 4.5 assists per game as the team went 27–5, again won their league tournament, and advanced to the NCAA Elite Eight before falling in overtime to

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

. Van Exel earned Third-team

All-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

honors (AP, ''

Basketball Times ''Basketball Times'' was an American basketball magazine that was in circulation from 1978 to 2021, and was published by Akers Ink LLC. ''Basketball Times'' published monthly and mainly focused on college basketball. The headquarters was in Matthe ...

'' and ''Basketball Weekly'') and was a finalist for the Wooden Award for player of the year. In only two seasons, he became Cincinnati's all-time leader in three-point field goals made (147), three-point field goals attempted (411), and three-point field goal percentage (.358) (These records have since been surpassed). Van Exel was inducted into the University of Cincinnati Athletics Hall of Fame in 2018. Van Exel is the eighth former men's basketball player to graduate with the help of UC's Student-Athlete Support Services department since 2018. He graduated with degrees in interdisciplinary studies in 2023.

Professional career

In a 13-year NBA career, Van Exel played for 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 ...

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (N ...

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 ...

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 ...

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...

and

. Van Exel's career began when he was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round as the 37th overall pick of the 1993 NBA draft. Van Exel and Eddie Jones were the centerpiece of the Lakers' rebuilding plan after the end of their successful Showtime Era in the early '90s. Led by Van Exel's flashy play, the two guards helped the team to the playoffs in 1995 after the Lakers had missed the postseason for the first time in years in 1994. Van Exel was known for his shooting streaks, buzzer-beating shots, and speed, earning him the nickname "Nick the Quick". During his career with the Lakers, Van Exel averaged 14.9 points per game as well as 7.3 assists per game, finishing in the top 10 in the NBA in that category twice. In 1996, during a game against the

, he pushed a referee, resulting in an ejection, seven-game suspension, and $187,000 fine. On June 24, 1998, after five seasons as the starting point guard, Van Exel was traded to the Denver Nuggets for Tony Battie and the draft rights to Tyronn Lue; while it was reported at the time that the trade was made at the behest of

Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal ( ; born March 6, 1972), commonly known as Shaq ( ), is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program ''Inside the NBA''. He is a and Center (basketball), center ...

because of a Cancun chant Van Exel made in the playoffs, Van Exel stated this was not the case. Playing on a Nuggets team which was one of the worst in the league, Van Exel achieved several career highs. Over four seasons he put up averages of 17.7 ppg and 8.4 apg, averaging 21.4 ppg through 45 games of the 2001–02 season. On February 21, 2002, he was traded by the Nuggets along with

Raef LaFrentz Raef Andrew LaFrentz (born May 29, 1976) is an American former professional basketball Power forward (basketball), power forward and Center (basketball), center who played for the Denver Nuggets, Dallas Mavericks, Boston Celtics, and Portland Tra ...

, Avery Johnson, and Tariq Abdul-Wahad to the Dallas Mavericks for Juwan Howard, Donnell Harvey, Tim Hardaway, and a 2002 first-round pick. In Dallas, Van Exel played a smaller role but contributed effectively by creating scoring opportunities and scoring key three-pointers. He averaged 12.5 ppg during the 2002–03 season, and nearly 20 ppg in the 2003 playoffs, carrying the offensive load for the Mavericks in a tight series against the Sacramento Kings, scoring 36 and 40 points in back-to-back wins in games 2 and 3. Van Exel was traded on August 18, 2003, to the Golden State Warriors along with Evan Eschmeyer, Avery Johnson, Popeye Jones, and Antoine Rigaudeau in exchange for Antawn Jamison, Chris Mills, Danny Fortson, and

Jiří Welsch Jiří Welsch () (born 27 January 1980) is a Czech former professional basketball player for BK Pardubice of the Czech Republic National Basketball League (Czech Republic), National Basketball League. He has also represented the senior Czech Rep ...

. During the 2003–04 season, he played in a career-low 39 games, averaging 12.6 ppg and 5.3 apg. On July 20, 2004, he was traded by Golden State to the Portland Trail Blazers in exchange for Dale Davis and Dan Dickau. With the Blazers he played in only 53 games, averaging 11 ppg. Van Exel was waived by Portland on August 3, 2005, and he signed with the San Antonio Spurs on August 29. After signing, Van Exel stated that it would be his last season in an NBA uniform. Due to knee and elbow injuries, he only played in 65 games during the 2005–06 season. He averaged career lows in almost every statistical category, including points (5.5 ppg) and minutes (15 mpg). In the playoffs, San Antonio was eliminated by the

in a series that lasted seven games. Two days later, on May 24, 2006,

ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...

's Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon reported on their show '' Pardon the Interruption'' that Van Exel would soon announce his retirement.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 81 , , 80 , , 33.3 , , .394 , , .338 , , .781 , , 2.9 , , 5.8 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 13.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 80 , , 80 , , 36.8 , , .420 , , .358 , , .783 , , 2.8 , , 8.3 , , 1.2 , , .1 , , 16.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 74 , , 74 , , 34.0 , , .417 , , .357 , , .799 , , 2.4 , , 6.9 , , .9 , , .1 , , 14.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 79 , , 79 , , 37.2 , , .402 , , .378 , , .825 , , 2.9 , , 8.5 , , .9 , , .1 , , 15.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 64 , , 46 , , 32.1 , , .419 , , .389 , , .791 , , 3.0 , , 6.9 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 13.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, style="background:#cfecec;", 50* , , style="background:#cfecec;", 50* , , 36.0 , , .398 , , .308 , , .811 , , 2.3 , , 7.4 , , .8 , , .1 , , 16.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 79 , , 79 , , 37.3 , , .390 , , .332 , , .817 , , 3.9 , , 9.0 , , .9 , , .1 , , 16.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 71 , , 70 , , 28.7 , , .414 , , .377 , , .819 , , 3.4 , , 8.5 , , .9 , , .3 , , 17.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 45 , , 44 , , 38.6 , , .408 , , .337 , , .782 , , 3.8 , , 8.1 , , .7 , , .2 , , 21.4 , - , 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 ...

, 27 , , 2 , , 28.0 , , .411 , , .347 , , .844 , , 3.1 , , 4.2 , , .5 , , .1 , , 13.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 73 , , 1 , , 27.8 , , .412 , , .378 , , .764 , , 2.8 , , 4.3 , , .6 , , .1 , , 12.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Golden State , 39 , , 29 , , 32.2 , , .390 , , .307 , , .707 , , 2.7 , , 5.3 , , .5 , , .1 , , 12.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", Portland , 53 , , 34 , , 30.5 , , .381 , , .389 , , .784 , , 3.0 , , 4.3 , , .8 , , .0 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

San Antonio San Antonio ( ; Spanish for " Saint Anthony") is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in Greater San Antonio. San Antonio is the third-largest metropolitan area in Texas and the 24th-largest metropolitan area in the ...

, 65 , , 2 , , 15.2 , , .397 , , .357 , , .683 , , 1.4 , , 1.9 , , .2 , , .0 , , 5.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 880 , , 670 , , 32.9 , , .405 , , .357 , , .794 , , 2.9 , , 6.6 , , .8 , , .1 , , 14.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star , 1 , , 0 , , 20.0 , , .357 , , .167 , , 1.000 , , 3.0 , , 2.0 , , .21 , , .0 , , 13.0

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

1995 1995 was designated as: * United Nations Year for Tolerance * World Year of Peoples' Commemoration of the Victims of the Second World War This was the first year that the Internet was entirely privatized, with the United States government ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 10 , , 10 , , 46.4 , , .414 , , .318 , , .763 , , 3.8 , , 7.3 , , 2.1 , , .3 , , 20.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 4 , , 4 , , 34.3 , , .296 , , .313 , , .769 , , 4.0 , , 6.8 , , .5 , , .0 , , 11.8 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 9 , , 9 , , 39.2 , , .378 , , .273 , , .824 , , 3.4 , , 6.4 , , 1.1 , , .0 , , 14.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

, style="text-align:left;", L.A. Lakers , 13 , , 0 , , 28.2 , , .331 , , .314 , , .725 , , 2.5 , , 4.2 , , .6 , , .1 , , 11.6 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 8 , , 1 , , 33.0 , , .366 , , .206 , , .667 , , 3.0 , , 3.9 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 11.1 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2003 2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater. In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War. Demographic ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 20 , , 3 , , 33.6 , , .460 , , .393 , , .703 , , 3.4 , , 4.1 , , .6 , , .0 , , 19.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 12 , , 0 , , 11.1 , , .219 , , .300 , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , 1.4 , , .3 , , .2 , , 2.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 76 , , 27 , , 31.4 , , .394 , , .324 , , .753 , , 2.9 , , 4.5 , , .8 , , .1 , , 13.6

Coaching career

Texas Southern University Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a Public university, public Historically black colleges and universities, historically Black university in Houston. The university is a member school of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund an ...

hired Van Exel as an assistant coach to the Tigers men's basketball team on October 15, 2009. On September 8, 2010, the

hired Van Exel as a player development instructor. Van Exel remained in that position for the 2010–11, 2011–12, and 2012–13 seasons. In 2013–14, he served as an assistant coach for the

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

. On July 8, 2015, Van Exel was named head coach of the Texas Legends in the NBA D-League replacing Eduardo Nájera On June 8, 2016, Van Exel was hired by the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

to serve as an assistant coach. After two years as a scout with the

, Van Exel returned to the Hawks as an assistant coach on August 25, 2021.

Player highlights

* Van Exel was the last Laker to score in the Boston Garden when he nailed a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Lakers the win. * He hit a pair of clutch three-pointers for the Lakers in game 5 of the 1995 Western Conference Semifinals against the San Antonio Spurs. The first one sent the game into overtime, while the second one decided the game. * He recorded a career-high 23 assists on January 5, 1997, against the

Vancouver Grizzlies The Vancouver Grizzlies were a Canadian professional basketball team based in Vancouver. The Grizzlies competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Midwest Division (NBA), Midwest Division of the Western Conference ( ...

. This record has come under scrutiny when it was admitted by the scorekeeper for the Grizzlies that he intentionally inflated Van Exel's assist total due to the scorekeeper's displeasure with the NBA's scorekeeping system and wanted to prove its inaccuracy. * He finished in the top 15 in assists in eight of 13 seasons. * Coming into the 2005–06 season, Van Exel was first all-time among

in three-point field goals made with 750. Midway through the season, he was surpassed by

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he List of NBA players who have spent their entire career with one franchise, spent his entire 20-year career with t ...

. * He twice scored a career single-game high of 44 points, both for the Nuggets—on April 15, 2000, against the

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

(along with eight assists) and on November 1, 2001 (again with eight assists) against the

. * Van Exel was famous throughout his playing career for his peculiar free-throw routine, in which he took his free throw attempts while standing well over a foot behind the free-throw line.

Career awards and recognition

* For helping his team reach the Final Four in 1992 and the elite 8 in 1993, Van Exel was honored by the University of Cincinnati as he was inducted into the James P. Kelly Sr. Athletic Hall of Fame * Named an NBA All-Star in 1998, along with three of his Lakers teammates * Member of the 1994 All-Rookie Second Team * Earned third-team All-America honors in 1993

Personal life

Van Exel once appeared on an episode of ''

MTV Cribs ''MTV Cribs'' (also known as ''Cribs'') is an American documentary television show that originated on MTV and features tours of the private homes of celebrities. It originally aired from 2000 to 2010. In 2017, MTV produced short-form episodes of ...

''. Van Exel is name-dropped in the lyrics of the 2003 Beyonce and Jay-Z song " Crazy in Love." On January 31, 2013, Van Exel's 22-year-old son, Nickey Van Exel, was convicted of murdering his friend and sentenced to 60 years in prison. Nickey fatally shot his best friend and dumped his body in Lake Ray Hubbard. This was done in fear that his friend, Bradley Eyo, would tell authorities about a string of robberies the two had committed together.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Van Exel, Nick 1971 births Living people 20th-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century African-American sportsmen All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Atlanta Hawks assistant coaches Basketball coaches from Wisconsin Basketball players from Wisconsin Cincinnati Bearcats men's basketball players Dallas Mavericks players Dallas Mavericks scouts Denver Nuggets players Golden State Warriors players Los Angeles Lakers draft picks Los Angeles Lakers players Milwaukee Bucks assistant coaches Memphis Grizzlies assistant coaches NBA All-Stars Point guards Portland Trail Blazers players San Antonio Spurs players Sportspeople from Kenosha, Wisconsin Texas Legends coaches Texas Southern Tigers men's basketball coaches Trinity Valley Cardinals men's basketball players

Early life and education

College career

Professional career

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Coaching career

Player highlights

Career awards and recognition

Personal life

See also

References

External links