Ronald Delaine Baker (born March 30, 1993) is an American former 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. 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

Wichita State Shockers The Wichita State Shockers are the athletic teams that represent Wichita State University, located in Wichita, Kansas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division I ranks, primarily competing in the American Athletic Conference (T ...

. 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) ...

, he spent 3 seasons in the

NBA 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 ...

, playing for 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 ...

and

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

Early life

Born in

Hays, Kansas Hays is a city in and the county seat of Ellis County, Kansas, United States. The largest city in northwestern Kansas, it is the economic and cultural center of the region. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 21,116. Hays ...

, Baker spent his early childhood in the small farming town of

Utica, Kansas Utica is a city in Ness County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 99. History The first post office in Utica was established in 1879. Utica was named by early pioneer C.W. Bell who was from Utica ...

, growing up with one sister and one brother. In a 2014 interview, he recalled, "I have memories of when was I very, very little, holding a basketball in my dog's doghouse when I was about 1." His father noted that he eventually gravitated toward basketball for practical reasons: "It was easier to haul him around and easier to get five or six to play basketball than to play baseball, where you'd need 12 to 14."

High school career

While he developed into a star at Scott Community High, and dreamed of playing for the state's premier college program at

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 ...

, he was slow to grow into his body; by the end of his junior year, he was only tall, and had drawn interest from only two Division I programs:

Arkansas–Little Rock The University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UA Little Rock, UALR) is a public research university in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States. Established as Little Rock Junior College by the Little Rock School District in 1927, the institution became ...

and

South Dakota State South Dakota State University (SDSU or SD State) is a public land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest university and is the second oldest continually operating universit ...

. However, he grew to during the summer between his junior and senior seasons. In his senior year, Baker helped the team finish with a 25–1 record. In return, he was named 3A First-Team All-State in

. The peak of his high school basketball career was when he hit a game winning put-back buzzer beater against Minneapolis High School to win the Class 3A state basketball championship, finishing the game with 26 points and 9 rebounds. As a result, Baker helped the school win its first ever Class 3A Championship, although the school had made two different appearances in the past. Nonetheless, Baker remained little-known among Division I coaches. ''

ESPN.com ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc. History Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including ...

'' writer Eamonn Brennan noted in 2014,

ESPN's RecruitingNation maintains detailed scouting reports on hundreds of the best high school basketball players in the country. . . . Ron Baker's profile read as follows:

"Will walk-on at Wichita State in 2011–12 and spend a redshirt year. Expected to be on scholarship starting in 2012–13."

And that was it. Next to Baker's name was "NR," which stands for "Not Ranked." The same abbreviation sits next to secondary lists for "position," "regional" and "state." Baker — who requested a redshirt year when he committed, as a walk-on, to Wichita State in April 2011 — couldn't have been more off the recruiting radar.

After his senior season, Kansas invited him to visit the campus. Baker had thoughts about

walking on ''Walking On'' is a studio album by musicians Ananda Shankar and State of Bengal, released on 12 September 1999 by Real World Records. Background State of Bengal (Zaman) learned to play bass in three weeks for the project. Critical response P ...

there, but the invitation occurred during the middle of his high school baseball season. Baker's father recalled that Ron felt that his basketball game was rusty, and that "he didn't want to embarrass himself" in a potential scrimmage.

College career

Baker chose to play for the

after also having interest in Arkansas–Little Rock, Eastern Illinois, and South Dakota State. Rather than playing in his first season with the Shockers, Baker redshirted after a reluctant approval from head coach

Gregg Marshall Michael Gregg Marshall (born February 27, 1963) is an American college basketball coach whose most recent position was head coach at Wichita State University. Marshall has coached his teams to appearances in the NCAA Division I men's basketball ...

. In his first season, Baker emerged as one of the elite free-throw shooters at Wichita State. He finished the season shooting for a free-throw percentage of .822, the highest for a qualified player on the team. Baker did not prove himself to be an efficient scorer and played just eighteen games in the entire season due to a

stress fracture A stress fracture is a fatigue-induced bone fracture caused by repeated stress over time. Instead of resulting from a single severe impact, stress fractures are the result of accumulated injury from repeated submaximal loading, such as running ...

in his left foot. He eventually played a major role when the Shockers made an unanticipated run into the semifinals of the

2013 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament The 2013 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament involved 68 teams playing in a single-elimination tournament that determined the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I men's basketball national champion for the 2012– ...

. Baker shot 40 percent from the field, 42.9 percent on three-pointers, most notably scoring 16 points in a huge win over No. 1

Gonzaga Gonzaga may refer to: Places *Gonzaga, Lombardy, commune in the province of Mantua, Italy *Gonzaga, Cagayan, municipality in the Philippines *Gonzaga, Minas Gerais, town in Brazil *Forte Gonzaga, fort in Messina, Sicily Surname *House of Gonza ...

(tied for team-high). He earned no major awards by the time the season came to a close. Entering the

2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2013–14 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 8, 2013 and ended with the 2014 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, whose Final Four was played at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on April 5,& ...

, Baker became known as one of the MVC's premier shooters. He, Cleanthony Early, and

Fred VanVleet Fredderick Edmund VanVleet Sr. (born February 25, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for the Houston Rockets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, VanVleet played college basketball for Wichita State Uni ...

led the team in scoring and had a major influence on

Wichita State Wichita State University (WSU) is a public university, public research university in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It is governed by the Kansas Board of Regents. The university offers more than 60 undergraduate degree programs in more than 200 ...

's season, which saw the Shockers become the first NCAA Division I men's team to enter the NCAA tournament undefeated in over 20 years. Baker was named to the 2014 MVC All-Conference First Team and the

CBE Hall of Fame Classic The Hall of Fame Classic (formerly known as the Guardians Classic, CBE Classic, CBE Hall of Fame Classic and Hall of Fame Classic) created by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) is an annual season-opening college basketball tourn ...

's Most Valuable Player after finishing his first season with a double-digit scoring average. After the Shockers' season ended in the NCAA tournament at the hands of

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

and its highly touted freshman class, Baker indicated that one of the Wildcats' top recruits,

Aaron Harrison Aaron Malik Harrison (born October 28, 1994) is an American professional basketball player for Diablos Rojos del México of the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). He was considered one of the top high school recruits in 2013 and pla ...

, told him, "You are a bad, bad, bad boy." He was a part of three Missouri Valley Conference championships (2013, 2014, 2015), nine NCAA Tournament wins, two trips to the Sweet 16 (2013, 2015) and a trip to the 2013 Final Four. As a senior in 2015–16, he averaged 14.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.51 steals over 31.6 minutes in 35 games. His postseason honors included: John R. Wooden Second Team All-American; USA Today Second Team All-American and 2015 finalist for Jerry West Award. Baker also represented the United States at the 2015 Pan American Games, where he started all five games and won a bronze medal.

Professional career

New York Knicks (2016–2018)

After going undrafted in the

, Baker joined the

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 ...

. Despite a scattered Summer League campaign, Baker signed with the Knicks on August 1, 2016, and secured an opening-night roster spot. He made his debut for the Knicks in their season opener on October 25, 2016, recording five points and one rebound in seven minutes off the bench in a 117–88 loss to the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

. On December 15, 2016, he scored a career-high 13 points in a 103–90 loss to the

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 ...

. On January 16, 2017, he made his first career start for the Knicks and subsequently scored 12 points in a 108–107 loss to 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 ...

. During his rookie and sophomore seasons, in which he became a fan favorite, he was assigned multiple times to New York's D-League/G League affiliate, the

Westchester Knicks The Westchester Knicks are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in White Plains, New York, and are affiliated with the New York Knicks. The Knicks play their home games at Westchester County Center in White Plains, N ...

. On August 7, 2017, Baker re-signed with the Knicks. Baker missed the Knicks' game on January 2, 2018, against 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 ...

because of a broken left orbital bone sustained when he was hit in the face trying to stop

Anthony Davis Anthony Marshon Davis Jr. (born March 11, 1993), nicknamed "AD" and "the Brow", is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Mavericks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Davis, a Power forward (basketball), power f ...

' drive to the basket in New York's victory against 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 ...

on December 30. On February 5, 2018, he was ruled out for the rest of the season after it was determined he required right shoulder surgery. Baker was waived by the Knicks on December 13, 2018.

Washington Wizards (2018–2019)

On December 20, 2018, Baker signed with the

. He was waived on January 7, 2019, after appearing in four games.

CSKA Moscow (2019–2020)

On August 1, 2019, he signed a contract with

CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow () is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet Union, Soviet era, it was the central part of the Armed Forces (sports ...

of the

VTB United League The VTB United League () is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2009. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, it is the first tier of Russian ...

and the

EuroLeague The EuroLeague is a European men's professional basketball club competition. The league is widely recognised as the top-tier and the most prestigious men's basketball league in Europe. The league consists of 20 teams, of which 16 are given lon ...

. Baker averaged 2.5 points per game in 27 EuroLeague games. On May 27, 2020, he parted ways with the team.

National team career

Baker represented the

United States national team The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

at the

2015 Pan American Games The 2015 Pan American Games (), officially the XVII Pan American Games () and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am Games (Toronto 2015), were a major international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Pan American Games, ...

, where he won a bronze medal.

Retirement

In a May 2021 episode of ''Inside TBT'', the official podcast of

The Basketball Tournament The Basketball Tournament (TBT) is an open-invitation, single-elimination tournament, single-elimination tournament played each summer in the United States, with the stakes being a cash prize (the most recent tournament in The Basketball Tournam ...

, Baker indicated that he had retired from play. He told the hosts that he had undergone hip surgery while overseas, and wanted to move on with his life, with hopes of entering the business world. He is serving as general manager of AfterShocks, a TBT team made up mostly of Wichita State basketball alumni, in the 2021 TBT. Baker also emphasized that he would not play in this or any future edition of TBT. In August 2021, Baker was named project manager in the strategy and business development department at a medical center, Ascension Via Christi, in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

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, 29 , , 1 , , 13.3 , , .339 , , .333 , , .769, , 1.0 , , 1.6 , , .9 , , .2 , , 2.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 11 , , 0 , , 9.7 , , .250 , , .111 , , .833 , , .6 , , 1.2 , , .5 , , .0 , , 1.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, 4 , , 0 , , 11.3 , , .000 , , .000 , , – , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .3 , , .3 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 96 , , 14 , , 14.5 , , .358 , , .265 , , .707 , , 1.4 , , 1.8 , , .7 , , .2 , , 3.1

College

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2012–13 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

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

, 18 , , 15 , , 26.1 , , .398 , , .357 , , .822 , , 3.2 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , .3 , , 12.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 36 , , 29.9 , , .456 , , .380 , , .842 , , 3.8 , , 3.1 , , 1.4 , , .6 , , 13.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 35 , , 32.7 , , .433 , , .383 , , .758 , , 4.5 , , 2.5 , , 1.3 , , .8 , , 13.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 35 , , 31.6 , , .424 , , .350 , , .793 , , 4.8 , , 3.2 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , 14.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 124 , , 121 , , 30.6 , , .433 , , .369 , , .801 , , 4.2 , , 2.8 , , 1.3 , , .6 , , 13.2

Personal life

Baker is an enrolled member of the

Citizen Potawatomi Nation Citizen Potawatomi Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Potawatomi people located in Oklahoma. The Potawatomi are traditionally an Algonquian languages, Algonquian-speaking Eastern Woodlands tribes, Eastern Woodlands tribe. They have 29,155 e ...

. Following the 2015–16 season, Baker was contacted by the owner of a small publishing house in

El Dorado, Kansas El Dorado ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Butler County, Kansas, Butler County, Kansas, United States. It is situated along the Walnut River in the central part of Butler County and located in south-central Kansas. As of the 2020 Unit ...

, who wanted him to write a children's book. The final product, ''You're Too Big to Dream Small'', is an illustrated book with rhyming text written primarily by Baker himself and based closely on his life. It was released on August 3, 2016, and Baker personally signed the first print run of 6,000 copies. Ron Baker married Liv Nielsen in 2023. He welcomed his first child, a baby girl, with his wife in February 2024.

References

External links

* *
Ron Baker at Wichita State Shockers

Ron Baker
at

USA Basketball USA Basketball (USAB) is a non-profit organization and the governing body for basketball in the United States. The organization represents the United States in FIBA, and the men's and women's national basketball teams in the United States ...

(archived) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Ron 1993 births Living people 21st-century American male writers American children's writers American expatriate basketball people in Russia American men's basketball players Basketball players from Kansas Native American basketball players New York Knicks players Sportspeople from Hays, Kansas People from Ness County, Kansas People from Scott County, Kansas PBC CSKA Moscow players Citizen Potawatomi Nation people Shooting guards Undrafted NBA players United States men's national basketball team players Washington Wizards players Westchester Knicks players Wichita State Shockers men's basketball players Basketball players at the 2015 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2015 Pan American Games Pan American Games bronze medalists for the United States in basketball 21st-century American sportsmen