Ryan Jamar Boatright (born December 27, 1992) is an American and naturalized Armenian 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 Brillantes del Zulia of the

Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto The Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto, commonly known as the SPB, is the Venezuelan first division national professional basketball league. Founded in 1974 as the Liga Especial de Baloncesto, it adopted the name Liga Profesional de Baloncesto i ...

. He has also represented the Armenian national basketball team in international competition. He completed his college career at

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university system with its main campus in Storrs, Connecticut, United States. It was founded in 1881 as the Storrs Agricultural School, named after two benefactors. In 1893, ...

in 2015. Boatright was a key player for the Huskies' 2013–14 NCAA championship team, as he earned 2014 NCAA Final Four All-Tournament team honors.

High school career

Boatright, an

Aurora, Illinois Aurora is a city in northeastern Illinois, United States. It is located along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River west of Chicago. It is the List of municipalities in Illinois, second-most populous city in Illinois, with a popul ...

native, averaged 31.2

points per game Points per game, often abbreviated PPG, is the average number of points scored by a player or team per game played in a sport, over the course of a series of games, a whole season, or a career. It is calculated by dividing the total number of poi ...

as a senior at

East Aurora High School East Aurora High School, (also known as EAHS or Aurora East High School), is a public, four-year high school located in Kane County, Illinois, Kane County, at the corner of Smith Boulevard and Fifth Avenue in Aurora, Illinois, a western suburb ...

and was named Illinois Co-Mr. Basketball with

Chasson Randle Chasson Randle (born February 5, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for APR of the Basketball Africa League (BAL). He played college basketball for the Stanford Cardinal. As a senior in 2014–15, he was considered one of the to ...

. As a senior, he scored 63 points in a game against Proviso West, and another outing scoring 55 against St. Charles North. Boatright also led the charge in defeating and upsetting the undefeated Benet Academy Redwings in the Sectional Semifinals 60–52. Benet was ranked #1 in the state of Illinois, 7th in the nation with a team that featured

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

-bound

Frank Kaminsky Francis Stanley Kaminsky III (born April 4, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for Raptors 905 of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers. During his college basketball career, Kaminsky set the ...

. Boatright finished with 29 points and 6 assists. He had originally committed to

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, but changed his mind when the Mountaineers signed another

point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the Basketball positions, five positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position and is usually the shortest player ...

just a day later. He then went on and decided to commit to the University of Connecticut.

College career

Freshman year

Upon arriving at Connecticut, his eligibility was challenged. After he missed the first three games, the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

ruled that he would have to serve an additional three-game suspension to bring his total to six games served due to "receiving improper benefits", consisting of more than $8,000 in cash and other impermissible benefits that he and his mother had received. Upon further review, Boatright's suspension was increased to a total of nine games. Nonetheless, as a freshman he averaged 10.4 points, 4.0 assists and 3.3

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 ...

in 30.1 minutes per game.

Sophomore year

Following his return, Boatright along with backcourt teammate

Shabazz Napier Shabazz Bozie Napier (born July 14, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for Bayern Munich of the German Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) and the EuroLeague. He was drafted 24th overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2014 NBA draft a ...

both rose to the national spotlight as they were highlighted as one of the nation's best backcourts, as they both averaged a combined 33 points and 9 assists per game, outplaying nearly every opponents' backcourt they have played. He kept the momentum up in his sophomore season of

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 ...

, raising his scoring average to 15.4. He was named to the

USBWA The United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) was founded in 1956 with the urging of National Collegiate Athletic Association director Walter Byers to serve the interests of journalists who cover college basketball. Scholarships The U ...

All-District first-team at the conclusion of the season.

Junior year

On April 26, 2013, Boatright opted to return to the team for his junior year along with teammates Shabazz Napier and DeAndre Daniels. Boatright played 39 of UConn's 40 games, starting 38 of them, averaging 12.1 points, 3.4 assists, 1.6 steals and a career-best 3.5 rebounds. He averaged 13.5 points and 5.0 rebounds in the Final Four and was named to the All-Final Four team. He was one of four Huskies to average double-digit point totals in the inaugural American Athletic Conference tournament. Boatright scored in double-figures in 27 of 39 games and in all six of UConn's NCAA tournament games. He was second on the team this year with 61 steals, which were the most ever for him in a season. Boatright's defense was a key factor in the Huskies' drive to the 2014 Final Four. He was named to the 2014 All-Final Four team and UConn won the national championship.

Senior year

Upon the preseason of the 2014–15 season, Boatright was named the preseason All-American Athletic Conference player of the year and was selected to the preseason first team. Boatright was a unanimous first-team All-American Athletic Conference team selection in 2015.

College statistics

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2011–12 , style="text-align:left;",

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, 25 , , 8 , , 30.1 , , .421 , , .377 , , .690 , , 3.3 , , 4.0 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , 10.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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

, 30 , , 30 , , 36.3 , , .429 , , .333 , , .785 , , 2.9 , , 4.4 , , 1.5 , , .1 , , 15.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2013–14 , style="text-align:left;",

, 39 , , 38 , , 32.4 , , .391 , , .376 , , .798 , , 3.5 , , 3.4 , , 1.6 , , .2 , , 12.1 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 35.8 , , .423 , , .411 , , .850 , , 4.1 , , 3.8 , , 1.4 , , .2 , , 17.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", Career , style="text-align:left;", , 128 , , 110 , , 33.8 , , .416 , , .380 , , .794 , , 3.5 , , 3.8 , , 1.4 , , .2 , , 14.0 , -

Professional career

Grand Rapids Drive (2015–2016)

After going undrafted in the

2015 NBA draft The 2015 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2015, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. It was televised nationally in the U.S. by ESPN. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eli ...

, Boatright signed with the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), ...

on July 2 and joined the team for the

2015 NBA Summer League The 2015 NBA Summer League consisted of three professional sports, pro basketball sports league, leagues organized by the National Basketball Association, NBA: the Orlando Magic, Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas S ...

. In nine Summer League games for the Nets, Boatright averaged 14.1 points, 2.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. On October 20, 2015, he was waived by the Nets after appearing in four preseason games. On October 23, he signed with 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 ...

. He was waived two days later. On October 31, he was acquired by the

Grand Rapids Drive The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anahe ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

as an affiliate player of the Pistons. On January 21, 2016, he was waived by the Drive.

Orlandina Basket (2016)

On January 26, Boatright signed with

Orlandina Basket Orlandina Basket, known as Infodrive Capo d'Orlando for sponsorship reasons, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Capo d'Orlando, Sicily. It plays in the second tier Serie A2 Basket. Founded in 1978, it was one of the you ...

of the Italian

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

Guangzhou Long-Lions (2016)

On July 30, 2016, Boatright signed with

Guangzhou Long-Lions The Guangzhou Loong Lions () are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Guangzhou, Guangdong. They play in the Southern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). History The team was founded in November 2000 as Shaanxi Gait ...

of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

Cedevita Zagreb (2016–2017)

On November 21, 2016, Boatright signed with

Cedevita Zagreb Košarkaški klub Cedevita Junior (), also known as Cedevita Junior, is a men's basketball club based in Zagreb, Croatia. The club is named after its main sponsor Cedevita, and competes in the Croatian HT Premijer liga. Before its merge to Slove ...

of the Croatian League after leaving China.

Beşiktaş (2017–2018)

On July 21, 2017, Boatright signed a 1+1 deal with Turkish club

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

Agua Caliente Clippers (2018)

For the 2018–19 season, Boatwright signed with the

Agua Caliente Clippers The San Diego Clippers are a professional basketball team based in San Diego County, California, that competes in the NBA G League. The team plays its home games at Frontwave Arena. The Clippers began play in the 2017–18 season. The team is a ...

of the

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 ...

Texas Legends (2018–2019)

On December 16, 2018, the

Texas Legends The Texas Legends are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Frisco, Texas, and are affiliated with the Dallas Mavericks. The Legends play their home games at the Comerica Center. The team began as the Colorado 14 ...

announced that they had acquired Boatright from the

Unicaja (2019)

On January 8, 2019,

Unicaja Unicaja is a Spanish savings bank based in Málaga and chartered as a caja de ahorros providing retail banking services. The banks full name is ''Monte de Piedad y Caja de Ahorros de Ronda, Cádiz, Almería, Málaga y Antequera'' after the ...

announced that they had acquired Boatright. On May 27, 2019, he left the team.

Cedevita Olimpija (2019–2020)

On July 30, Boatright signed with

Cedevita Olimpija Košarkarski klub Cedevita Olimpija (), commonly referred to as KK Cedevita Olimpija or simply Olimpija, is a men's professional basketball club based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. The club competes in the ABA League and the Premier A Slovenian Bask ...

of the

ABA League The ABA League, renamed the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the top-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedoni ...

. On January 20, 2020, he left the team.

BC Avtodor (2020)

On January 29, 2020, Boatright signed with

BC Avtodor BC Avtodor (), commonly known as simply Avtodor and internationally as Avtodor Saratov, is a Russian professional basketball club based in Saratov. It plays in the VTB United League, the highest level of Russian basketball. In early 2022, after ...

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 ...

. He averaged 16 points per game.

Rytas Vilnius (2020–2021)

On November 8, 2020, Boatright signed with

BC Rytas Basketball Club Rytas, commonly referred to as Rytas Vilnius, is a professional basketball club based in Vilnius, Lithuania. The club competes in the Lietuvos krepšinio lyga, Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL), the top tier of Basketball in Lit ...

of the

Lithuanian Basketball League Lithuanian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Lithuania, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe ** Lithuanian language ** Lithuanians, a Baltic ethnic group, native to Lithuania and the immediate geographical region ** L ...

. On February 27, 2021, he left the team.

Paris Basketball (2021–2022)

On March 1, 2021, Boatright signed with

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 ...

Second stint with Avtodor Saratov (2022–2023)

On August 31, 2022, he has signed with

Avtodor Saratov BC Avtodor (), commonly known as simply Avtodor and internationally as Avtodor Saratov, is a Russian professional basketball club based in Saratov. It plays in the VTB United League, the highest level of Russian basketball. In early 2022, after ...

of the

Bnei Herzliya (2023–2024)

On August 10, 2023, Boatright 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 ...

Shahrdari Gorgan (2024–2025)

On September 25, 2024, Boatright signed with Shahrdari Gorgan of the

Iranian Basketball Super League The Iranian Basketball Super League (IBSL) is a professional men's basketball league in Iran. It was founded in 1998. The current champions is Shahrdari Gorgan. The league follows the promotion and relegation system in which the worst two teams ...

Brillantes del Zulia (2025–present)

On May 3, 2025, Boatright signed with Brillantes del Zulia of the

National team career

Boatright acquired Armenian nationality by

naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...

in order to be eligible to play for the Armenia national team, and to bypass team quotas on American players in European leagues. In 2017, he played for Armenia in Euro pre-qualification Group A for the

2019 FIBA World Cup The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 18th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup for men's national basketball teams, held from 31 August to 15 September 2019. The tournament was hosted in China and was rescheduled from 2018 to 2019, b ...

and the first two games of pre-qualification Group B of

EuroBasket 2022 The EuroBasket 2022 was the 41st edition of the EuroBasket championship organized by FIBA Europe. It was the first since it was agreed it would take place every four years, with a similar system of qualification as for the FIBA Basketball World C ...

(then called EuroBasket 2021). He left the team in February 2018, with coach Nikša Bavčević saying he had demanded special treatment.

Personal life

Boatright is the son of Mike McAllister and Tanesha Boatright. He has one brother Michael and two younger sisters, Dasia and Deahjay.

References

External links