David Scott James Jr (born November 7, 1996) is an American basketball player for the

Hong Kong Bulls The National Basketball League () is a professional basketball minor league in China, called the Chinese Basketball League (CBL) before 2006. It is commonly known as the NBL, and this name (spelled out in letters) is often used even in Chinese. ...

of the National Basketball League (NBL). 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

Bradley Braves The Bradley Braves are the intercollegiate athletics teams of Bradley University, located in Peoria, Illinois, United States. The Braves' athletic program is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) and competes at the Division I (NCAA), ...

and

Liberty Flames The Liberty Flames and Lady Flames are the athletics teams of Liberty University, in Lynchburg, Virginia, United States. They are a member of the NCAA Division I level in 20 sports. As of July 1, 2023, LU is a member of Conference USA (CUSA) fo ...

High school career

James grew up in Indiana but moved to

Tarpon Springs, Florida Tarpon Springs is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. Downtown Tarpon Springs has long been a focal point and underwent beautification in 2010. It is part of the Tampa Bay area. The population was 25,117 at the 2020 census. As of ...

. He attended

Tarpon Springs High School Tarpon Springs High School is a public high school in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The school graduated its first class of seniors in the year 1906. The school is known for its football team, Band, Leadership Conservatory, Culinary department, and Ve ...

and had his number retired after setting 14 school records. As a senior, he averaged 19.5 points, 14 rebounds, 2.8 blocks, 2.8 assists, and 1.5 steals per game. James finished his high school career with over 1,500 points and collected more than 1,000 rebounds. He committed to Bradley over offers from Wofford and Florida Gulf Coast.

College career

As a freshman at Bradley, James averaged 3.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. Following the season, he opted to transfer to

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

. On February 3, 2018, he scored a career-high 26 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a 67–55 win against Longwood. James finished his redshirt sophomore season as a second-team All- Big South selection after shooting 61.6 percent from the floor and averaging 13.5 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. He was named the 2019 Atlantic Sun tournament MVP after scoring 17 points and pulling down eight rebounds in Liberty's 74–68 victory over Lipscomb in the title game. James averaged a team-leading 12.6 points and 8.6 rebounds per game as a junior, shooting 66.5 percent from the field. He was named to the First Team All- Atlantic Sun. As a senior, James averaged 10.8 points and 7.4 rebounds per game and finished first in the conference in field goal percentage (60.5 percent). At the conclusion of the regular season, James was named to the First Team All-Atlantic Sun. He finished No. 17 on the Liberty all-time scoring list with 1,323 points and fourth on the all-time rebounding list with 891.

Professional career

On August 8, 2020, James signed his first professional contract with the

Gießen 46ers The GIESSEN 46ers (formerly GIESSEN 46ers) is a professional basketball club based in Gießen, Germany, that plays in the ProA. Their home arena is Sporthalle Gießen-Ost, with a capacity of 4,003 people. History The biggest achievements in clu ...

in Germany. On June 18, 2021, he signed with

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. Fou ...

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 ...

. On September 3, James signed with

Hapoel Haifa Hapoel Haifa Football Club (, ''Moadon HaKaduregel Hapoel Haifa'') is an Israeli professional football club located in the city of Haifa. The club won one championship (1998–99) and 4 Israeli cups (1962–63, 1965–66 and 1973–74, 2 ...

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 ...

The Basketball Tournament

James joined War Tampa in

The Basketball Tournament 2020 The Basketball Tournament 2020 was the seventh edition of The Basketball Tournament (TBT), a 5-on-5, single elimination basketball tournament. The tournament, involving 24 teams, started on July 4 and continued through the championship game on Jul ...

. He finished with 7 points and 5 rebounds in the 76–53 opening-round loss to House of ‘Paign.

Personal life

James in the son of Christy and David Scott James and has two siblings. His father played college basketball for Grace College. He led the Lancers to the 1992 NAIA Division II national championship and earned first-team All-America by the NAIA in 1993. James's mother serves as an assistant director in the Center for Academic Development at Liberty. Coach

Ritchie McKay Ritchie Lawrence McKay (born April 22, 1965) is an American basketball coach who is in his second stint as the head coach of the Liberty Flames basketball, Liberty Flames of Liberty University. McKay for the previous six seasons had been the asso ...

officiated James's wedding in 2019.

References

External links

Bradley Braves bioLiberty Flames bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:James, Scottie 1996 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Israel American men's basketball players Basketball players from Pinellas County, Florida Bradley Braves men's basketball players Giessen 46ers players Hapoel Haifa B.C. players Israeli Basketball Premier League players Liberty Flames basketball players Sportspeople from Tarpon Springs, Florida Power forwards Tianjin Pioneers players 21st-century American sportsmen Gigantes de Carolina (men's basketball) players