Wesley Saunders (born June 16, 1993) 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

Oliveirense União Desportiva Oliveirense (UDO), commonly known as Oliveirense, is a Portuguese sports club from the city of Oliveira de Azeméis, in Aveiro District. The club was founded on 25 October 1922. The main football team currently plays at the Es ...

of the

Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol The Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol (), also known as Liga Betclic for sponsorship reasons, is the top men's professional club basketball league in Portugal. History From the 2008–09 season onward, the competition has been again organised by ...

(LPB). 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

Harvard Crimson The Harvard Crimson is the nickname of the college sports teams of Harvard College. The school's teams compete in NCAA Division I. As of 2013, there were 42 Division I intercollegiate Varsity team, varsity sports teams for women and men at Harva ...

Early life

Wesley Saunders was born on June 16, 1993, in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Saunders lettered in basketball and volleyball at Windward High serving as basketball captain during his senior year. On that season he averaged 20.2 points and 10 rebounds per game and helped his team to win Division IV's state basketball, after winning the State Championship for Division V as a sophomore.

College career

In his four-year career at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

, Saunders averaged 12.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.5 steals over 29.8 minutes in 120 games, and averaged career-highs of 16.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists as a senior, earning the Ivy League Player of the Year in 2014 alongside his third All-Ivy League first-team selection.

Professional career

Westchester Knicks (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 ...

, Saunders joined the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

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 ...

. On September 10, 2015, he signed with 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 ...

. However, he was later waived by the Knicks on October 23 after appearing in two preseason games. On November 2, he was acquired by 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 ...

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 New York. On November 12, he made his professional debut in a 105–103 win over the

Maine Red Claws The Maine Celtics are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo Building. The Boston Celtics pu ...

, recording two points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal in 13 minutes off the bench.

Austin Spurs (2016)

On February 23, 2016, Saunders was traded to the

Austin Spurs The Austin Spurs are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cedar Park, Texas, and are affiliated with the San Antonio Spurs. The team plays their home games at H-E-B Center at Cedar Park. The team has made the po ...

in exchange for Keith Wright. On March 24, he made his debut for Austin in a 106–93 win over 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 ...

, recording one rebound in two minutes off the bench.

Windy City Bulls (2016–2017)

On August 24, 2016, Saunders' D-League rights were acquired by the

Windy City Bulls The Windy City Bulls are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, and are affiliated with the Chicago Bulls. The Bulls play their home games at Now Arena, from Chicago. It became the thirte ...

in the expansion draft and on October 30, he was officially signed by Windy City.

Vanoli Cremona (2018–2020)

On July 26, 2018, Saunders signed a deal with the Italian club

Vanoli Cremona Guerino Vanoli Basket, also known as Vanoli Cremona, is a professional basketball team of the city of Cremona. The team played in the Lega Basket Serie A, LBA, the top Italian basketball league, for 12 years until 2021. From 1999 to 2011 the soci ...

Monaco (2020)

On July 30, 2020, Saunders signed with

As Monaco Association Sportive de Monaco Football Club, commonly referred to as AS Monaco (), is a professional football club based in Fontvieille, Monaco. Although not in France, they are a member of the French Football Federation (FFF) and currently ...

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 ...

but resigned shortly after the beginning of the season.

Fortitudo Bologna (2020–2021)

Coach

Romeo Sacchetti Romeo "Meo" Sacchetti (born August 20, 1953) is an Italian professional basketball coach and former player who is currently a head coach for Pallacanestro Cantù of the Serie A2 (basketball), Serie A2. Standing at a height of , he played as a Po ...

, who coached him the two years in

before he moved to coach

Fortitudo Bologna Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna 103, commonly known as Fortitudo Bologna and currently known as Fortitudo Flats Service Bologna for sponsorship reasons, is a basketball club based in Bologna, Italy and currently plays in the second division. H ...

, inked Saunders in Bologna on November 4, 2020. He parted ways with the team on June 30, 2021.

Dolomiti Energia Trento (2021–2022)

On August 13, 2021, Saunders signed with

Dolomiti Energia Trento Aquila Basket Trento, also known for sponsorship reasons as Dolomiti Energia Trento, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Trent, Trentino. It was founded in 1995 as an amalgamation of two local clubs, going from the amateur divisi ...

of the Italian

Lega Basket Serie A The Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) is a professional men's club (sport), club basketball list of basketball leagues, league that has been organised in Italy since 1920. Serie A is organised by Lega Basket, which is regulated by the Italian Basketball ...

(LBA).

Santa Cruz Warriors (2022–2023)

On December 20, 2022, Saunders was acquired by the

Santa Cruz Warriors The Santa Cruz Warriors are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Santa Cruz, California, and are affiliated with the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors play their home games at Kaiser Permanente Arena. Prior to ...

. On January 18, 2023, Saunders was waived.

Ontario Clippers (2023)

On January 20, 2023, Saunders was acquired by the

Ontario 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 NBA G League season, 20 ...

. On March 1, 2023, Saunders was waived.

Memphis Hustle (2023, 2024)

On March 21, 2023, Saunders joined the

Memphis Hustle The Memphis Hustle are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in the Greater Memphis suburb of Southaven, Mississippi, and are affiliated with the Memphis Grizzlies. The team plays their home games at the Landers C ...

, but was waived the next day. A yead later, on March 7, he rejoined the Hustle, but on March 8, he was, again, waived. However, he rejoined the Hustle thag night.

Ostioneros de Guaymas (2024)

On April 10, 2024, Saunders signed with the

Ostioneros de Guaymas The Ostioneros de Guaymas were a professional baseball team based in Guaymas, Sonora, Mexico. The Ostioneros played in the Mexican Pacific League and used the Estadio Abelardo L. Rodríguez as their home ballpark. During its existence, the club wo ...

of the

Circuito de Baloncesto de la Costa del Pacífico The Pacific Coast Basketball Circuit ( or CIBACOPA), officially known as the Liga Chevron CIBACOPA for sponsorship reasons, is a ten team basketball league based in Northwestern Mexico. The matches take place from March to June. History A leag ...

Oliveirense (2024–present)

On September 30, 2024, Saunders signed with

of the

Personal life

Saunders' father, Ed, played defensive back at

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

and graduated in 1977, while his uncle, John, played professional football with the

Los Angeles Rams The Los Angeles Rams are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Rams compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West ...

and was drafted in the fourth round of the

1972 NFL draft The 1972 NFL draft was the 37th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. The draft was held on February 1 and 2 at the Essex House in New York City, New York. With the first overal ...

References

External links

Wesley Saunders
at nbadleague.com
Wesley Saunders
at gocrimson.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Saunders, Wesley 1993 births Living people 21st-century American sportsmen Agua Caliente Clippers players American expatriate basketball people in Finland American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Mexico American expatriate basketball people in Monaco American expatriate basketball people in Portugal American men's basketball players Aquila Basket Trento players AS Monaco Basket players Austin Spurs players Basketball players from Los Angeles Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna players Harvard Crimson men's basketball players Kataja BC players Lega Basket Serie A players Memphis Hustle players Ontario Clippers players Ostioneros de Guaymas (basketball) players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Santa Cruz Warriors players Small forwards U.D. Oliveirense basketball players Vanoli Cremona players Westchester Knicks players Windy City Bulls players