Braxton Key

Braxton Key
Braxton Key
Born	February 14, 1997 (age 29); Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.
Occupation	Professional basketball player
Known for	Playing for Golden State Warriors in the NBA; collegiate basketball at Alabama and Virginia

Braxton Key (born February 14, 1997) is an American professional basketball athlete who most recently played for the Golden State Warriors in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He competed at the collegiate level with the Alabama Crimson Tide and later with the Virginia Cavaliers.

Early life

Key is related to former NBA player Ralph Sampson, a notable alumnus of the University of Virginia. His father, Eric Key, was a basketball player at Radford University. During his early years, he competed under the surname Blackwell,<ref>playing three seasons at Christ Presbyterian Academy, where he led his team to a state championship in 2013 and earned the TSSAA Mr. Basketball title in both 2014 and 2015.<ref> For his senior year, he transferred to Oak Hill Academy, adopting his father's surname for the first time and guiding the team to a 45–1 record along with a national championship.<ref>

College career

As a freshman at Alabama, Key was a leading contributor, posting averages of 12 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. His standout performance included scoring 26 points against Georgia, which helped him secure All-SEC Freshman honors. In his second year, he averaged 7.0 points and 5.3 rebounds but was hampered by a knee injury that limited his playing time.

Upon transferring to Virginia and gaining immediate NCAA eligibility, Key played a role in the Cavaliers' 2018–19 national championship run, tallying six points, ten rebounds, and one block in the championship game against Texas Tech. During his junior season, he averaged 5.7 points and 5.3 rebounds while starting six games. A wrist injury in November 2019 required surgical intervention, sidelining him until mid-December.

In his final collegiate season, Key elevated his production to averages of 9.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per contest, earning an All-ACC Honorable Mention distinction.

Delaware Blue Coats (2021–2022)

After not being selected in the 2020 NBA draft, Key entered the NBA G League by joining the Delaware Blue Coats in January 2021 through the G League draft. On March 2, he put up a season-best 19 points along with five rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks during a commanding 120–92 victory over the NBA G League Ignite.

Key signed with the Philadelphia 76ers on October 13, 2021, but was waived later that same day. He then returned to Delaware on October 25. Over 43 games in the NBA G League season, he averaged 14.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.8 steals, and 1.3 blocks while playing an average of 23.7 minutes per game.

Philadelphia 76ers (2022)

On January 5, 2022, Key secured a 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. He appeared in two contests during this period, scoring two points across six total minutes before returning to Delaware following the contract’s conclusion.

Detroit Pistons / Motor City Cruise (2022)

Key inked a 10-day deal with the Detroit Pistons on March 24, 2022; this was followed by a two-way contract signed on April 3. He remained with the organization until being waived on December 26, 2022.

Second stint with Delaware (2023)

On January 1, 2023, Key rejoined the Delaware Blue Coats, playing an instrumental role as the team captured the NBA G League championship title.

Vaqueros de Bayamón (2023)

On April 14, 2023, Key inked a deal with the Vaqueros de Bayamón competing in Puerto Rico's Baloncesto Superior Nacional. His tenure with the team concluded when he was released on May 31.

Denver Nuggets / Grand Rapids Gold (2023–2024)

Key took part in the 2023 NBA Summer League representing the Dallas Mavericks. Subsequently, on July 18, 2023, he secured a two-way contract with the Denver Nuggets.

San Diego Clippers (2024–2025)

Key signed with the Los Angeles Clippers on October 12, 2024, but was waived seven days later. Following this, on October 28, he joined the San Diego Clippers roster for the 2024–25 G League campaign.

Golden State / Santa Cruz Warriors (2025)

On March 4, 2025, Key entered into a two-way contract agreement with the Golden State Warriors. This contract was upgraded to a standard NBA contract on April 13.

NBA

|- | style="text-align:left;" rowspan=2| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 2 || 0 || 3.2 || .500 || .000 || || 1.0 || .5 || .5 || .0 || 1.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 9 || 0 || 21.2 || .457 || .300 || .538 || 5.3 || 1.1 || 1.0 || 1.2 || 8.6 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit | 3 || 0 || 3.0 || 1.000 || || 1.000 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .0 || 1.3 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Denver | 20 || 0 || 3.0 || .412 || .400 || .750 || .9 || .5 || .1 || .1 || 1.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Golden State | 3 || 0 || 3.7 || .000 || .000 || .500 || .7 || .0 || .7 || .0 || 1.0 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 37 || 0 || 7.5 || .436 || .296 || .621 || 1.9 || .5 || .4 || .3 || 2.9

College

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2016–17 | style="text-align:left;"| Alabama | 34 || 30|| 29.8|| .433|| .330|| .634||5.7|| 2.5|| .6|| .6|| 12.0 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2017–18

| style="text-align:left;" | Alabama
|26||17||25.2||.409||.250||.667||5.3||1.8||1.0||.4||7.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | 2018–19
| style="text-align:left;" | Virginia
|38||6||19.8||.433||.305||.731||5.3||1.0||.9||.6||5.7
|-
| style="text-align:left;" | 2019–20
| style="text-align:left;" | Virginia
|27||25||33.6|| .435||.185||.584||7.4||1.8|||1.2|||.6|||9.9

|- class="sortbottom"

| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career
|125||78||26.6||.429||.274||.645||5.8||1.8||.9||.6|||8.6

External links