D. J. Kennedy

David Kennedy
Born	(1989-11-05) November 5, 1989 United States
Occupation	Professional basketball player
Years active	2011–present
Known for	Playing for Hapoel Galil Elyon in the Israeli Basketball Premier League; former St. John's University basketball player

David John Kennedy (born November 5, 1989) is a professional basketball athlete from the United States, currently playing for Hapoel Galil Elyon in the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He competed at the collegiate level for St. John's University.

High school career

Kennedy attended Schenley High School located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. During his senior year (2006–07), he posted averages of 17.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 2.0 blocks per game. He led the Spartans to a 29–3 record and secured the 2007 PIAA AAAA State championship. His performance earned him first team all-state and all-city distinctions, as well as two selections to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's "Fabulous Five."

College career

In his freshman season at St. John's, Kennedy ranked second on the roster with 37 steals, averaging 7.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 1.2 steals across 30 games, starting in 29.

Throughout his sophomore year, he was one of only two players to start every one of the 34 contests, averaging 13.0 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.5 steals while playing an average of 34.6 minutes per game.

Kennedy’s junior campaign earned him first team All-Met recognition from the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA). He averaged 15.1 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.2 steals over 33 games with 31 starts.

As a senior, he accumulated 333 points, finishing as St. John's twelfth all-time leading scorer with a total of 1,504 points. Additionally, he ranked eleventh in rebounds (781) and sixth in steals (183). Over 32 games, he averaged 10.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.8 steals while averaging 28.7 minutes per contest.

2011–12 season

After going undrafted in the 2011 NBA draft, Kennedy signed with the Erie BayHawks in November of 2011.

On April 21, 2012, he inked a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers for the remainder of that season.

2012–13 season

Kennedy participated with the Cleveland Cavaliers during the NBA Summer League in July 2012 before being traded to the Memphis Grizzlies on July 25. The Grizzlies waived him on September 18 but re-signed him later that month; however, he was waived again on October 7. He returned to the Erie BayHawks on November 1, 2012.

On February 4, 2013, Kennedy was selected for the Prospects All-Star team at the NBA D-League All-Star Game. Subsequently, on March 5 he was traded to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, where he contributed to winning the NBA D-League championship that year.

2013–14 season

In July of 2013, Kennedy took part in the 2013 NBA Summer League representing the Miami Heat. On September 10, he signed with the Dallas Mavericks but was released on October 22. Shortly after, on October 27, he joined French club BCM Gravelines for the season but parted ways after eight games on December 3. Then on January 4, 2014, he signed for Israeli team Hapoel Holon to complete the season.

2014–15 season

Kennedy competed with the Minnesota Timberwolves during the 2014 NBA Summer League in July before signing with Russian side BC Krasny Oktyabr on September 1 for the season; however, he departed after six games on November 18. On December 6 of that year, he committed to German club MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg for the remainder of the campaign.

2015–16 season

In July 2015, Kennedy participated with the Houston Rockets during the 2015 NBA Summer League. Subsequently, on August 10, 2015, he inked a contract with Russian team Yenisey Krasnoyarsk for the 2015–16 campaign. Across 40 appearances, including 38 starts, he posted averages of 14.9 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per contest.

2016–17 season

Kennedy signed with the Denver Nuggets on September 15, 2016, but was released on October 15 following a single preseason game. On November 14, he joined the Guangzhou Long-Lions competing in the CBA. His debut came four days later, where he recorded 24 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists in an 89–88 defeat to Qingdao DoubleStar.

On March 16, 2017, Kennedy returned to MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg to complete the remainder of the BBL season.

2017–18 season

Kennedy agreed to terms with Turkish squad Pınar Karşıyaka on August 11, 2017, for the 2017–18 season. He finished as the top scorer in the 2017–18 Basketball Champions League, averaging 19 points per game. Karşıyaka advanced to the Champions League quarter-finals and secured tenth place in the Turkish Basketbol Süper Ligi standings.

2018–19 season

On September 9, 2018, Kennedy signed with Melbourne United for the duration of the 2018–19 NBL season. Following the conclusion of that season in March 2019, he joined Italian club Reyer Venezia competing in the Lega Basket Serie A.

2019–20 season

Kennedy returned to previous team Pınar Karşıyaka on September 25, 2019, signing a contract initially lasting three months plus an optional six-month extension as injury cover for Tony Crocker. He averaged 9.9 points and grabbed 6.2 rebounds per game during this stint.

2020–21 season

On July 20, 2020, Kennedy extended his contract with Pınar Karşıyaka by two years. Throughout this period, he averaged 7.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and contributed 2.2 assists per game.

2021–22 season

Kennedy joined Prometey Kamianske, competing in the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague, on September 24, 2021. Later, on March 9, 2022, he signed with Hapoel Galil Elyon of the Israeli Basketball Premier League.

2022–23 season

On July 28, 2022, Kennedy recommitted to Prometey, which was participating in the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League during that season.

The Basketball Tournament

Kennedy was part of the inaugural roster for Overseas Elite in The Basketball Tournament (TBT), a winner-take-all single-elimination competition held in summer 2015. Overseas Elite captured the TBT 2015 championship by defeating Team 23 with a score of 67–65 to secure the $1 million prize. Kennedy contributed 24 points and earned MVP honors. The team successfully defended their title in TBT 2016, overcoming Team Colorado 77–72 for a $2 million award; Kennedy was selected to the All-Tournament Team.

In TBT 2017, Overseas Elite clinched their third straight championship by edging Team Challenge ALS 86–83 and accumulating $5 million in total winnings. Kennedy averaged a double-double with approximately 15 points and over six rebounds per game while also recording about three assists; his performance garnered All-Tournament recognition. On August 3, 2018, they secured their fourth consecutive title at TBT 2018 along with another $2 million prize; Kennedy received both MVP and All-Tournament Team distinctions. During TBT 2019, Overseas Elite reached the semifinals but were eliminated by eventual champions Carmen's Crew, losing narrowly at 71–66; Kennedy again earned All-Tournament Team accolades. He did not participate in TBT 2020 when Overseas Elite fell in the semifinals.

With Overseas Elite absent from TBT in 2021, Kennedy joined Boeheim's Army, a team mainly composed of former players from Syracuse Orange men's basketball. Boeheim's Army went on to win the championship and claim the $1 million prize.

TBT Summary

Year	Team	Outcome	Kennedy distinctions
2015	Overseas Elite	Champions	MVP†
2016		Champions	All-Tournament
2017		Champions	All-Tournament
2018		Champions	All-Tournament & MVP
2019		Semifinals	All-Tournament

Note: In the inaugural tournament of 2015, only an MVP was recognized.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Cleveland Cavaliers | 2 || 0 || 29.5 || .417 || .500 || .000 || 3.5 || 1.5 || 1.0 || .0 || 6.0 |- class="sortbottom" ! colspan=2 style="text-align:center;"| Total | 2 || 0 || 29.5 || .417 || .500 || .000 || 3.5 || 1.5 || 1.0 || .0 || 6.0

Indicates league leader

Basketball Champions League

|- | style="text-align:left;" | 2017–18 | style="text-align:left;" | Karsiyaka | 18 || style="background:#cfecec;" | 34.8 || .541 || .344 || .743 || style="background:#cfecec;" | 8.4 || 3.2 || 1.8 || 0.5 || style="background:#cfecec;" | 19.0 |}

Personal life

Kennedy is the son of Rana Holliday and David "Puff" Kennedy, who was a notable college basketball athlete at Cincinnati. He has two siblings: a brother named Derrick and a sister named Chanae.

External links

• St. John's Red Storm profile