Justin Patton

Justin Patton
Born	(1997-06-14) June 14, 1997 United States
Occupation	Professional basketball player
Years active	2017–present
Known for	Playing for multiple NBA and international basketball teams

Justin Nicholas Patton (born June 14, 1997) is a professional basketball athlete from the United States currently playing for the Cangrejeros de Santurce in the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He competed at the collegiate level with the Creighton Bluejays. Patton was chosen as the 16th pick in the 2017 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls and was immediately traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves. His NBA career also includes stints with the Philadelphia 76ers and Oklahoma City Thunder. During the 2021–22 season, he led the Israeli Basketball Premier League in blocks per game.

Early life and education

Born to Tora Patton, Justin has three siblings: Terrel Steen, Kendall Patton, and Raven Bryson. While attending Creighton, he pursued a major in social work. Additionally, he is related to Donnie Johnson, a former player for Creighton.

High school career

Patton attended Omaha North High School located in Omaha, Nebraska, where he also competed with the Omaha Sports Academy Crusaders on the AAU circuit. Recognized as a five-star recruit by Scout.com, he received recruitment offers from Creighton University for their basketball program.

College career

In 2015, Patton redshirted his initial year at Creighton. Head coach Greg McDermott viewed this period as a chance for Patton to refine his skills, acclimate to collegiate-level play, and enhance his physical conditioning while serving as backup to seasoned center Geoff Groselle. In his first active season in 2016, Patton posted 12 points and eight rebounds in his debut game and later reached a season-high of 25 points versus St. John's. He maintained double-digit scoring for 13 straight games before a defeat against Xavier. His performance earned him Big East Freshman of the Year along with Second Team All-Big East recognition. On April 5, 2017, Patton declared for the NBA draft, relinquishing his remaining college eligibility by signing with an agent.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2017–2018)

Selected 16th overall in the 2017 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls, Patton was promptly traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves alongside Jimmy Butler in exchange for Zach LaVine, Kris Dunn, and draft rights to Lauri Markkanen. He inked a contract with Minnesota on July 4, 2017. Unfortunately, Patton suffered a left foot fracture during the 2017 NBA Summer League that required immediate surgery and resulted in an indefinite absence. His NBA debut came on April 1, 2018, where he scored two points and recorded one steal in his only Timberwolves appearance that season. On April 18, 2018, he underwent another surgical procedure on his left foot to promote healing and was again sidelined indefinitely. Throughout his rookie campaign, Patton primarily played for the Iowa Wolves, starting 38 games and averaging 12.7 points along with 5.4 rebounds over an average of 23.2 minutes per contest. On September 18, 2018, he had surgery to repair a broken right foot.

Philadelphia 76ers (2018–2019)

On November 12, 2018, Patton was included in a trade sending him and Jimmy Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers in return for Robert Covington, Dario Šarić, Jerryd Bayless, and a second-round pick in the 2022 draft. After participating in three games with Philadelphia, Patton was waived by the team on April 3, 2019.

Oklahoma City Thunder (2019–2020)

Patton inked a deal with the Thunder on August 13, 2019. While playing for the Oklahoma City Blue on January 14, 2020, he delivered an outstanding performance with a G League season-high of 45 points, alongside 13 rebounds, nine assists, and six blocks, contributing to a 149–140 victory against the South Bay Lakers.

A trade sent Patton to the Dallas Mavericks on January 24, 2020, in exchange for Isaiah Roby and cash. However, he was released just one day later after the Mavericks acquired Willie Cauley-Stein.

Wisconsin Herd (2020)

On February 20, 2020, Patton was claimed off waivers by the Wisconsin Herd. He participated in seven games before the season was prematurely ended due to the COVID-19 pandemic, averaging 12 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per contest.

Patton signed with the Detroit Pistons on June 26, 2020. Despite not appearing in any official games for Detroit, he was involved in a three-team trade to the Los Angeles Clippers on November 19, 2020, only to be waived shortly afterward.

He later secured a training camp contract with the Milwaukee Bucks on December 3, 2020, but was waived by December 17.

Westchester Knicks (2021)

The Westchester Knicks selected Patton ninth overall in the first round of the 2021 NBA G League draft on January 11, 2021.

Houston Rockets (2021)

On February 19, 2021, Patton agreed to a two-way contract with the Houston Rockets, splitting time with their affiliate, the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. He was waived on April 3.

Hapoel Eilat (2021–2022)

Patton signed with Hapoel Eilat of the Israeli Basketball Premier League on August 26, 2021. During the 2021–22 season, he led the league in blocks per game, averaging 1.6.

Cholet Basket (2022–2023)

On August 3, 2022, Patton joined Cholet Basket, competing in France’s top-tier league, LNB Pro A.

Shanxi Loongs (2023)

Patton signed with the Shanxi Loongs of the Chinese Basketball Association on September 1, 2023.

Taipei Fubon Braves (2024)

He signed with the Taipei Fubon Braves of the P. League+ on January 14, 2024. The team released him on March 15.

Indios de San Francisco de Macorís (2024)

On June 13, 2024, Patton joined the Indios de San Francisco de Macorís, competing in the Liga Nacional de Baloncesto.

Peristeri (2024)

Patton became part of Peristeri, a club in the Greek Basketball League, on August 7, 2024.

Liaoning Flying Leopards (2024–2025)

On December 31, 2024, Patton signed with the Chinese Basketball Association’s Liaoning Flying Leopards.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Minnesota | 1 || 0 || 4.0 || .500 || — || — || .0 || .0 || 1.0 || .0 || 2.0 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 3 || 0 || 7.0 || .286 || .000 || .500 || 2.0 || 1.0 || .7 || .0 || 1.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Oklahoma City | 5 || 0 || 4.8 || .400 || .250 || — || 1.0 || .4 || .0 || .0 || 1.8 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Houston | 13 || 6 || 19.0 || .414 || .265 || .750 || 3.8 || 1.1 || .9 || 1.1 || 5.4 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 22 || 6 || 13.8 || .404 || .250 || .667 || 2.7 || .9 || .7 || .6 || 3.9

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2017–18 | style="text-align:left;"| Iowa | 38 || 28 || 23.1 || .476 || .300 || .764 || 5.4 || 1.6 || 1.0 || 1.3 || 12.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19 | style="text-align:left;"| Delaware | 11 || 2 || 18.5 || .500 || .167 || .625 || 5.6 || 1.6 || .9 || 2.0|| 8.7 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career | 49||30||22.1|| .480|| .286|| .735||5.4||1.6||1.0||1.5||11.8

College

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2016–17 | style="text-align:left;"| Creighton | 35 || 34 || 25.3 || .676 || .533 || .517 || 6.2 || 1.2 || .9 || 1.4 || 12.9

Player profile

Standing at seven feet tall and weighing 250 pounds, with an impressive wingspan of 7 feet 2½ inches, Patton was brought to Creighton primarily for his defensive presence as a center. He is recognized as a powerful rim-runner and possesses passing abilities reminiscent of Vlade Divac. Patton demonstrates strong finishing skills above the rim, though he has encountered difficulties with optimal rebounding positioning. At times, he is slow to contest shots and tends to commit fouls by making excessive attempts to swipe the ball.

External links

• Creighton Bluejays bio