Larry Drew II

Larry Drew II
Larry Drew II
Born	March 5, 1990 (age 36); Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Professional basketball player (retired)
Years active	2008–2018
Known for	NCAA champion with North Carolina (2009), setting UCLA single-season assists record, gold medalist at 2017 FIBA AmeriCup

Larry Donelle Drew II (born March 5, 1990) is a retired American professional basketball athlete. Prior to starting his collegiate career with the North Carolina Tar Heels, he was honored with the John R. Wooden High School Player of the Year Award in 2008. Drew captured a national title with North Carolina in 2009 and made a midseason transfer in 2011 to the UCLA Bruins. At UCLA, he set a new single-season record for assists and earned first-team recognition on the All-Pac-12 squad. On the international stage, he claimed a gold medal with the U.S. national team at the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup.

Early life

Drew is the son of former NBA first-round draft pick and head coach Larry Drew. During his time at William Howard Taft High School, he was awarded the John R. Wooden High School Player of the Year Award in 2008 as the Los Angeles City Section Player of the Year. Additionally, he earned third-team honors as a Parade All-American and competed in the 2008 McDonald's All-American Game, where he won the three-point shooting contest.

North Carolina

Drew started his collegiate journey at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, contributing averages of 1.4 points and 1.9 assists per game as a freshman on the squad that won the NCAA championship in 2009. As a sophomore, he took over as starting point guard, succeeding Ty Lawson. That season, North Carolina posted a 20–17 record, missing out on the NCAA tournament but advancing to the final of the National Invitation Tournament. Drew averaged 8.5 points and six assists per game while shooting 40.2%.

On February 3, 2011, Drew departed UNC during the season after freshman Kendall Marshall replaced him as starting point guard. In his last appearance, he tallied nine assists in just 19 minutes during a commanding 106–74 victory over Boston College. Although no official explanation was provided, his minutes and statistical contributions had diminished. In a freestyle rap released on his 21st birthday in March, Drew alluded to wanting more autonomy in managing his career path.

UCLA

Drew enrolled at UCLA on March 28 and sat out the 2011–12 season before utilizing his remaining eligibility. He reunited with former North Carolina teammates, twins David and Travis Wear, who also transferred to UCLA.

During the 2012–13 season, Drew was both the Bruins' only senior and sole true point guard, sharing duties with freshman Kyle Anderson. In the final regular-season game, he surpassed Pooh Richardson's school record for most assists in a single season. His performance earned him first-team All-Pac-12 accolades.

2013–14 season

Following the 2013 NBA draft, in which he was not selected, Drew participated with the Miami Heat during the 2013 NBA Summer League and subsequently signed a contract with the team on September 23, 2013. However, he was released on October 21 and shortly thereafter joined the Sioux Falls Skyforce on October 31. Drew's professional debut came on November 23, where he recorded nine points, three rebounds, and six assists in a decisive 103–73 victory against the Reno Bighorns.

2014–15 season

In July 2014, Drew returned to compete for the Miami Heat in the 2014 NBA Summer League. He re-signed with Miami on October 20 but was waived five days later to facilitate his assignment back to Sioux Falls. The Skyforce reacquired him on November 3. Notably, on December 25, Drew established a D-League record by distributing 23 assists in a high-scoring 135–129 triumph over the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

Drew secured a 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers on January 16, 2015, which was extended by another 10-day deal on January 26. Due to injuries among the Sixers' point guards, he earned his first NBA starting role during this period. NBA regulations permit only two consecutive 10-day contracts per player; as a result, needing roster flexibility, Philadelphia opted to sign Tim Frazier instead of retaining Drew. On February 6, Drew returned to play for the Skyforce.

2015–16 season

During the offseason, Drew participated in the New Orleans Pelicans' squad for the 2015 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas and earned recognition by being named to the All-NBA Summer League Second Team. Subsequently, he signed with AS Monaco Basket competing in France's LNB Pro A for the 2015–16 season. On March 15, 2016, after appearing in 18 games and averaging 4.1 points per contest, Drew and Monaco mutually parted ways.

On March 28, 2016, Drew once again joined the Sioux Falls Skyforce roster. He made his return appearance the following day in a commanding 125–107 win over Iowa Energy, contributing three points, one rebound, and two assists across nine minutes off the bench. His efforts helped lead the Skyforce to clinch the league championship by defeating the Los Angeles D-Fenders in a best-of-three Finals series, two games to one.

2016–17 season

On August 2, 2016, Drew inked a one-year deal with BC Neptūnas of Lithuania. However, due to disciplinary reasons, his tenure with Neptūnas ended on February 10, 2017. Shortly thereafter, on March 2, he was reacquired by Sioux Falls Skyforce.

2017–18 season

Drew participated with the Philadelphia 76ers during the Orlando-based 2017 NBA Summer League before signing with Miami Heat for his third training camp stint with them. Nonetheless, he was waived by Miami on October 12. Later that season, on January 23, 2018, Drew secured a 10-day contract with Philadelphia. In March of that year, he signed two consecutive 10-day contracts with the New Orleans Pelicans but was not retained following their acquisition of former Pelicans guard Jordan Crawford.

National team career

Drew represented the United States national basketball team at the 2017 FIBA AmeriCup tournament where he contributed to winning a gold medal. Throughout the competition, he averaged 4.6 points, five assists, and one steal per game.

NBA statistics

|- | align="left" | | align="left" | Philadelphia | 12 || 1 || 18.3 || .345 || .154 || .667 || 1.3 || 3.8 || .5 || .0 || 3.8 |- | align="left" rowspan=2| | align="left" | Philadelphia | 3 || 0 || 5.0 || .143 || .000 || – || .3 || .7 || .0 || .0 || .7 |- | align="left" | New Orleans | 7 || 0 || 7.9 || .353 || .500 || – || .3 || 1.1 || .0 || .0 || 2.1 |- class="sortbottom" | align="center" colspan="2"| Career | 22 || 1 || 13.1 || .329 || .200 || .667 || .8 || 2.5 || .3 || .0 || 2.9

College performance statistics

|- | style="text-align:left;"| 2008–09 | style="text-align:left;"| North Carolina | 38 || 0 || 9.6 || .351 || .231 || .412 || 1.1 || 1.9 || .4 || .0 || 1.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2009–10 | style="text-align:left;"| North Carolina | 37 || 36 || 28.8 || .405 || .352 || .606 || 2.7 || 5.9 || .8 || .0 || 8.5 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2010–11 | style="text-align:left;"| North Carolina | 21 || 17 || 22.8 || .384 || .207 || .677 || 2.3 || 3.9 || 1.1 || .0 || 4.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| 2012–13 | style="text-align:left;"| UCLA | 35 || 35 || 35.5 || .446 || .433 || .609 || 2.4 || 7.3 || 1.4 || .2 || 7.5 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Total collegiate career | 131 || 88 || 24.0 || .412 || .343 || .601 || 2.1 || 4.8 || .9 || .1 || 5.5 |-

External links

Larry Drew II profile at nbadleague.com
North Carolina Tar Heels official biography
UCLA Bruins official biography