Morris Almond

Morris Almond
Morris Almond
Born	February 2, 1985 (age 41); Dalton, Georgia, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Professional basketball player (retired), founder of Almond Athletics
Years active	2007–2013
Known for	NBA player, leading scorer in NBA Development League, founder of Almond Athletics

Morris Almond (born February 2, 1985) is a retired American professional basketball athlete and the founder of Almond Athletics. His last professional engagement was with the Los Angeles D-Fenders in the NBA Development League (D-League).

High school

Originating from Dalton, Georgia, Almond attended McEachern High School located in Powder Springs, Georgia, where he played alongside future NBA talent Josh Smith. He made history as the first player from McEachern to have his #22 jersey officially retired.

College career

Almond competed collegiately at Rice University, affiliated with Martel residential college. His scoring output escalated dramatically, rising from 7.2 points per game during his sophomore season to 21.9 points per game in his junior year, leading all athletes in Conference USA. In his final collegiate season, he averaged an impressive 26.4 points per game, securing third place nationally and receiving accolades including Conference USA Player of the Year and an AP All-America Honorable Mention.

Completing 121 games at Rice, Almond averaged 15.1 points per contest and became the first basketball player from Rice to appear on the cover of a national magazine. He was chosen 25th overall in the first round of the 2007 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz.

Professional career

During his rookie NBA campaign with Utah, Almond participated in nine games, averaging 4.3 minutes on the court per game. He achieved a personal best of 12 points against Sacramento on December 2, 2008, and scored his initial NBA points on January 8, 2008, versus Indiana. The majority of that season was spent playing for the Jazz's D-League affiliate, the Utah Flash, where he led the league in scoring with an average of 25.6 points per game. On December 21, 2007, Almond matched a D-League single-game scoring record with 51 points and subsequently set a new record by scoring 53 points against the Bakersfield Jam; this mark was eventually surpassed in 2014.

Almond signed with the Orlando Magic on September 18, 2009, but was released by October 21. Afterwards, he joined the Maine Red Claws and Springfield Armor within the NBA Development League before moving overseas to play for Real Madrid Baloncesto in Spain’s ACB league. In July 2010, he transferred to Italian squad Scavolini Pesaro.

In January 2012, Almond rejoined the Maine Red Claws and later secured a contract with the Washington Wizards for the remainder of the 2011–12 NBA season. That year, he earned All-NBA D-League Third Team honors after posting averages of 23.4 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.

During the 2012–13 season, Almond briefly played for Serbian club Crvena zvezda before returning to Maine Red Claws. Subsequently, he was traded to the Iowa Energy and then moved to the Los Angeles D-Fenders on January 30, 2013, along with Mike Taylor in exchange for Jarrid Famous.

Post-professional career

Following his retirement from professional basketball in 2013, Almond established Almond Athletics, a non-profit organization.

Regular season

|- | align="left" | | align="left" | Utah | 9 || 0 || 4.3 || .267 || .250 || .667 || .2 || .3 || .1 || .0 || 1.4 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Utah | 25 || 1 || 10.2 || .407 || .294 || .808 || 1.4 || .3 || .2 || .2 || 3.7 |- | align="left" | | align="left" | Washington | 4 || 0 || 16.8 || .353 || .333 || .333 || 2.0 || .5 || 1.8 || .0 || 3.5 |- | align="left" | Career | align="left" | | 38 || 1 || 9.5 || .381 || .292 || .743 || 1.2 || .3 || .3 || .1 || 3.1

External links