Devon Saddler

Devon Saddler
Personal information
Born (1991-05-10) May 10, 1991 (age 33)
NationalityAmerican / Belarusian
Listed height6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Listed weight210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High schoolAberdeen (Aberdeen, Maryland)
CollegeDelaware (2010–2014)
NBA draft2014: undrafted
Playing career2014–2019
PositionPoint guard
Career history
2014–2015Omegna
2015–2016Apollon Patras
2016–2017Körmend
2017Jászberény
2017–2019Tsmoki-Minsk
2019Maccabi Rishon LeZion
Career highlights and awards

Devon Marquis Saddler (born October 27, 1992) is an American-born, naturalized Belarusian former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Delaware before playing professionally in Italy, Greece, Hungary, Belarus and Israel. A two-time Belarusian League champion with Tsmoki-Minsk, Saddler was named the Belarusian League MVP in 2019.

Early life and college career

Saddler attended Aberdeen High School in Aberdeen, Maryland, where he averaged 18 points, five rebounds, six assists and three steals while leading Aberdeen to a 20–3 record in his senior year. Saddler was named 3A All-State as a junior.[1] He also played at The Winchendon School in Winchendon, Massachusetts for the 2009–10 season.[1]

Saddler played college basketball at the University of Delaware, where he averaged 19.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.[1] On March 6, 2014, Saddler earned a spot in the First-team All-Colonial Athletic Association for two consecutive years.[2]

Professional career

2014–15 season

On August 5, 2014, Saddler started his professional career with Fulgor Omegna of the Italian Serie A2 Basket.[3] In 30 games played for Omegna, he averaged 17 points, 4 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game.

2015–16 season

On September 1, 2015, Saddler signed with Cibona Zagreb of the Croatian League and the ABA League.[4] In November 2015, he parted ways with Cibona before appearing in a game of them. On November 27, 2015, Saddler signed with Apollon Patras of the Greek Basket League.[5] In 19 games played for Patras, he averaged 10.5 points, 3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.

2016–17 season

On September 19, 2016, Saddler signed with Egis Körmend of the Hungarian Nemzeti Bajnokság I/A (NBI/A).[6] On February 2, 2017, Saddler parted ways with Körmend to join Jászberényi KSE for the rest of the season.[7] On April 8, 2017, Saddler recorded a career-high 35 points, shooting 13-of-20 from the field, along with six rebounds and three assists in a 90–74 win over MAFC Budapest.[8]

2017–18 season

On September 15, 2017, Saddler signed a two-year deal with Tsmoki-Minsk of the Belarusian Premier League and the VTB United League.[9] Saddler won the 2018 Belarusian Premier League championship and the 2018 Belarusian Cup titles with Tsmoki-Minsk.

2018–19 season

On April 30, 2019, Saddler recorded a season-high 30 points, shooting 11-of-19 from the field, along with five rebounds and four assists in a 70–77 loss to Nizhny Novgorod.[10] Saddler went on to win the 2019 Belarusian Premier League championship title, leading his team to the 11th champion title in a row as he earned the Finals MVP honors.[11]

2019–20 season

On May 27, 2019, Saddler signed with Avtodor Saratov of the VTB United League.[11] On August 16, 2019, he parted ways with Saratov before appearing in a game for them.[12] On September 2, 2019, Saddler signed a one-year deal with Maccabi Rishon LeZion of the Israeli Premier League.[13] On October 15, 2019, he parted ways with Rishon LeZion after appearing in three games.[14]

On November 25, 2019, Saddler announced his retirement from playing professional basketball.[15]

Belarus national team

Saddler was a member of the Belarus national basketball team. In 4 games played during the 2019 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers, he averaged 16 points, 6.8 assists and 4.8 rebounds per game.[11] On February 26, 2018, Saddler made a key contribution to a sensational 93–92 win of the Belarusian team over Slovenia, recording 25 points, 8 assists and 5 rebounds.[16]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Devon Saddler - University of Delaware Athletics". bluehens.com. Retrieved 2021-07-04.
  2. ^ "Blue Hen Seniors Devon Saddler, Davon Usher Named To CAA Men's Basketball First Team". BlueHens.com. March 6, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  3. ^ "Paffoni Fulgor Omegna lands rookie Devon Saddler". Sportando. August 5, 2014. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  4. ^ "Cibona Zagreb signs Devon Saddler and Jasmin Hukic". Sportando. September 1, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  5. ^ "Devon Saddler signs with Apollon Patras". Sportando. November 27, 2015. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  6. ^ "Devon Saddler helyettesíti Tyler Larsont a Körmendnél". Kezdo5.hu. September 19, 2016. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  7. ^ "Devon Saddler switched to Jaszberenyi". Court-Side.com. February 2, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  8. ^ "MAFC Budapest 74 at Jaszberenyi KSE 90". RealGM.com. April 8, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  9. ^ "Devon Saddler to suit up for Tsmoki-Minsk". Court-Side.com. September 15, 2017. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  10. ^ "Tsmoki-Minsk 70 at Nizhny Novgorod 77". RealGM.com. April 30, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  11. ^ a b c "Devon Saddler Joined Avtodor". Avtodor.ru. May 27, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  12. ^ "Saddler left Avtodor". Eurobasket.com. August 16, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  13. ^ "Maccabi Rishon ink Devon Saddler". Sportando. September 2, 2019. Retrieved September 2, 2019.
  14. ^ "פרידה מהירה: דבון סאדלר שוחרר מראשל"צ". ONE.co.il (in Hebrew). October 15, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2019.
  15. ^ "Devon Saddler retires from basketball at 28". Sportando. November 25, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
  16. ^ "Belarus v Slovenia - FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 European Qualifiers". FIBA.basketball. February 26, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2019.