Arron Agustin Afflalo (born October 15, 1985) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues i ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) ...

. As a junior, he was named a consensus All-American and was voted the

player of the year Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award. Association football In association football, this award is he ...

in the

Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...

. After forgoing his senior year in college, Afflalo was selected in the first round of the 2007 NBA draft by the

Detroit Pistons The Detroit Pistons are an American professional basketball team based in Detroit. The Pistons compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division and play their home games at L ...

with the 27th overall pick.

Early life

Afflalo was born at the

UCLA Medical Center Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center (also commonly referred to as ''UCLA Medical Center'', "RRMC" or "Ronald Reagan") is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles, in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, United ...

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wo ...

, only a few minutes' walk from

Pauley Pavilion Edwin W. Pauley Pavilion, commonly known as Pauley Pavilion, is an indoor arena located in the Westwood Village district of Los Angeles, California, on the campus of UCLA. It is home to the UCLA Bruins men's and women's basketball teams. The men ...

, where the UCLA Bruins play their home games. His parents are Benjamin Afflalo and Gwendolyn Washington. He also has a younger sister named Paris. As a senior in the 2003–04 season, Afflalo helped lead Centennial High School to a California Division III title. Considered a five-star recruit by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heck ...

, Afflalo was listed as the No. 6 shooting guard and the No. 26 player in the nation in 2004.

College career

As a collegiate player for

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a Normal school, teachers colle ...

, Afflalo's defensive dominance throughout the 2006–07 season (one example being holding Cal's

Ayinde Ubaka Ayinde X. Ubaka (born February 9, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the California Golden Bears and spent seven seasons playing professionally overseas. High school career Ubaka attende ...

to zero points in one of the two teams' matchups), and his 17.4 points per game, led to him being voted the Pac-10 Player of the Year by the other coaches in the conference. He also set the then-school record for most

three-point field goal A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or trey) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two poi ...

s made (87) in a season. Commenting on the award, Afflalo said, "It is good that contributions on both ends of the floor are recognized ... If you truly have a love and passion for the game, then you should work at every aspect of it, not just the part that gives you ttention that being scoring."Afflalo is player of year
/ref>

NCAA tournament

In a 2006 NCAA tournament game against

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = " Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,7 ...

, Afflalo hit the game-winning three-point shot and also defended Alabama point guard

Ronald Steele Ronald Lee Steele Jr. (born April 22, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Alabama. High school Ronald Steele was born in Birmingham, Alabama. He attended John Carrol ...

on his errant three-point attempt which would have given Alabama the lead. In the Bruins' 2006 Sweet Sixteen comeback victory over

Gonzaga Gonzaga may refer to: Places * Gonzaga, Lombardy, commune in the province of Mantua, Italy * Gonzaga, Cagayan, municipality in the Philippines *Gonzaga, Minas Gerais, town in Brazil *Forte Gonzaga, fort in Messina, Sicily People with the surna ...

, Afflalo and teammate Ryan Hollins, in what was later widely hailed as a classy move, helped the distraught Gonzaga star

Adam Morrison Adam John Morrison (born July 19, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. Morrison played for three years at Gonzaga University and was considered to be one of the top college basketball players in 2005–06. He was a finalist ...

off the court after the final buzzer sounded. Against Memphis in the

Elite Eight In the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship or the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship, the "Elite Eight" comprises the final eight teams, representing the regional finals, or national quarterfinals. In Division I and Divis ...

, Afflalo was noted by many to be largely responsible for stopping

Rodney Carney Rodney Dion Carney (born April 15, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis and was selected in the 2006 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls and shortly afterwards traded t ...

and helping UCLA advance to the Final Four. In the 2007 NCAA Tournament, he was named the West Regional's Most Outstanding Player after scoring 24 points and making several big plays in a 68–55 victory over the

Kansas Jayhawks The Kansas Jayhawks, commonly referred to as simply KU or Kansas, are the athletic teams that represent the University of Kansas. KU is one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a mem ...

. However, his quick foul trouble against the Florida Gators cost his team the ability to successfully compete and the Bruins ended up bowing out of the tournament.

Professional career

Detroit Pistons (2007–2009)

On June 28, 2007, Afflalo was drafted with the 27th overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons and later signed July 6. In a surprising turn of events, Afflalo made his first career NBA start on November 1, 2007, the opening night of his rookie season, when Richard Hamilton missed the first two games to attend the birth of his son. Afflalo started the team's first and second games during his rookie campaign that culminated with a loss to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of ...

in the Eastern Conference Finals of the 2008 NBA Playoffs. On February 14, 2009, Afflalo helped Team Detroit to its second victory in three years at the Shooting Stars Competition during the

2009 NBA All-Star Weekend The 2009 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 15, 2009, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2008–09 season. It was the 58th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was played at the US ...

in Phoenix, Arizona. Afflalo teamed with

Detroit Shock The Detroit Shock were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. They were the 2003, 2006, and 2008 WNBA champions. Debuting in 1998, the Shock were one of the league's first expansion franchises. T ...

head coach and former NBA legend

Bill Laimbeer William J. Laimbeer Jr. (born May 19, 1957) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who spent the majority of his career with the Detroit Pistons. Known for his rough and violent style of play, he played a big part in the P ...

, and Shock guard

Katie Smith Katie Smith (born June 4, 1974) is lead assistant coach for the Minnesota Lynx of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is the former head coach of the New York Liberty. A retired professional basketball player, Smith's primary ...

to get the win against Team Phoenix in the final.

Denver Nuggets (2009–2012)

On July 13, 2009, he was traded along with Walter Sharpe to the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

in exchange for a second round pick in the

2011 NBA draft The 2011 NBA draft was held on June 23, 2011, at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The draft started at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (23:00 UTC), and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. Kia Motors was the presenting sponsor ...

and cash. The draft pick became the 52nd overall pick and was used by the Pistons to draft

Vernon Macklin Vernon Leon Macklin (born September 25, 1986) is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player. He is an assistant coach of the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis in the Korean Basketball League (KBL). Macklin played college basketball ...

. On February 10, 2011, Afflalo made a 20-foot jump shot at the buzzer over Shawn Marion as Denver beat Dallas 121–120. The Nuggets trailed by as many as 13 in the 4th quarter and were down 119–110 with under 2 minutes to play before pulling off a miraculous upset victory. Afflalo had 19 points in the fourth quarter alone to almost single-handedly power Denver to the win.

Orlando Magic (2012–2014)

On August 10, 2012, he was traded to the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was estab ...

in a four-team deal which sent

Dwight Howard Dwight David Howard II (born December 8, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League. He is an NBA champion, eight-time All-Star, eight-time All-NBA Team honoree, five-time All-Defensive Tea ...

to the Los Angeles Lakers,

Andrew Bynum Andrew Bynum (born October 27, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player. He played the majority of his career with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After they selected him in the first round ...

to the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Ea ...

, and

Andre Iguodala Andre Tyler Iguodala ( ; born January 28, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The swingman was an NBA All-Star in 2012 and has been named to th ...

to the Nuggets. On December 3, 2013, he recorded a career-high 43 points and minutes with 52, in a double-overtime loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. His previous career-high in points came just less than a month earlier with 36 points against the

Milwaukee Bucks The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...

on November 13, where he also made a career-high 8 three-point shots.

Return to the Nuggets (2014–2015)

On June 26, 2014, Afflalo was traded back to the Denver Nuggets in exchange for

Evan Fournier Evan Mehdi Fournier (; born 29 October 1992) is a French professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played junior basketball at the French INSEP academy from 2007 to 2009. Early life ...

and the draft rights to

Devyn Marble Roy Devyn Marble (born September 21, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Legia Warszawa of the Polish Basketball League. He played college basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes. High school career Marble attended Southfield-La ...

. Afflalo, arguably Orlando's best player in 2013–14, was dealt to avoid concerns that he would opt out of his contract following the 2014–15 season and assured the Magic value in return. The transaction also cleared $6 million in cap space for the team. On October 29, 2014, Afflalo made his return for the Nuggets, recording 15 points and four rebounds in the season opening 89–79 win over the Detroit Pistons.

Portland Trail Blazers (2015)

On February 19, 2015, Afflalo was traded, along with

Alonzo Gee Alonzo Edward Gee (born May 29, 1987) is an American professional basketball player. Born and raised in Riviera Beach, Florida, Gee attended the University of Alabama, where he played for the Alabama Crimson Tide men's basketball team for four ...

, to the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

in exchange for

Will Barton William Denard Barton III (born January 6, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Memphis, where he was named the Conference US ...

, Víctor Claver, Thomas Robinson, and a lottery-protected 2016 first-round pick.

New York Knicks (2015–2016)

On July 9, 2015, Afflalo signed with the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the National Basketball Associa ...

. The move reunited him with his former

teammate

Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Kyam Anthony (born May 29, 1984) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been named an NBA All-Star ten times and an All-NBA Team m ...

. Afflalo missed the first eight games of the regular season with hamstring issues, making his debut for the Knicks on November 11 against the Charlotte Hornets. In 28 minutes as a starter, he recorded 12 points and 6 rebounds in a 95–93 loss. Over his first nine games for the Knicks, Afflalo averaged just 11.2 points per game. He went on to score a season-high 31 points in an overtime loss to the Houston Rockets on November 29. He topped that mark with 38 points against the Atlanta Hawks on January 3, hitting 14-of-17 from the field and 7-of-8 from three-point range.

Sacramento Kings (2016–2017)

On July 9, 2016, Afflalo signed with the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

. On June 23, 2017, he was waived by the Kings.

Return to Orlando (2017–2018)

On July 27, 2017, Afflalo signed with the

, returning to the franchise for a second stint. On January 16, 2018, Afflalo was involved in an on-court fight with the Timberwolves'

Nemanja Bjelica Nemanja Bjelica ( sr-cyr, Немања Бјелица, ; born 9 May 1988) is a Serbian professional basketball player for Fenerbahçe of the Basketball Super League and EuroLeague. He also represents the senior Serbian national basketball team ...

; he took a

swing Swing or swinging may refer to: Apparatus * Swing (seat), a hanging seat that swings back and forth * Pendulum, an object that swings * Russian swing, a swing-like circus apparatus * Sex swing, a type of harness for sexual intercourse * Swing rid ...

on Bjelica but Bjelica evaded it and put Afflalo in a headlock to calm him down. Afflalo later received a two-game suspension for his actions. Afflalo finished the season with career-lows of 3.4 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.6 assists over 53 games.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, 75 , , 9 , , 12.9 , , .411 , , .208 , , .782 , , 1.8 , , .7 , , .4 , , .1 , , 3.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 74 , , 8 , , 16.7 , , .437 , , .402 , , .817 , , 1.8 , , .6 , , .4 , , .2 , , 4.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

, 82 , , 75 , , 27.1 , , .465 , , .434 , , .735 , , 3.1 , , 1.7 , , .6 , , .4 , , 8.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 69 , , 69 , , 33.7 , , .498 , , .423 , , .847 , , 3.6 , , 2.4 , , .5 , , .4 , , 12.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 62 , , 62 , , 33.6 , , .471 , , .398 , , .798 , , 3.2 , , 2.4 , , .6 , , .2 , , 15.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures r ...

, 64 , , 64 , , 36.0 , , .439 , , .300 , , .857 , , 3.7 , , 3.2 , , .6 , , .2 , , 16.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 73 , , 73 , , 35.0 , , .459 , , .427 , , .815 , , 3.6 , , 3.4 , , .5 , , .0 , , 18.2 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 53 , , 53 , , 33.0 , , .428 , , .337 , , .841 , , 3.4 , , 1.9 , , .6 , , .1 , , 14.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, 25 , , 19 , , 30.1 , , .414 , , .400 , , .851 , , 2.7 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , .1 , , 10.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, 71 , , 57 , , 33.4 , , .443 , , .382 , , .840 , , 3.7 , , 2.0 , , .4 , , .1 , , 12.8 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

, 61 , , 45 , , 25.9 , , .440 , , .411 , , .892 , , 2.0 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , .1 , , 8.4 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 53 , , 3 , , 12.9 , , .401 , , .386 , , .846 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , .1 , , .2 , , 3.4 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 762 , , 537 , , 27.3 , , .450 , , .386 , , .825 , , 2.9 , , 1.8 , , .4 , , .2 , , 10.8

Playoffs

, - , align="left" ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...

, align="left" ,

, 12 , , 0 , , 7.0 , , .389 , , .000 , , .000 , , .4 , , .5 , , .3 , , .0 , , 1.2 , - , align="left" ,

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, align="left" ,

, 4 , , 0 , , 16.5 , , .476 , , .200 , , .600 , , .8 , , .3 , , .0 , , .5 , , 6.3 , - , align="left" ,

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

, align="left" ,

, 6 , , 6 , , 20.0 , , .625 , , .429 , , .818 , , 2.0 , , 1.2 , , .2 , , .3 , , 9.2 , - , align="left" , 2011 , align="left" ,

, 3 , , 3 , , 28.3 , , .353 , , .250 , , .875 , , 3.0 , , 2.3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 11.3 , - , align="left" ,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, align="left" ,

, 7 , , 7 , , 32.7 , , .405 , , .200 , , .800 , , 3.6 , , 2.7 , , .7 , , .3 , , 10.9 , - , align="left" ,

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the April ...

, align="left" ,

, 3 , , 3 , , 20.0 , , .167 , , .250 , , .000 , , 2.3 , , .7 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.7 , - class="sortbottom" , align="center" colspan="2", Career , 35 , , 19 , , 18.4 , , .424 , , .258 , , .775 , , 1.7 , , 1.2 , , .3 , , .2 , , 6.0

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2004–05 , style="text-align:left;",

, 29, , 29, , 31.3, , .442, , .386, , .708, , 3.3, , 2.2, , .6, , .2, , 10.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2005–06 , style="text-align:left;",

, 39, , 38, , 33.4, , .462, , .366, , .806, , 4.2, , 1.8, , .6, , .1, , 15.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2006–07 , style="text-align:left;",

, 36, , 36, , 32.9, , .461, , .375, , .802, , 2.8, , 1.9, , .6, , .2, , 16.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 104 , , 103 , , 32.7 , , .457 , , .373 , , .781 , , 3.5 , , 1.9 , , .6 , , .2 , , 14.8

Personal life

Afflalo attended Centennial High School two years ahead of rapper

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generat ...

, who credited Afflalo's academic and athletic achievements in the first verse of the song "Black Boy Fly", a bonus track from his album '' Good Kid, M.A.A.D City''. In the song, Lamar described Afflalo as an example of someone who had the "determination, ambition plus dedication and wisdom" to get out of Compton. Afflalo nodded towards Lamar's drive in an interview with XXL, saying "I was almost like the golden child in the city of Compton, or at least at Centennial at that time, considering where I was as a basketball player, and all the positivity I had around me, in terms of school and people appreciating me and showing me love for what I did on the court and in the community at that time in my life. So for him to kind of be in the background and who he is today, it showed you the perseverance that he had for so many years." Afflalo was linked to American actress Regina Hall back in 2015 and 2019. There has been no update on the relationship as of late.

Notes

References

External links

*
Official website

UCLA bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Afflalo, Arron 1985 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Los Angeles Denver Nuggets players Detroit Pistons draft picks Detroit Pistons players McDonald's High School All-Americans New York Knicks players Orlando Magic players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) Portland Trail Blazers players Sacramento Kings players Shooting guards Small forwards UCLA Bruins men's basketball players