Calvin "C. J." Leslie (born June 25, 1991) 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. He played college basketball for

North Carolina State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The unive ...

High school career

Leslie attended

Word of God Christian Academy Word of God Christian Academy is a private, Christian, coeducational, primary and secondary day school located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Also known as Word of God, the school was founded in 1993. In 2015, a North Carolina t ...

for three years where he played with

John Wall Johnathan Hildred Wall Jr. (born September 6, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A Raleigh, North Carolina native, Wall was chosen with the first overa ...

for two of those three. In his senior year, he was selected to participate in the McDonald's All-American Game and the

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school All-Star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys in the senior class including alumns like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Bl ...

College career

Leslie signed with

out of high school. As a freshman at North Carolina State, Leslie was second on the team in points per game averaging 11.0 points, also leading the Wolfpack in rebounding averaging 7.2 rebounds per game. At the end of the season, Leslie was named to the ACC All-Freshmen Team. During his sophomore season he led the team in scoring averaging 14.7 points per game. Also Leslie was one of only three ACC players to place in the top ten in scoring, field goal percentage, and rebounding. Due to his play all season he garnered an All-ACC Second Team selection. During his junior season, Leslie again led the Wolfpack in scoring, averaging 15.1 points per game, which was seventh in the conference. He also added 7.4 rebounds per game, which was tied for eighth in the conference. After the season Leslie was selected to the All-ACC Third Team. In 2011–12 and 2012–13, Leslie helped the Wolfpack to back to back NCAA tournament appearances, the first time the school had done so since the 2005–06 season.

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2013 NBA draft, Leslie signed a partially guaranteed contract with the New York Knicks on July 8, 2013 and played for them at the Las Vegas Summer League. He was later waived by the Knicks on October 25 after appearing in five preseason games. On October 31, 2013, Leslie was acquired by the Erie BayHawks of the NBA Development League. On February 26, 2014, he was traded to the

Idaho Stampede Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyomi ...

. In July 2014, Leslie was acquired by

Anyang KGC The Anyang Korea Ginseng Corporation ( ko, 안양 KGC인삼공사), or Anyang KGC, is a professional basketball club in the Korean Basketball League, based at Anyang Arena in the city of Anyang. The club has won three KBL championship titles, ...

in the 2014 KBL draft. He played 18 games for the club before departing in late November. In January 2015, he joined

GlobalPort Batang Pier The NorthPort Batang Pier is a Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) team that first played in the 2012–13 PBA season. The team took over the franchise of the Powerade Tigers in 2012 after it was sold to Sultan 900 Capital, Inc. Besides Nor ...

for the 2015 Commissioner's Cup. In four games for GlobalPort, he averaged 29.3 points and 14.3 rebounds per game. On February 14, 2015, Leslie signed with Puerto Rican team Mets de Guaynabo. In July 2015, Leslie joined 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 ...

for the

2015 NBA Summer League The 2015 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the NBA: the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week-long Orlando Pro Summer League at ...

. On August 12, 2015, he signed with Hapoel Eilat of the Israeli League. On January 21, 2016, Leslie signed with Cypriot team Petrolina AEK Larnaca. On October 30, 2016, Leslie was acquired by

Raptors 905 The Raptors 905 are a Canadian professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Mississauga, Ontario, and are affiliated with the Toronto Raptors. Raptors 905 began play in the 2015–16 season and play their home games at Paramount Fi ...

of the NBA Development League. On May 1, 2019, Leslie was drafted in the 2nd round of the Big3 draft by Bivouac. On March 1, 2020, Leslie was reported to have signed with Al-Hilal. On November 1, he signed with Al-Nasr.

Personal life

Leslie’s younger sister Kiara is also a professional basketball player.

References

External links

NBA Draft Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leslie, C. J. 1991 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Canada American expatriate basketball people in Cyprus American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Lebanon American expatriate basketball people in the Philippines American expatriate basketball people in South Korea American men's 3x3 basketball players American men's basketball players Anyang Jung Kwan Jang Red Boosters players Basketball players from North Carolina Big3 players Erie BayHawks (2008–2017) players NorthPort Batang Pier players Hapoel Eilat basketball players Idaho Stampede players McDonald's High School All-Americans Mets de Guaynabo basketball players NC State Wolfpack men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) People from Holly Springs, North Carolina Sportspeople from Wake County, North Carolina Philippine Basketball Association imports Raptors 905 players Small forwards Texas Legends players Word of God Christian Academy alumni American expatriate basketball people in Saudi Arabia Al Hilal basketball players