Cole Alexander Swider (born May 8, 1999) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Southe ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball 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 in the United S ...

(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

Villanova Wildcats The Villanova Wildcats are the athletic teams of Villanova University. They compete in the Big East (NCAA Division I) for every sport; except football and rowing where they compete in the Colonial Athletic Association ( Football Championship ...

and the

Syracuse Orange The Syracuse Orange are the athletic teams that represent Syracuse University. The school is a member of NCAA Division I and the Atlantic Coast Conference. Until 2013, Syracuse was a member of the Big East Conference. The school's mascot is ...

Early life and high school career

Swider grew up in

Portsmouth, Rhode Island Portsmouth is a town in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 17,871 at the 2020 U.S. census. Portsmouth is the second-oldest municipality in Rhode Island, after Providence; it was one of the four colonies which merged ...

and attended the St. Andrew's School. Swider was named the Rhode Island Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior after averaging 26.5 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.3 blocks per game. He averaged 31 points per game in his senior season. Swider was rated a four-star recruit and committed to play

at Villanova over offers from Syracuse, Xavier, and Duke.

College career

Swider began his collegiate career at Villanova. He played in 31 games and started 15 during his sophomore season and averaged 6.1 points and 2.9 rebounds. As a junior, he played in all 25 of Villanova's games and averaged 5.7 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. After the season, Swider entered the NCAA transfer portal. Swider ultimately transferred to Syracuse. He became the Orange's starting power forward and averaged 13.9 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. Following the end of the season, Swider announced that he would be entering the 2022 NBA draft and hiring an agent.

Professional career

Los Angeles / South Bay Lakers (2022–2023)

After going unselected in the 2022 NBA draft, Swider signed a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless of ...

with the

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

on July 1, 2022, splitting time with their G League affiliate, the

South Bay Lakers The South Bay Lakers are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Los Angeles. Founded in 2006 as the Los Angeles D-Fenders, the team is owned by the Los Angeles Lakers, who were the first National Basketball Associa ...

. Swider joined the Lakers' 2022 NBA Summer League roster. In his Summer League debut, Swider scored thirteen points, six rebounds, and a block in a 100–66 win against the

. On July 26, 2023, the Lakers waived Swider.

Miami Heat (2023–present)

On August 11, 2023, Swider signed with the

Career statistics

NBA

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L.A. Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

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References

External links

Villanova Wildcats bioSyracuse Orange bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Swider, Cole 1999 births Living people American men's basketball players Basketball players from Rhode Island Los Angeles Lakers players People from Portsmouth, Rhode Island Power forwards (basketball) South Bay Lakers players Syracuse Orange men's basketball players Undrafted National Basketball Association players Villanova Wildcats men's basketball players