Grayson James Allen (born October 8, 1995) 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

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 ...

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 four years of

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 Athle ...

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist Jame ...

. Allen was drafted with the 21st overall pick in the

2018 NBA draft The 2018 NBA Draft was held on June 21, 2018, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, including inter ...

by the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference, Northwest Division. Since the 1991–92 season, ...

, where he played for one season before being traded to the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

in July 2019. In August 2021, Allen was traded to the Bucks. He helped Duke win a

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, ind ...

in 2015, but his reputation was marred by dirty plays. He has often been called one of Duke's best players of the 2010s.

High school career

In 2014, Allen was selected as a

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger st ...

out of Providence School in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the c ...

, where he won a state championship the previous year. He won the McDonald's All-American Slam Dunk Contest, jumping over future Duke teammate

Jahlil Okafor Jahlil Obika Okafor (pronounced ; born December 15, 1995) is a Nigerian-American professional basketball player for the Capitanes de Ciudad de México of the NBA G League. He played his freshman season of college basketball for the 2014–15 D ...

College career

Freshman season (2014–2015)

During Allen's freshman season at Duke, he averaged 4.4 points per game and was named to the ACC all-academic team. Allen became a major contributor in the NCAA tournament. On April 7, 2015, he helped Duke to victory in the NCAA championship game, scoring 16 points. After the game, commentators cited Allen as one of the main reasons for Duke's win. Coach

Mike Krzyzewski Michael William Krzyzewski ( ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980 to 2022, during which he led the Blue Devils to five nati ...

agreed, saying, "We were kind of dead in the water. We were nine points down and Grayson just put us on his back." One of his classmates at Duke was the LPGA golfer

Leona Maguire Leona Maguire (born 30 November 1994) is an Irish professional golfer. She was ranked 1st in the world on the women's World Amateur Golf Ranking from May 2015 until May 2016 and then from August 2016 until February 2018. Maguire's 135 weeks a ...

Sophomore season (2015–2016)

Allen received national attention following an incident during a game against

Louisville Cardinals The Louisville Cardinals (also known as the Cards) are the NCAA athletic teams representing the University of Louisville. The Cardinals teams play in the Atlantic Coast Conference, beginning in the 2014 season. While playing in the Big East Con ...

. On February 8, 2016, Allen was assessed a flagrant-one foul after he tripped Louisville forward Ray Spalding. Commentators said the move appeared to be intentional, as Allen stuck out his leg while on the ground as Spalding was hopping over him. In Duke's second game against Louisville, Allen exchanged elbows while scuffling for the ball and was later ejected for yelling at a referee after being called for his fifth foul. On February 25, in the closing seconds of a 15-point win against

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

, Allen tripped opposing guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes. A day later, Allen received a reprimand from the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associ ...

(ACC) for his second tripping incident in less than a month. During the 2015–16 season, Allen was one of the best offensive players in the ACC, averaging 21 points per game and shooting 41% from three-point range. He played an average of 36.6 minutes per game and made 83.7% of his free throws. In the NCAA Tournament, Allen scored 29 points in Duke's 71–64 win over Yale, helping the team to reach the Sweet Sixteen. The team lost its next game to top-seeded Oregon, 82–68; Allen had difficulty scoring near the basket during that game, finishing with 15 points.

Junior season (2016–2017)

Entering his junior season, Allen was considered one of the top returning players in college basketball. He was named to the Associated Press preseason All-America team and was the ACC media's pick as preseason ACC Player of the Year. On November 12, 2016, Allen scored 25 points and 10 rebounds in a 96–61 win over Grand Canyon. On November 29, 2016, Allen scored 24 points and 4 assists in a 78–69 win against

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge. On December 10, 2016, Allen tallied 34 points in a 94–45 victory over UNLV. On January 28, 2017, Allen scored 19 points in an 85–83 win against Wake Forest. On January 30, 2017, Allen scored 21 points and 5 assists in an 84–74 victory over Notre Dame. On February 4, 2017, Allen scored 21 points in a 72–64 win against

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylv ...

. On February 9, 2017, Allen scored 25 points and 3 assists in an 86–78 win over rival

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and S ...

. Prior to the start of the season, Allen stated that he was ready to put the previous season's tripping incidents behind him. However, on December 21, he tripped Elon's Steven Santa Ana and was charged with a technical foul. The next day, Duke coach

suspended Allen from the team indefinitely. After Duke's December 31 game, Krzyzewski stripped Allen of his team captaincy. Allen returned to play on January 4, 2017 after serving a one-game suspension. During the 2016–2017 season, Allen averaged 14.5 points per game and shot 36.5% from three-point range. He averaged 29.6 minutes per game and shot 81.1% from the free-throw line. Duke reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament, where the team was upset by South Carolina; Allen scored 20 points in the defeat.

Senior season (2017–2018)

DUKEvUNC 2018-03-03 - Mike Krzyzewski hugs Grayson Allen 1

On April 18, 2017, it was announced Allen would return to Duke for his senior season. The team voted to restore him as captain for the 2017–2018 season. On November 14, 2017, Allen scored 37 points in an 88–81 win against

. On November 29, 2017, Allen scored 21 points in a 91–81 victory over

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th st ...

. On December 2, 2017, Allen scored 25 points and 3 rebounds in a 96–80 win against South Dakota. On December 30, 2017, Allen scored 22 points and 3 rebounds in a 100–93 win over

. For the season, Allen averaged 15.5 points per game on 41.8% shooting. On March 9, 2018, Allen was assessed a flagrant-one foul in the ACC tournament for tripping

's Garrison Brooks with what was called a "hip check." Duke reached the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament, where the team was defeated by

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the w ...

, 85–81, in overtime. In his final collegiate game, Allen scored 12 points on 3-for-13 shooting, missed a potential game-winning shot, and missed two three-pointers late in overtime; he did, however, make several clutch free throws. Scott Gleeson of ''USA Today'' commented that the season "was a resurgent one for Allen as a whole, in spite of the sour ending. He took on the role of senior captain on a young team full of NBA talent. It was a flipped script from a year ago when Allen was seen as the villain of the sport for his unsportsmanlike behavior..."

Overall career

During his four seasons at Duke, Allen appeared in 142 games and averaged 14.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 3.0 assists. He maintained a field-goal percentage of .430, a three-point field-goal percentage of .380, and a free-throw percentage of .834. Allen finished his Duke career with 1,996 points, ranking 12th on the Blue Devils' career scoring list. Allen played in 15 NCAA Tournament games, helping the Blue Devils win the 2015 NCAA National Championship. He earned All-America and Academic All-America honors in 2016, becoming the sixth Blue Devil to receive both honors in the same season. Allen also earned All- ACC Academic honors four times.

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2018–2019)

On June 21, 2018, Allen was selected with the 21st overall pick by the

in the

. On July 2, Allen signed a four-year rookie scale contract with the Jazz. He made his NBA debut on October 22, against the

, scoring 7 points in 11 minutes off the bench. On April 10, 2019, Allen scored a career-high 40 points with seven rebounds, four assists, a steal and a block in a 137–143 overtime loss to the

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

Memphis Grizzlies (2019–2021)

On July 6, 2019, Allen was traded, alongside

Jae Crowder Corey Jae Crowder (born July 6, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Not being heavily recruited out of high school, Crowder committed to South Georgia Technical ...

Kyle Korver Kyle Elliot Korver (born March 17, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who currently serves as the director of player affairs and development for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played co ...

, the draft rights to

Darius Bazley Darius Denayr Bazley (born June 12, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Bazley attended Princeton High School in Sharonville, Ohio after playing his firs ...

and a future first-round pick, to the

in exchange for Mike Conley. On July 11, he was ejected from an NBA Summer League game between the Grizzlies and 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 t ...

after committing back-to-back flagrant fouls that were described by commentators as "cheap shots". On October 23, he made his debut for the Grizzlies, logging five points, two assists and one rebound in a 101–120 loss to 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 Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at FTX ...

. On October 29, Allen recorded a season-high two steals in a 91–120 loss to 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 December 4, he grabbed a season-high seven rebounds in a 99–106 loss to the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded on January 1 ...

. On August 5, 2020, Allen scored a season-high 20 points and logged a career-high six 3-pointers along with two rebounds and one assist in 26 minutes of action in a 115–124 loss to the

. He matched this point total on August 9, where he also grabbed four rebounds and one assist in a 99–108 loss to the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

. On December 16, 2020, Memphis announced that they had exercised their team option on Allen for the 2021–22 season. On December 23, he made his season debut for the Grizzlies, logging six points, two rebounds and five assists in a 119–131 loss to the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

. On March 27, 2021, Allen recorded a career-high four steals in a 110–126 loss to the

. On April 7, he recorded a season-high 30 points, along with four rebounds and three assists, in a 131–113 win over the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

. On May 5, he suffered an abdominal injury in a 139–135 win over the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

. He missed the Grizzlies' last seven regular season games, but returned in time for the playoffs. On May 29, against his former team the Jazz, Allen recorded a playoff career-high 17 points in 29 minutes. This was his only double-digit scoring performance in the playoffs. The Grizzlies would eventually lose the series in five games.

Milwaukee Bucks (2021–present)

On August 7, 2021, Allen was traded by the Grizzlies to the

for Sam Merrill and two future second-round draft picks. Bucks general manager Jon Horst commented, "Grayson is a talented guard... His three-point shooting, energy, toughness and basketball IQ make him a great addition, and we're excited to welcome him to Milwaukee." On October 18, Allen signed a reported 2-year, $20 million rookie scale extension with the Bucks. The next day, he made his debut for the team, recording 10 points, 6 assists, and 4 rebounds in a win over the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The t ...

. On January 21, 2022, during a game against the

, Allen fouled opposing guard Alex Caruso and was ejected from the game after he received a flagrant 2 foul. Bulls coach

Billy Donovan William John Donovan Jr. (born May 30, 1965) is an American professional basketball coach and former player. He has served as head coach of the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) since September 2020 after previously coa ...

publicly condemned Allen after the game, citing Allen's history of dangerous plays and stating that he "could've ended aruso'scareer." Caruso suffered a fractured right wrist and was ruled out for 6 to 8 weeks. On January 23, Grayson was suspended for one game by the NBA. On the incident, Allen said, "It was unfortunate how it played out. I jumped to block it with my left, and as I'm spinning went to grab the ball with my right hand, not throw him down. It was a really hard fall and I'm glad he's okay. If I could do the play over again knowing he'd fall like that I wouldn't make the play." On April 22, 2022, during Game 3 of the first round of the playoffs, Allen scored a then-playoff career-high 22 points in a 111–81 win over the

. Two days later, he bested this total with 27 points alongside three steals in a 119–95 Game 4 win. On January 4, 2023, Allen scored 16 points, including a game-winning three point shot, during a 104–101 overtime win over the

Personal life

Allen began dating Morgan Reid while both were students at Duke. Reid was a player on the Duke women's soccer team, and has since turned professional. The couple got engaged in February of 2022 and married on July 23, 2022.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

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Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, 66 , , 61 , , 27.3 , , .448 , , .409 , , .865 , , 3.4 , , 1.5 , , .7 , , .3 , , 11.1 , - , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 192 , , 101 , , 21.9 , , .433 , , .393 , , .841 , , 2.6 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , .2 , , 9.4

Playoffs

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, 2 , , 0 , , 7.0 , , .286 , , .000 , , .714 , , .5 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 4.5 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;", Memphis , 5 , , 0 , , 23.2 , , .364 , , .381 , , .000 , , 2.6 , , .2 , , .4 , , .2 , , 6.4 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, 12 , , 5 , , 25.4 , , .451 , , .396 , , .636 , , 2.9 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .3 , , 8.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 19 , , 5 , , 22.9 , , .418 , , .375 , , .632 , , 2.6 , , .8 , , .5 , , .3 , , 7.4

College

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Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ranke ...

, 35 , , 0 , , 9.2 , , .425 , , .346 , , .849 , , 1.0 , , .4 , , .3 , , .1 , , 4.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 35 , , 36.6 , , .466 , , .417 , , .837 , , 4.6 , , 3.5 , , 1.3 , , .1 , , 21.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 25 , , 29.6 , , .395 , , .365 , , .811 , , 3.7 , , 3.5 , , .8 , , .1 , , 14.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 37 , , 37 , , 35.6 , , .418 , , .370 , , .850 , , 3.3 , , 4.6 , , 1.7 , , .1 , , 15.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 142 , , 97 , , 27.9 , , .430 , , .380 , , .834 , , 3.2 , , 3.0 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 14.1

References

External links

*
Duke Blue Devils bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Grayson 1995 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Jacksonville, Florida Duke Blue Devils men's basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Grizzlies players Milwaukee Bucks players Salt Lake City Stars players Shooting guards Utah Jazz draft picks Utah Jazz players