Jaden Tyree Springer (born September 25, 2002) 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

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 Eas ...

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

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity college athletics, intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in NCAA Division I, ...

Early life and high school career

While in eighth grade, Springer played varsity basketball for Lighthouse Christian School in

Antioch, Tennessee Antioch is a neighborhood of Nashville located approximately 12 miles southeast of Downtown Nashville. It is served by the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County. History The community known as Antioch began at the converge ...

, averaging a team-high 19 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. In his first two years of high school, he played for Rocky River High School in

Mint Hill, North Carolina Mint Hill is a suburban town in southeastern Mecklenburg and northwestern Union counties in the U.S. state of North Carolina, it is a major suburb on the outskirts of Charlotte and near the Cabarrus County line. The population was 22,722 at the ...

, being drawn by head basketball coach Jermaine Walker despite academic and disciplinary concerns about the school. In his freshman season, Springer averaged 21.8 points, 9.4 rebounds and five assists per game and led his team to its first state tournament appearance. As a sophomore, he averaged 24.7 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 2.4 blocks per game, helping Rocky River reach the Class 4A state semifinals. He was named Southwestern 4A Player of the Year. Entering his junior and senior seasons, Springer transferred to

IMG Academy IMG Academy is a preparatory boarding school and sports training destination in Bradenton, Florida, United States. IMG Academy is set across over 600 acres and features programs consisting of sport camps for youth athletes, adult camps, a board ...

Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...

. He joined one of the best teams in the country and became teammates with top recruits

Armando Bacot Armando Linwood Bacot Jr. (born March 6, 2000) is an American college basketball player for the North Carolina Tar Heels of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). He holds the program records for double-doubles and career rebounds. High school ca ...

, Josh Green and

Jeremiah Robinson-Earl Jeremiah Christian Robinson-Earl (born November 3, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats. High schoo ...

. As a junior, Springer averaged 15.6 points, four rebounds and four assists, helping his team win GEICO High School Nationals. He scored 26 points in a 74–73 semifinal win over

Montverde Academy Montverde Academy is a private PK–12 school in Montverde, Florida, United States. History The school was founded in 1912 as Montgomery Industrial School. The school president was Henry P. Carpenter. It underwent a major expansion in 1921, whe ...

. In his senior season, Springer averaged 17.4 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game for IMG. He played through an ankle injury throughout the season and was in turn sidelined from some games. Springer was selected to play in the

McDonald's All-American Game The McDonald's All-American Game is the all-star basketball game played each year for American and Canadian boys' and girls' high school basketball graduates. Consisting of the top players, each team plays a single exhibition game after the concl ...

, which was canceled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

Recruiting

Springer began receiving scholarship offers from

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

basketball programs during his freshman season in high school. As a sophomore, he emerged as one of the best players in the 2020 class. On October 23, 2019, he committed to play

for

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

over offers from

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

and

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, among others.

College career

On December 18, 2020, Springer recorded 21 points, six rebounds and six assists in a 103–49 win against

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie ...

. On February 10, 2021, he scored a career-high 30 points in an 89–81 win over

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. As a freshman, Springer averaged 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game, earning

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities of ...

(SEC) All-Freshman Team honors. Following the season, he declared for the

2021 NBA draft The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. With the first overall pick, the Detroit Pistons selected Cade Cunningham. The NBA us ...

and signed with an agent.

Professional career

Springer was selected with the 28th pick in the

by the

. On August 4, 2021, Springer was signed by the Sixers. On October 24, 2021, Springer was assigned to the Sixers G League affiliate, the

Delaware Blue Coats The Delaware Blue Coats are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Wilmington, Delaware, and are affiliated with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Blue Coats play their home games at Chase Fieldhouse. The team was founde ...

. Springer would spend the majority of his rookie year with the Blue Coats, playing only 2 regular season games for the 76ers.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Playoffs

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College

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Personal life

Springer's father, Gary, was 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 ...

basketball player and played college basketball for

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...

. Gary was a sixth-round selection in the

1984 NBA draft The 1984 NBA draft was the 37th annual draft of the National Basketball Association (NBA). It was held at the Felt Forum at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, on June 19, 1984, before the 1984–85 season. The draft is generally c ...

but did not play professionally due to a lingering knee injury. Both of Springer's older brothers played college basketball: Gary Jr. for Iona and Jordan for

Army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

. His cousin,

DeAndre' Bembry DeAndre' Pierre' Bembry (born July 4, 1994) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Saint Joseph's University. He was na ...

, last played professionally 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

References

External links

Tennessee Volunteers bioUSA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Springer, Jaden 2002 births Living people American men's basketball players Basketball players from Charlotte, North Carolina Delaware Blue Coats players IMG Academy alumni McDonald's High School All-Americans Philadelphia 76ers draft picks Philadelphia 76ers players Shooting guards