Jerrelle Benimon (born August 1, 1991) is an American former professional basketball player. In college, he was the 2012–13 Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year as a

redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Entertainment * ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi * Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after b ...

junior after leading the

Towson Tigers The Towson Tigers, formerly the ''Towson College Knights'', are the athletics teams of Towson University. All of the major athletic teams compete in the Colonial Athletic Association with 19 Division I athletic teams (13 in women's sports, 6 in ...

to the greatest single-season turnaround in

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

(NCAA) Division I history; the Tigers finished with a 1–31 record in 2011–12 before completing an 18–13 season the following year. Benimon also tied for the second-highest rebounding average (11.2) in Division I behind only

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

's O. D. Anosike's 11.4 per game average. Benimon repeated as the player of the year as a

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

in 2013–14 and, coincidentally, finished second in the national rebounding average for a second consecutive season (11.2).

High school career

Benimon attended

Fauquier High School Fauquier High School is a public high school in Warrenton, Virginia, United States. The school is part of Fauquier County Public Schools and is located at 705 Waterloo Road. History Fauquier opened in 1963 and is the oldest high school in Fauqui ...

Warrenton, Virginia Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, of which it is the seat of government. The population was 9,611 at the 2010 census, up from 6,670 at the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2019 was 10,027. It is at the junction of U.S. R ...

. In his junior season in 2007–08 he averaged 19.5 points, 12.5 rebounds, 3.4 blocks and 3.5 assists per game. Then, as a senior, he averaged 21 points, 17 rebounds, 7 assists and 4 blocks per game en route to his second consecutive Cedar Run District Player of the Year award. On February 17, 2009, Benimon recorded a

quadruple-double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the term ...

against

Osbourn High School Osbourn High School is a public school for grades 9–12 located in Manassas, Virginia, United States and the sole high school of the Manassas City Public Schools system. History Osbourn High School history goes back to 1890 when it was named ...

with 13 points, 17 rebounds, 11 assists, 10 blocks.

College career

Benimon spent his first two collegiate seasons playing for the Hoyas of

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

. He saw limited action in both seasons and scored a total of 84 points in 61 game appearances. He decided to transfer after his sophomore year in 2010–11, one in which he only averaged 10.2 minutes per game. Benimon said he "probably got 100 phone calls" from schools who were trying to recruit him as a transfer player, but he ultimately decided on Towson because "...the assistant that recruited me from Towson. He treated me like a big deal. He’d send me an e-mail 1,000 times a day. He’d call me all the time." Having to sit out the 2011–12 season due to NCAA by-laws, Benimon flew under the radar heading in the

Colonial Athletic Association The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I whose full members are located in East Coast states from Massachusetts to South Carolina. Most of its members are public universi ...

's 2012–13 season. He was not even selected to an All-CAA team during the conference's preseason media day. Benimon burst onto the national scene during his junior year after averaging 17.1 points, 11.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.9 blocks per game. He was named the CAA Player of the Week four times, its player of the year at the end of the regular season, and guided its 17.5-game turnaround from 2011–12 (the biggest turnaround in Division I history) by leading Towson in points, rebounds, assists and blocks. In an early season loss against

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

, Benimon scored 30 points and grabbed 18 rebounds; in an improbable road win against

Oregon State Oregon State University (OSU) is a public land-grant, research university in Corvallis, Oregon. OSU offers more than 200 undergraduate-degree programs along with a variety of graduate and doctoral degrees. It has the 10th largest engineering col ...

, he recorded 20 points and 21 rebounds. Benimon was a top 10 finalist for the

Lou Henson Award The Lou Henson Award is an award given annually by '' CollegeInsider.com'' to the most outstanding mid-major men's college basketball player in NCAA Division I competition. The award, established in 2010, is named for legendary Illinois Fighting Il ...

, given to the nation's best

mid-major Mid-major is a term used in American NCAA Division I college sports, particularly men's basketball, to refer to athletic conferences that are not among the "Power Five conferences" (the ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Pac-12, and SEC), which are alternativ ...

men's basketball player. Benimon's senior season in 2013–14 saw him lead the Tigers to a second-place finish in the CAA behind

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

, finishing the year with a 13–3 conference record (25–11 overall). The 25 wins is a program record for their Division I era. Towson, seeded second in the 2014 CAA tournament, was upset in the semifinals by third-seeded William & Mary, ending their chance at an automatic NCAA tournament bid. The Tigers accepted an invitation to play in the 2014 CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament, however, and won their first two games before falling in the quarterfinals against

Murray State Murray State University (MSU) is a public university in Murray, Kentucky. In addition to the main campus in Calloway County in southwestern Kentucky, Murray State operates extended campuses offering upper level and graduate courses in Paducah, ...

. For the year, Benimon averaged 18.7 points, 11.2 rebounds (second best in the nation behind

UC Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...

's Alan Williams), 3.6 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game. Benimon's 404 total rebounds set a new school single-season record; it also ranks second all-time in CAA men's basketball history. For the second straight season, Benimon was voted to the CAA's All-Defensive Team as well as being named the CAA Player of the Year.

Professional career

2014–15 season

After going undrafted in the

2014 NBA draft The 2014 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2014, at the Barclays Center, Brooklyn National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

, Benimon joined 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 ...

for

Orlando Summer League The NBA Summer League, also known as the Las Vegas Summer League, is an off-season competition organized by the National Basketball Association. NBA teams come together to try out different summer rosters instead of their regular season line-ups ...

and 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 ...

for the Las Vegas Summer League. On September 30, 2014, he signed with the Nuggets, but was later waived by the team on October 22 before the start of the 2014–15 NBA season. On November 18, he was acquired by 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 ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official List of developmental and minor sports leagues, minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development ...

. On February 4, he was named to the Futures All-Star team for the 2015

NBA D-League All-Star Game The NBA D-League All-Star Game was an annual exhibition basketball game held by the NBA Development League (D-League). The D-League was founded in 2001 as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) and later as the NBA Development League. ...

. On March 6, 2015, Benimon signed a 10-day contract with 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 (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

. Following the expiration of his contract on March 16, he was not offered a second 10-day contract by the Jazz, parting ways with the team after appearing in just two games and returned to the Stampede that same day. On April 22, he was named to the 2015 All-NBA D-League first team and the All-Rookie first team.

2015–16 season

In July 2015, Benimon joined the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

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 a ...

. On September 17, he signed with the

Foshan Dralions The Guangzhou Loong Lions () are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Guangzhou, Guangdong. They play in the Southern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). History The team was founded in November 2000 as Shaanxi Gait ...

2016–17 season

Benimon joined 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 ...

for the

2016 NBA Summer League The 2016 NBA Summer League consisted of three pro basketball leagues organized by the National Basketball Association (NBA): the Orlando Pro Summer League, Utah Jazz Summer League, and Las Vegas Summer League. Ten teams participated in the week ...

. On September 10, he signed with

Qingdao DoubleStar The Qingdao Guoxin Haitian Eagle Club, also known as Qingdao Daily Fresh or Qingdao Eagles are a Chinese professional basketball team which is based in Qingdao, Shandong. The club plays in the North Division of the Chinese Basketball Association ...

of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier professional men's basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

. On March 2, 2017,

Delaware 87ers Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

acquired rights to Benimon.

2017–18 season

On October 29, 2017, Benimon signed with German club

ratiopharm Ulm Ratiopharm Ulm, officially stylized as ratiopharm Ulm, is a professional basketball club based in Ulm, Germany. The club has two teams, one professional team, which plays in the Basketball Bundesliga, the major German professional league and one ...

2018–19 season

On August 15, 2018, Benimon signed with the

New Zealand Breakers The New Zealand Breakers (also known as the Sky Sport Breakers for sponsorship reasons) are a New Zealand professional basketball team based in Auckland. The Breakers compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at ...

for the

2018–19 NBL season The 2018–19 NBL season was the 41st season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of eight teams have contested the league. The regular season had been played between October 2018 and February 2019, followed ...

. He was released by the Breakers on September 3 due to personal issues. On January 10, 2019, Benimon signed with

Bnei Herzliya Bnei Herzliya Basket (, lit. ''Sons of Herzliya''), is a professional basketball club that is based in Herzliya, in the Sharon district in Israel. The club plays in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, the top division of Israeli basketball. It ...

of the

Israeli Premier League The Israeli Premier League ( he, ליגת העל, ''Ligat Ha`Al'', ), is a professional association football league which operates as the highest division of the Israeli Football League – the state's league of Israel. The league is contested b ...

for the rest of the season.

NBA career statistics

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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References

External links

Towson bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Benimon, Jerrelle 1991 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Israel American men's basketball players Basketball players from Virginia Bnei Hertzeliya basketball players Fauquier High School alumni Georgetown Hoyas men's basketball players Guangzhou Loong Lions players Idaho Stampede players People from Warrenton, Virginia Sportspeople from Fauquier County, Virginia Power forwards (basketball) Ratiopharm Ulm players Qingdao Eagles players Towson Tigers men's basketball players Undrafted National Basketball Association players Utah Jazz players