Konstantine Demetrios "Kosta" Koufos ( Greek: ; born February 24, 1989) is a

Greek-American Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest es ...

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 who plays for the London Lions of the

British Basketball League The British Basketball League (BBL) is a men's professional basketball league in Great Britain and represents the highest level of play in the countries. The league is contested by 10 teams from England and Scotland. There are no clubs howeve ...

(BBL). He played one season at

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

before being selected 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 (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

with the 23rd overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft.

High school career

Koufos attended GlenOak High School in Canton, Ohio, where he played center for the GlenOak Golden Eagles high school basketball team. As a junior, Koufos averaged 24 points per game, 11.1 rebounds per game, and four blocked shots per game and he was named Second-Team All-State. As a senior, Koufos averaged 25.9 points per game, 15.4 rebounds per game and 5.2 blocked shots per game. He was instrumental in GlenOak snapping Canton McKinley's 41-game win streak in January 2007, when he posted 32 points, 19 rebounds and 10 blocks to help the Golden Eagles edge the Bulldogs, 56–55, in overtime. The next day, Koufos recorded 32 points, 15 rebounds and seven blocks against Detroit Country Day, to lead GlenOak to its ninth consecutive victory. Koufos finished second to future Buckeye teammate

Jon Diebler Jon Keith Diebler (born June 22, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player who is the director of recruiting for the Butler Bulldogs of the Big East Conference. He played four seasons of college basketball at Ohio State Universi ...

in the Mr. Ohio Basketball voting. After his senior season with GlenOak, Koufos was named the Division I player of the year and was also named First-Team All-State. He also earned First-Team Northeast Inland All-District and third-team ''Parade'' All-American honors and participated in the 2007 McDonald's All-American Game and 2007 Jordan Brand Classic. Considered a five-star recruit by

Rivals.com Rivals.com is a network of websites that focus mainly on college football and basketball recruiting in the United States. The network was started in 1998 and employs more than 300 personnel. History Rivals.com was founded in 1998 by Jim Heckma ...

, Koufos was listed as the No. 3 center and the No. 16 player in the nation in 2007.

College career

Koufos played one season 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 Athleti ...

for the

Ohio State Buckeyes The Ohio State Buckeyes are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Ohio State University, located in Columbus, Ohio. The athletic programs are named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Ohio and after the state tre ...

. For the 2007–08 season, he was named third-team All-

Big Ten The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...

and was named to the league's All-Freshman Team. He ranked fifth in the Big Ten in scoring (14.4 ppg) and rebounding (6.7 rpg), and ranked second in blocked shots (1.8 bpg) and seventh in field goal percentage (.508). He helped the Buckeyes reach the final of the National Invitation Tournament, where they won 92–85 over UMass behind Koufos' 22 points, nine rebounds and three blocked shots. He was subsequently named NIT Most Valuable Player. He declared for the 2008 NBA draft following his freshman season.

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2008–2010)

Koufos was selected by the

with the 23rd overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft. During his rookie season, he spent time in the

NBA D-League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA Dev ...

on assignment with the Utah Flash. He went on to receive two assignments to the Flash during the 2009–10 season. In two seasons with the Jazz, Koufos played in 84 games and averaged 3.3 points and 2.2 rebounds.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2010–2011)

On July 13, 2010, Koufos was traded, alongside two future first-round draft picks, to 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 ...

in exchange for

Al Jefferson Al Ricardo Jefferson (born January 4, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He was a high school All-American for Prentiss High School in Mississippi before skipping college to enter the 2004 NBA draft, where he was drafted 1 ...

Denver Nuggets (2011–2013)

On February 22, 2011, Koufos was acquired by the Denver Nuggets in a three-way trade involving the Timberwolves and the New York Knicks. On January 25, 2012, he signed a three-year, $9 million contract extension with the Nuggets. He averaged career-best figures in Denver, with 6.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.

Memphis Grizzlies (2013–2015)

On June 27, 2013, Koufos was 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 exchange for Darrell Arthur and the draft rights to Joffrey Lauvergne. In two seasons with Memphis, he averaged 5.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.

Sacramento Kings (2015–2019)

On July 13, 2015, Koufos signed with 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 ...

. On June 30, 2019, Koufos became an unrestricted free agent.

CSKA Moscow (2019–2020)

On July 19, 2019, Koufos signed a two-year deal with

CSKA Moscow CSKA Moscow (russian: ЦСКА Москва) is a Russian sports club based in Moscow. It was created in 1911 in the Russian Empire on base of OLLS (Skiing Society, founded 1901). Later, during the Soviet era, it was a central piece of the big So ...

of the

VTB United League VTB United League (russian: Единая Лига ВТБ) is an international professional men's club basketball league that was founded in 2008. It is made up of mostly Russian clubs, along with one each from Belarus and Kazakhstan. Since 2013, it ...

and the EuroLeague. He averaged 3.7 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. On May 27, 2020, the team opted out of the contract.

Olympiacos (2021)

On February 20, 2021, Koufos signed with

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number ...

of the

Greek Basket League The Greek Basket League (GBL), often also referred to as the Greek A1 Basketball League, or Greek Basketball Championship (originally called Panhellenic Basketball Championship), and also known as the Stoiximan Basket League for sponsorship reaso ...

and the EuroLeague until the end of the 2020–21 season.

NBA G League Ignite (2021)

On November 5, 2021, Koufos signed with the

NBA G League Ignite The NBA G League Ignite is a developmental basketball team in the NBA G League. Based in Henderson, Nevada, the team was designed to play exhibition games outside the G League's traditional scheduling as part of a one-year development program for e ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

London Lions (2022–present)

On July 13, 2022, Koufos signed with the London Lions for the 2022–23 BBL season.

National team career

Greek junior team

Koufos was a member of the junior Greek national under-18 team at the 2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship in Spain. He led his team to the tournament's final game, and although Greece lost in the finals to Serbia's under-18 team, Koufos won the tournament's MVP award, after leading the competition in points, rebounds, and blocked shots, with averages of 26.5 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game.

Greek senior team

In 2009, Koufos debuted with the senior

Greek national basketball team The Greece men's national basketball team ( el, Eθνική Oμάδα Καλαθοσφαίρισης Ελλάδος) represents Greece in international basketball. They are controlled by the Hellenic Basketball Federation, the governing body for ...

, and he competed at the

EuroBasket 2009 The 2009 FIBA European Championship, commonly called FIBA EuroBasket 2009, was the 36th FIBA EuroBasket regional basketball championship held by FIBA Europe. The tournament, which was hosted by Poland, began on 7 September and concluded with the ...

, where he won a bronze medal. During the EuroBasket 2009 tournament, he averaged 5.6 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. He also played at the

EuroBasket 2011 EuroBasket 2011 was the 37th men's European Basketball Championship, held by FIBA Europe. The competition was hosted by Lithuania. This was the second time EuroBasket had been held in Lithuania, the country having also hosted the 1939 cha ...

, where he averaged 8.7 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. Koufos also competed at the

EuroBasket 2015 EuroBasket 2015 was the 39th edition of the EuroBasket championship that was organized by FIBA Europe. It was co-hosted by Croatia, France, Germany, and Latvia, making it the first EuroBasket held in more than one country. It started on 5 S ...

, where he had his best tournament with the senior Greek national basketball team, as he averaged 10 points and 6.6 rebounds per game, in 8 games played. He also played with Greece at the 2016 Turin FIBA World Olympic Qualifying Tournament, where he averaged 7.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. From 2009 to 2016, Koufos has appeared in a total of 57 games, scoring 503 points(an average of 8.8 points per game).

Personal life

Koufos is the son of Greek immigrants Katerina and Alex Koufos, a pediatric doctor in Canton who died when Kostas was 9. Their parents were originally respectively from

Messenia Messenia or Messinia ( ; el, Μεσσηνία ) is a regional unit (''perifereiaki enotita'') in the southwestern part of the Peloponnese region, in Greece. Until the implementation of the Kallikratis plan on 1 January 2011, Messenia was a ...

and

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese (region), Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government refor ...

. He has an older sister, Maria, and an older brother, Vasilios. Koufos holds

dual citizenship Multiple/dual citizenship (or multiple/dual nationality) is a legal status in which a person is concurrently regarded as a national or citizen of more than one country under the laws of those countries. Conceptually, citizenship is focused on ...

of both the United States and Greece, thus making him eligible to represent Greece internationally. He can speak

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

.Papagiannis discusses recent success and the importance of mentorship from his teammates.
/ref> The Spider with roots from Messenia and Corinth.
/ref> In September 2018 he married fellow Greek-American Eleni Bourlas.

Awards and accomplishments

* 2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship: *2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship:

MVP In team sports, a most valuable player award, abbreviated 'MVP award', is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particu ...

2008 National Invitation Tournament The 2008 National Invitation Tournament (known through sponsorship as the MasterCard NIT) was a single-elimination tournament of 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams that did not participate in the 2008 NCAA Divis ...

: MVP *

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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, 36 , , 0 , , 4.8 , , .468 , , .000 , , .600 , , 1.3 , , .2 , , .1 , , .1 , , 1.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, 39 , , 1 , , 8.6 , , .435 , , .000 , , .500 , , 2.5 , , .2 , , .2 , , .5 , , 2.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, 11 , , 1 , , 8.9 , , .500 , , .000 , , .632 , , 3.0 , , .0 , , .2 , , .5 , , 4.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 48 , , 24 , , 16.5 , , .599 , , .000 , , .600 , , 5.4 , , .3 , , .5 , , .9 , , 5.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 81 , , 81 , , 22.4 , , .581 , , .000 , , .558 , , 6.9 , , .4 , , .5 , , 1.3 , , 8.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

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, 81 , , 3 , , 16.6 , , .508 , , .000 , , .647 , , 5.3 , , .5 , , .4 , , .8 , , 5.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 78 , , 14 , , 19.0 , , .532 , , .000 , , .548 , , 5.4 , , .4 , , .5 , , .9 , , 6.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 71 , , 62 , , 20.0 , , .551 , , .000 , , .613 , , 5.7 , , .7 , , .5 , , .7 , , 6.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 71 , , 12 , , 19.6 , , .571 , , .000 , , .446 , , 6.6 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , .5 , , 6.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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, 42 , , 1 , , 12.0 , , .477 , , .000 , , .417 , , 4.2 , , .9 , , .4 , , .4 , , 3.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 686 , , 228 , , 16.4 , , .534 , , .000 , , .582 , , 5.0 , , .5 , , .7 , , .4 , , 5.7

Playoffs

, - , align="left" , 2010 , align="left" ,

, 9 , , 0 , , 3.4 , , .400 , , .000 , , .000 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .1 , , .9 , - , align="left" , 2011 , align="left" ,

, 1 , , 0 , , 2.0 , , 1.000 , , .000 , , .000 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 2.0 , - , align="left" ,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

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, 3 , , 2 , , 8.7 , , .333 , , .000 , , .000 , , 3.7 , , .0 , , .0 , , .3 , , .7 , - , align="left" ,

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fa ...

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, 6 , , 2 , , 16.7 , , .368 , , 1.000 , , .833 , , 3.5 , , .5 , , .5 , , .7 , , 3.3 , - , align="left" ,

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

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, 7 , , 0 , , 6.4 , , .438 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 2.1 , , .3 , , .3 , , .4 , , 2.6 , - , align="left" , 2015 , align="left" ,

, 11 , , 0 , , 11.5 , , .540 , , .000 , , .600 , , 3.5 , , .4 , , .4 , , .5 , , 3.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 37 , , 4 , , 8.9 , , .460 , , 1.000 , , .800 , , 2.6 , , .2 , , .2 , , .4 , , 2.4

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;",

, 17 , , 1 , , 9.3 , , .547 , , – , , .556 , , 2.8 , , 0.2 , , 0.5 , , 0.2 , , 3.7 , , 4.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2020–21 , style="text-align:left;",

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College

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, 37 , , 35 , , 27.1 , , .508 , , .349 , , .680 , , 6.7 , , .5 , , .4 , , 1.8 , , 14.4

References

External links

Career statistics and player information from NBA.com
* * ttps://www.basket.gr/playerview/?playerid=1307 {{DEFAULTSORT:Koufos, Kosta 1989 births Living people American men's basketball players American people of Greek descent Basketball players from Canton, Ohio Centers (basketball) Denver Nuggets players Greek men's basketball players McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Grizzlies players Minnesota Timberwolves players National Basketball Association players from Greece NBA G League Ignite players Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) PBC CSKA Moscow players Power forwards (basketball) Sacramento Kings players Utah Jazz players Utah Jazz draft picks

High school career

College career

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2008–2010)

Minnesota Timberwolves (2010–2011)

Denver Nuggets (2011–2013)

Memphis Grizzlies (2013–2015)

Sacramento Kings (2015–2019)

CSKA Moscow (2019–2020)

Olympiacos (2021)

NBA G League Ignite (2021)

London Lions (2022–present)

National team career

Greek junior team

Greek senior team

Personal life

Awards and accomplishments

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

Playoffs

EuroLeague

College

See also

References

External links