Malik Jahmal Fitts (born July 4, 1997) 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

Ontario Clippers The Ontario Clippers, formerly known as the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ontario, are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Ontario, California, and are affiliated with the Los Angeles Clippers. The team began play in ...

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 D ...

. He previously played for 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 ...

. 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

South Florida Bulls The South Florida Bulls (also known as the USF Bulls) are the athletic teams that represent the University of South Florida. USF competes in NCAA Division I and is a member of the American Athletic Conference for all sports besides sailing, ...

and the

Saint Mary's Gaels The Saint Mary's Gaels are the athletic teams that compete at Saint Mary's College of California in Moraga, California. The nickname applies to the college's intercollegiate NCAA Division I teams and to the school's club sports teams. Most varsit ...

Early life and high school career

Fitts grew up in

Rancho Cucamonga, California Rancho Cucamonga ( ) is a city located just south of the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and Angeles National Forest in San Bernardino County, California, United States. About east of Downtown Los Angeles, Rancho Cucamonga is the 28 ...

and began playing basketball at the age of four, idolizing

Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely r ...

. He attended

Damien High School Damien High School is an all-boys Roman Catholic high school in La Verne, in the U.S. state of California named for Saint Damien of Molokai. The school had its first graduating class in 1963. Each of Damien's freshmen classes draws from an avera ...

. He helped lead the school to a CIF Division III state title as a senior and averaged 16 points and 8 rebounds per game, earning First Team All-Inland Valley honors. Fitts opted to complete a

postgraduate year A postgraduate (PG) year is an extra year of secondary coursework at a boarding school following high school graduation, but before entering college. It is a gap year option intended for students who either have not applied or were not admitted ...

Brewster Academy Brewster Academy is a co-educational independent boarding school located on in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, United States. It occupies of shoreline along Lake Winnipesaukee. With around 350 students, it serves grades nine through twelve and post-g ...

Wolfeboro, New Hampshire Wolfeboro is a town in Carroll County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 6,416 at the 2020 census. A resort area situated beside Lake Winnipesaukee, Wolfeboro includes the village of Wolfeboro Falls. History The town was granted ...

. While at Brewster, he committed to play college basketball at South Florida over offers from DePaul,

Bradley Bradley is an English surname derived from a place name meaning "broad wood" or "broad meadow" in Old English. Like many English surnames Bradley can also be used as a given name and as such has become popular. It is also an Anglicisation of t ...

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

College career

Fitts began his collegiate career at South Florida. He saw significant playing time as a freshman, playing in 27 games and starting 18 while averaging 7.4 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. He was named the

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (The American or AAC) is an American collegiate athletic conference, featuring 11 member universities and five affiliate member universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) ...

Rookie of the Week after a 29-point, 11-rebound performance against

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 ...

. Following the end of the season Fitts announced he would be leaving the program. Fitts transferred to

Saint Mary's College of California Saint Mary's College of California is a private Catholic college in Moraga, California. Established in 1863, it is affiliated with the Catholic Church and administered by the De La Salle Brothers. The college offers undergraduate and graduate ...

, sitting out one year per NCAA transfer rules. He became an immediate starter for the

Gaels The Gaels ( ; ga, Na Gaeil ; gd, Na Gàidheil ; gv, Ny Gaeil ) are an ethnolinguistic group native to Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man in the British Isles. They are associated with the Gaelic languages: a branch of the Celtic langu ...

the following season, averaging 15.2 points and a team-leading 7.6 rebounds per game and was named second team All- West Coast Conference (WCC). As a redshirt junior, Fitts was a focal point on the team's offense alongside Jordan Ford. Fitts scored a career high 30 points and added eight rebounds in an 86–80 win over

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

on February 2, 2019. Fitts hit 5 of six three point attempts and scored 28 total points in Saint Mary's 89–77 win over

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

on December 14, 2019. He set a career high with 14 rebounds along with 17 points in a 66–60 win over

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

on February 6, 2020. At the conclusion of the regular season, Fitts was named to the First Team All-WCC. As a junior, Fitts averaged 16.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. After the end of the season, Fitts announced that he was entering the

2020 NBA draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecti ...

and signing with an agent, forgoing his final season of eligibility.

Professional career

Agua Caliente Clippers (2021)

After going undrafted in the

, Fitts signed with 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 ...

. He was waived by the team on December 14 after appearing in two preseason games. On February 4, 2021, he signed with the Agua Caliente Clippers, appearing in 14 games and averaging 11.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists.

Los Angeles Clippers (2021)

On April 9, 2021, Fitts signed a 10-day contract with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Utah Jazz (2021–2022)

On September 28, 2021, Fitts signed 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), ...

. His contract was converted to a two-way deal on October 16. He split time between the Jazz and their

affiliate, the

Salt Lake City Stars The Salt Lake City Stars are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and are affiliated with the Utah Jazz. As of the 2022-23 season, the Stars play in the Maverik Center in West Valley City, U ...

. On January 13, 2022, Fitts was waived by the Jazz.

Boston Celtics (2022)

On February 23, 2022, Fitts signed a 10-day contract with the

. He signed a second 10-day contract on March 5. Fitts signed a two-year contract on March 15. The Celtics reached the

2022 NBA Finals The 2022 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 2021–22 season and conclusion of the season's playoffs. In this best-of-seven playoff series, the Western Conference champion Golden State War ...

, but were defeated by the Golden State Warriors in 6 games. On July 9, 2022, Fitts was traded, alongside

Nik Stauskas Nikolas Tomas Stauskas (born October 7, 1993) is a Canadian professional basketball player who last played for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A shooting guard, Stauskas played two seasons of college basketball f ...

, Aaron Nesmith,

Daniel Theis Daniel Theis (born April 4, 1992) is a German professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). After seven seasons in the Basketball Bundesliga where he was a four-time All Star and three-time ch ...

Juwan Morgan Juwan Christopher Morgan (born April 17, 1997) is an American professional basketball player for the Ontario Clippers of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers. Early life and high school career Morgan is the son ...

and a 2023 first-round pick, to the Indiana Pacers in exchange for

Malcolm Brogdon Malcolm Moses Adams Brogdon (born December 11, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Virginia Cavaliers under Tony Bennett. As ...

. On July 14, Fitts was waived by the Pacers.

Ontario Clippers (2022–present)

On October 24, 2022, Fitts joined the

training camp roster.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;", L.A. Clippers , 3 , , 0 , , 3.7 , , .333 , , .500 , , , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

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 ...

, 7 , , 0 , , 5.0 , , .222 , , .500 , , , , 1.4 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .9 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, 8 , , 0 , , 3.5 , , .600 , , .500 , , , , .9 , , .6 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 18 , , 0 , , 4.1 , , .409 , , .500 , , , , 1.1 , , .3 , , .0 , , .0 , , 1.3

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...

, style="text-align:left;",

, 9 , , 0 , , 1.8 , , .750 , , 1.000 , , — , , .2 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .9 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 9 , , 0 , , 1.8 , , .750 , , 1.000 , , — , , .2 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .9

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;", South Florida , 27 , , 18 , , 24.4 , , .395 , , .338 , , .538 , , 4.6 , , 1.1 , , .7 , , .4 , , 7.4 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;", Saint Mary's , style="text-align:center;" colspan="11",

Redshirt , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", Saint Mary's , 34 , , 33 , , 30.7 , , .475 , , .406 , , .770 , , 7.6 , , .9 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , 15.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Saint Mary's , 34 , , 34 , , 34.2 , , .472 , , .408 , , .799 , , 7.1 , , 1.2 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , 16.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 95 , , 85 , , 30.2 , , .458 , , .392 , , .745 , , 6.5 , , 1.1 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 13.5

Personal life

Fitts grew up in a Christian family, and his father is a pastor.

References

External links

Saint Mary's Gaels bioSouth Florida Bulls bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fitts, Malik 1997 births Living people Agua Caliente Clippers players American men's basketball players Basketball players from California Boston Celtics players Brewster Academy alumni Los Angeles Clippers players Maine Celtics players People from Rancho Cucamonga, California Power forwards (basketball) Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball players Salt Lake City Stars players South Florida Bulls men's basketball players Undrafted National Basketball Association players Utah Jazz players