Rodney O'Keith Purvis (born February 14, 1994) 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 who plays for

KB PEJA Klubi i Basketbollit Peja (English: ''Basketball Club Peja'') is a Kosovar professional basketball club based in Pejë. The club currently plays in the Kosovo Basketball Superleague. KB Peja has won 6 National Championships, 4 Kosovo Basketball Cu ...

of the

Kosovo Basketball Superleague The Kosovo Basketball Superleague (Albanian: Superliga e Kosovës në Basketboll) and known as the ArtMotion Superliga due to sponsorship reasons is the top men's professional basketball league in Kosovo. Basketball Superleague was founded in 1991 ...

. A

shooting guard The shooting guard (SG), also known as the two, two guard or off guard,Shooting guards are 6'3"–6'7"BBC Sports academy URL last accessed 2006-09-09. is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. A shooting guard's m ...

from

Plymouth, North Carolina Plymouth is the largest town in Washington County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 3,878 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Washington County. Plymouth is located on the Roanoke River about seven miles (11 km) upr ...

, 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

NC State Wolfpack The NC State Wolfpack is the nickname of the athletic teams representing North Carolina State University. The Wolfpack competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for college footb ...

and the

UConn Huskies The UConn Huskies (or Connecticut Huskies) are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Connecticut, located in Storrs. The school is a member of the NCAA's Division I and the Big East Conference. The university's fo ...

High school career

In October 2010, Purvis reclassified from the high school class of 2013 to the class of 2012. He said his classes would be in order and he could not wait to go to college. In the spring of 2011, he committed to

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

, but reopened his recruitment in May after Louisville assistant

Tim Fuller Timothy Floyd Fuller (born February 7, 1978) is the Vice President of Recruiting and Player Personnel at Overtime Elite. He is the former associate head basketball coach at the University of Missouri. He has worked as an assistant coach under Er ...

went to Missouri. On September 30, 2011, he announced his intent to play for

Mark Gottfried Mark Frederick Gottfried (born January 20, 1964) is an American men's college basketball coach and former player who most recently served as head coach of the Cal State Northridge Matadors Gottfried played one season at Oral Roberts and three se ...

at N.C. State, choosing the Wolfpack over offers from

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

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 ...

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 ran ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

and

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 ...

. He was the 2012 North Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year. Purvis played in the

2012 McDonald's All-American Boys Game The 2012 McDonald's All-American Boys Game was an All-star basketball game that was played on Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, home of the Chicago Bulls. The game's rosters featured the best and most highly re ...

. On April 14, 2012, Purvis compiled 22 points, two rebounds and three steals in the

Jordan Brand Classic The Jordan Brand Classic is a high school All-Star basketball game played annually in April. The game's rosters feature the best and most highly recruited high school boys in the senior class including alumns like Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony, Bl ...

. He was named the co-MVP with

Shabazz Muhammad Shabazz Nagee Muhammad (born November 13, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Beirut Club of the Lebanese Basketball League (LBL). He played one season of college basketball for the UCLA Bruins before being selected with the 1 ...

. ESPN analyst DJ Quinn wrote, "In a short period of time, Purvis distinguished himself as an athletic, strong, scoring threat. Excellent off the drive and finishing in the paint, he's difficult to guard. There's an attacking presence he brings to the table, making him one of the best young offensive players in his age group." He drew some comparison to fellow Raleigh native

John Wall Johnathan Hildred Wall Jr. (born September 6, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A Raleigh, North Carolina native, Wall was chosen with the List of firs ...

, although Purvis tried to shrug off these comparison. According to ESPN, he was the 15th best recruit in his class. He was the 12th ranked recruit in his class according to

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 ...

College career

In his only year at N.C. State, Purvis played in 35 games and averaged 8.3 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. He shot 44 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from the three-point line. He was named

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

Rookie of the Week on November 12. Purvis scored a season-high 21 against

Boston College Boston College (BC) is a private Jesuit research university in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. Founded in 1863, the university has more than 9,300 full-time undergraduates and nearly 5,000 graduate students. Although Boston College is classifie ...

on February 27. However, his minutes fell off when coach Gottfried moved forward

T. J. Warren Anthony "T. J." Warren Jr. (born September 5, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball as a small forward for the NC State Wolfpack in the ...

into the starting lineup, and Purvis scored a total of 12 points and played an average of 12.8 minutes in the final four games. He announced he was transferring to Connecticut on April 5, 2013. He said that N.C. State was not a good fit and he wanted to go off on his own. In his

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 ...

season, he trained with

Shabazz Napier Shabazz Bozie Napier (born July 14, 1991) is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for Olimpia Milano of the Italian Lega Basket Serie A (LBA) and the EuroLeague. He was drafted 24th overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2014 NBA draf ...

. Purvis underwent shoulder surgery in December 2013. Purvis was forced to sit out a game in his sophomore season for playing in two summer leagues. Purvis was named

AAC AAC may refer to: Aviation * Advanced Aircraft, a company from Carlsbad, California * Alaskan Air Command, a radar network * American Aeronautical Corporation, a company from Port Washington, New York * American Aviation, a company from Cleveland, ...

player of the week on March 2, 2015, after registering 28 points, three assists and three steals in an 81-73 win against SMU. He was selected to the All-AAC Tournament Team after scoring 29 points against SMU in the championship game. He finished second on the team in points per game (11.6) and 3-pointers (54) and collected 2.4 rebounds per game. Purvis had 28 points in a win against

UMass Lowell The University of Massachusetts Lowell (UMass Lowell and UML) is a public research university in Lowell, Massachusetts, with a satellite campus in Haverhill, Massachusetts. It is the northernmost member of the University of Massachusetts public ...

on December 20, 2015. As a junior, Purvis led the team in scoring with 12.8 points per game, to go with 72 assists and 32 steals in 36 games total. He led the Huskies to the NCAA Tournament, where they beat

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

, then lost to

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 ...

in the second round. He declared for the 2016 NBA Draft, but declined to hire an agent and opted to return to Connecticut for his final season on May 5. Purvis worked out at Chris Paul's camp for guards in the summer.

Professional career

Lakeland Magic (2017–2018)

After going undrafted in the

2017 NBA draft The 2017 NBA draft was held on June 22, 2017, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting U.S. college basketball players and other eligible players, including international players. ...

, Purvis joined 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), ...

for the

2017 NBA Summer League The 2017 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. Eight teams participated in the wee ...

. On October 9, 2017, Purvis signed a non-guaranteed contract with the

Orlando Magic The Orlando Magic are an American professional basketball team based in Orlando, Florida. The Magic compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The franchise was establ ...

, but was later waived by the Magic before the start of the season. On October 23, 2017, Purvis was included in training camp roster of the

Lakeland Magic The Lakeland Magic are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Lakeland, Florida, and are affiliated with the Orlando Magic. The Magic began play in the 2017–18 season and play their home games at the RP Fundin ...

Orlando Magic (2018)

On March 8, 2018, the

had announced that they had signed Purvis to a 10-day contract. Purvis had his NBA debut one day later, playing in 10 minutes of action in a 94–88 loss to 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 ...

. Purvis signed a second 10-day contract on March 18, and signed for the remainder of the season on March 28. On July 20, 2018, Purvis was traded to the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

in exchange for

Dakari Johnson Dakari Naeem Johnson (born September 22, 1995) is an American professional basketball player, who most recently played for the Qingdao Eagles of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for the University of Kentucky ...

and cash considerations. On July 23, 2018, Purvis was traded to 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 ...

in exchange for

Abdel Nader Abdel Nader ( ar, عبد الرحمن نادر; born September 25, 1993) is an Egyptian-American professional basketball player who last played for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for ...

. Oklahoma City also received cash considerations in the deal. On July 30, 2018, Purvis was waived by the Celtics.

Sioux Falls Skyforce (2018–2019)

Purvis signed with 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 ...

on October 11, 2018. He was waived on October 13. Purvis was subsequently added to the roster of the

Sioux Falls Skyforce The Sioux Falls Skyforce are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and are affiliated with the Miami Heat. The team plays their home games in the Sanford Pentagon, a place they have call ...

. In 49 games played for the Skyforce, he averaged 14.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.

Hapoel Tel Aviv (2019)

On July 27, 2019, Purvis signed a one-year deal with Hapoel Tel Aviv 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 ...

. On September 29, 2019, he parted ways with Hapoel after appearing in one pre-season tournament game.

Pallacanestro Cantù (2020)

On February 25, 2020, he has signed with

Pallacanestro Cantù Pallacanestro Cantù, known for sponsorship reasons as Acqua S.Bernardo Cantù, is an Italian professional basketball club that is based in Cantù, Lombardy. On the European-wide club competition scene, Cantù is second to Real Madrid – again ...

of the Italian LBA.

Bergamo Basket (2020–2021)

On August 9, 2020, Purvis signed with Bergamo Basket 2014, in the Serie A2 second tier Italian national league.

King Wilki Morskie Szczecin (2021)

On February 23, 2021, Purvis signed with

Wilki Morskie Szczecin The King Wilki Morskie Szczecin are a Polish professional basketball team based in Szczecin, West Pomeranian, Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provi ...

, in the

Polish Basketball League Polska Liga Koszykówki (PLK) (English language, English: Polish Basketball League) is a professional men's club basketball list of basketball leagues, league in Poland. It constitutes the first and highest-tier level of the Polish basketball leag ...

. He averaged 7.8 points, 2.9 assists, and 1.1 rebounds per game.

Cherkaski Mavpy (2021–2022)

On August 27, 2021, Purvis signed with

Cherkaski Mavpy BC Cherkaski Mavpy ( uk, баскетбольний клуб "Черкаські Мавпи", which means "Cherkasy Apes") is a Ukrainian professional basketball club that plays its home games in Cherkasy. In the 2007 NBA Draft, Cherkaski Mavpy ...

of the

Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague The Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague (USL) ( uk, Українська баскетбольна суперліга) is the first-tier level of professional basketball league in Ukraine. Established in 1992, the league is currently contested by 10 c ...

. He averaged 10.3 points, 3.8 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game. Purvis parted ways with the team on January 4, 2022.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

, 16 , , 2 , , 18.1 , , .327 , , .250 , , .867 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , .2 , , 6.0 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 16 , , 2 , , 18.1 , , .327, , .250 , , .867 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , .2 , , .2 , , 6.0

College

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NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

, 34 , , 23 , , 26.0 , , .444 , , .395 , , .512 , , 2.4 , , 1.3 , , .6 , , .1 , , 8.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2014–15 , style="text-align:left;",

, 33 , , 24 , , 28.7 , , .429 , , .360 , , .538 , , 2.4 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , .2 , , 11.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 21 , , 28.8 , , .434 , , .385 , , .657 , , 3.0 , , 2.1 , , .9 , , .1 , , 12.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

, 33 , , 32 , , 36.9 , , .372 , , .341 , , .811 , , 4.2 , , 2.5 , , 1.0 , , .2 , , 13.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 136 , , 100 , , 29.9 , , .416 , , .363 , , .638 , , 3.0 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , .1 , , 11.6 , -

National team career

On February 8, 2018, Purvis was selected to participate in USA World Cup Qualifying Team training camp.

Personal life

His godfather is N.C. Central coach

LeVelle Moton LeVelle DeShea Moton (born June 16, 1974) is an American college basketball coach and the current head coach of the men's basketball team at North Carolina Central University. He was a former player at North Carolina Central, having graduated in ...

. His mother is Shanda McNair. Although he is an only child, Purvis's mother adopted Tyrek Coger when he was in eighth grade. Coger died after a workout at

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

on July 21, 2016.

References

External links

Rodney Purvis
at NBADraft.net
Rodney Purvis
at RealGM.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Purvis, Rodney 1994 births Living people African-American basketball players American men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Israel American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Poland American expatriate basketball people in Ukraine Basketball players from Raleigh, North Carolina Lakeland Magic players McDonald's High School All-Americans NC State Wolfpack men's basketball players Orlando Magic players Pallacanestro Cantù players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) People from Plymouth, North Carolina Shooting guards Sioux Falls Skyforce players Sportspeople from Greenville, North Carolina UConn Huskies men's basketball players Undrafted National Basketball Association players United States men's national basketball team players