Thomas Jermaine Bryant (born July 31, 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

Los Angeles Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

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

Indiana Hoosiers The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in NCAA Division I, Division I of the Nationa ...

from 2015 to 2017.

High school career

Bryant played basketball at Bishop Kearney, where as a sophomore he led his team to a 17–8 record, the 2013 New York Class AA Tournament crown, and the New York Federation Tournament of Champions. After his sophomore year, Bryant transferred to

Huntington Prep School Huntington Prep or Huntington St. Joseph Prep is a basketball-focused college preparatory school located in Huntington, West Virginia. Huntington Prep was originally unrelated to the public Huntington High School located in the same city, thoug ...

Huntington, West Virginia Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is the county seat of Cabell County, and the largest city in the Huntington–Ashland metropolitan area, sometimes referred to as the Tri-State Area. A h ...

during the 2014 school year. As a junior, he averaged 13.9 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game. While there, he played on the AAU team, Team SCAN on the

Nike Elite Youth Basketball League The Nike Elite Youth Basketball League, also known as Nike EYBL, or simply EYBL, is a basketball circuit for teams of players aged 17 and under. The circuit was founded in 2010 and is composed of AAU travel teams. Both boys and girls play in the E ...

Circuit. On January 3, 2015, Bryant scored 23 points and 12 rebounds in a 89–49 win over Whitney Young. As a senior, Bryant averaged 17.3 points, 11.6 rebounds, 4.5 blocks and 2.5 steals per game. He was ranked the 20th best recruit in the 2015 class by

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

and was recruited heavily by many schools, including

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

, and other power conference schools. However, his final decision came down to Indiana and Syracuse. According to Bryant's mother, who was heavily in favor of Syracuse, " epicked Indiana because Syracuse's basketball program was in chaos." While Bryant was trying to decide which school to attend, Syracuse was in the middle of an NCAA investigation, which eventually led to the loss of 12 scholarships over the next four years, 108 vacated wins, and

Jim Boeheim James Arthur Boeheim Jr. ( ; born November 17, 1944) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the Syracuse Orange men's team of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Boeheim has guided the Orange to ten Big East Conference ...

being suspended for the first 9 games of the 2015–2016

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 ...

season. Bryant's final verbal commitment to Indiana was televised live on April 4, 2015 during the Dick's Sporting Goods National Tournament on

. During 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 ...

, Bryant scored 9 points and grabbed 3 rebounds in 16 minutes of play for the East team. He was the fifth consecutive McDonald's All-American

Tom Crean Tom or Thomas Crean may refer to: *Thomas Crean (1873–1923), Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor *Tom Crean (explorer) (1877–1938), Irish seaman and Antarctic explorer *Tom Crean (basketball) Thomas Aaron Crean (born Ma ...

was able to recruit to play at IU.

College career

Bryant had a break out performance in an 86–65 win against Creighton. He recorded 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 blocks in the Hoosiers win. Bryant contributed 19 points and five rebounds in a win over

in the NCAA Tournament. Bryant averaged 11.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game as a freshman. After the season, Bryant was named both Big Ten All-Freshman team as well as Third-team All-Big Ten. Bryant announced his return for his sophomore year. His shooting percentage declined as a sophomore, but Bryant averaged 12.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. Bryant was projected as a possible top 5 pick 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. ...

heading into the season along with teammate

OG Anunoby Ogugua "O.G." Anunoby Jr. (born 17 July 1997) is a British professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Indiana Hoosiers. Early life Ogugua Anunoby Jr. ...

Professional career

Los Angeles Lakers (2017–2018)

On June 22, 2017, Bryant was drafted 42nd overall in the

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), ...

. He was later traded along with the 30th pick,

Josh Hart Josh Hart (born March 6, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz with the 30th ...

to the

in exchange for the Lakers 28th pick, Tony Bradley. On July 30, 2017, Bryant signed his rookie scale contract with the Lakers. On June 30, 2018, the Lakers waived Bryant. The Lakers assigned Thomas Bryant to their G League affiliate the South Bay Lakers. Following the 2017–18 season, he was named to the All-NBA G League First Team.

Washington Wizards (2018–2022)

On July 2, 2018, Bryant was claimed off waivers by the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast D ...

. On December 22, 2018, Bryant shot 14–14 and scored a career-high 31 points against the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

, tying for the fourth most field goals made without a miss in NBA history, with only

Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman Chamberlain (; August 21, 1936 – October 12, 1999) was an American professional basketball player who played as a Center (basketball), center. Standing at tall, he played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for 14 yea ...

exceeding the 14 field goal mark. On July 7, 2019, Bryant re-signed with the Wizards on a 3-year, $25 million contract. On July 9, 2020, he tested positive for COVID-19. On January 10, 2021, the Wizards announced that Bryant had suffered a partially torn

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...

in his left knee during a 124–128 loss to

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 ...

a day before.

Return to the Lakers (2022–present)

On July 6, 2022, Bryant signed with the

. On December 18, Bryant made a game-winning dunk in a 119–117 win over the

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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

L.A. Lakers The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...

, 15 , , 0 , , 4.8 , , .381 , , .100 , , .556 , , 1.1 , , .4 , , .1 , , .1 , , 1.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

, 72 , , 53 , , 20.8 , , .616 , , .333 , , .781 , , 6.3 , , 1.3 , , .3 , , .9 , , 10.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 46 , , 36 , , 24.9, , .581 , , .407 , , .741 , , 7.2 , , 1.8 , , .5 , , 1.1 , , 13.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 10 , , 10 , , 27.1 , , .648 , , .429 , , .667 , , 6.1 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , .8 , , 14.3 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 27 , , 9 , , 16.3 , , .520 , , .286 , , .875 , , 4.0 , , .9 , , .2 , , .8 , , 7.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 170 , , 108 , , 20.1 , , .590 , , .350 , , .764 , , 5.7 , , 1.3 , , .4 , , .9 , , 10.2

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2015–16 , style="text-align:left;",

, 35 , , 35 , , 22.6 , , .683 , , .333 , , .706 , , 5.8 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .9 , , 11.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2016–17 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 28.1 , , .519 , , .383 , , .730 , , 6.6 , , 1.5 , , .8 , , 1.5 , , 12.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 69 , , 69 , , 25.3 , , .592 , , .373 , , .718 , , 6.2 , , 1.2 , , .6 , , 1.2 , , 12.2

References

External links

Indiana Hoosiers bio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bryant, Thomas 1997 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from New York (state) Indiana Hoosiers men's basketball players Los Angeles Lakers players McDonald's High School All-Americans Power forwards (basketball) South Bay Lakers players Sportspeople from Rochester, New York Utah Jazz draft picks Washington Wizards players