Jonah Anthony Bolden (born 2 January 1996) is an Australian-American former 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. He started his professional career with FMP in Serbia, where he was named the

ABA League Top Prospect The ABA League Top Prospect award, also known as the Adriatic League Top Prospect award, is an annual award given by the Adriatic League (ABA League), which is a European regional league, that is the top-tier level professional basketball league fo ...

in 2017. He played a season-and-a-half with the

Philadelphia 76ers The Philadelphia 76ers, colloquially known as the Sixers, are an American professional basketball team based in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The 76ers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Ea ...

before joining 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 ...

. Bolden is the son of an American former pro basketball player

Bruce Bolden Bruce Bolden (born November 30, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 17 years in the National Basketball League (NBL) in Australia. He won an NBL championship with the South East Melbourne Magic in 1992, when he ...

, and moved to the United States as a senior in high school. A highly ranked

college recruit A college ( Latin: ''collegium'') is an educational institution or a constituent part of one. A college may be a degree-awarding tertiary educational institution, a part of a collegiate or federal university, an institution offering ...

, 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

UCLA Bruins The UCLA Bruins are the athletic teams that represent the University of California, Los Angeles. The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pac-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation (MPSF) ...

. Bolden was ineligible to play with the Bruins in his freshman year in 2014–15 after the

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 ...

(NCAA) ruled him a partial-qualifier due to his transferring as a high school senior. After playing with UCLA as a sophomore, Bolden left the school and played one season with FMP. He was selected by Philadelphia in the second round of 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. ...

with the 36th overall pick, but played one season with

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

in Israel before joining the 76ers. He also played for the

Australia national under-19 basketball team The Australian national under-18 and under-19 basketball team is the junior men's basketball side that represents Australia in international under-18 and under-19 youth basketball competitions. Nicknamed the Emus, the team is governed by the Au ...

in the

2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship The 2013 FIBA Under-19 World Championship (Czech: Mistrovství světa FIBA do 19 let 2013) was the 11th edition of the FIBA U19 World Championship, the biennial international men's youth basketball championship contested by the U19 national team ...

Early life

Bolden was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

to an American father

and Egyptian mother Marie Therese Yacoub. He has a younger sister Cairo Bolden. His mother is an author, screenwriter and producer. His father played professional basketball, including 17 years in the National Basketball League in Australia. Jonah grew up in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mounta ...

and began playing basketball for the

Bankstown Bruins Bankstown Bruins is a NBL1 East club based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club fields a team in the Men's NBL1 East. The club is a division of Bankstown Basketball Association (BBA), the major administrative basketball organisation in the reg ...

at five years of age. As a teenager, he attended

Homebush Boys High School ''(Latin for ''Upright and strong'') , established = 1936 , type = Public, secondary, single-sex, day school , free_label = Sister school , free_text = Strathfield Girls High School , principal = Kevin Elgood (2018) , address = ...

and was first selected to represent his home state of

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

at the 2013 Basketball Australia Under 18 National Championships. Bolden led the NSW Metro state team to the national final by averaging 18 ppg and 13 rpg throughout the competition and his outstanding performance in the national championships saw him selected as the youngest player to represent Australia at the

. In August 2013, he relocated to the United States to play as a senior at Findlay College Prep, a private preparatory school in

Henderson, Nevada Henderson is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, about southeast of downtown Las Vegas. It is the second largest city in Nevada, after Las Vegas, with an estimated population of 320,189 in 2019. The city is part of the Las Vegas Val ...

, near Las Vegas. However, his high school eligibility expired after his first semester and he transferred midseason to

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 ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. In December 2013, Bolden chose to play college basketball at

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 ...

over

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. ...

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 ...

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 ...

USC USC most often refers to: * University of South Carolina, a public research university ** University of South Carolina System, the main university and its satellite campuses ** South Carolina Gamecocks, the school athletic program * University of ...

, and SMU. A consensus four-star recruit, he was listed as the No. 25 player in his class by

Scout.com Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...

, No. 32 by Rivals.com, and No. 69 by

ESPN.com ESPN.com is the official website of ESPN. It is owned by ESPN Internet Ventures, a division of ESPN Inc. History Since launching in April 1995 as ESPNET.SportsZone.com (ESPNET SportsZone), the website has developed numerous sections including: ...

, while also being ranked as the No. 5

power forward The power forward (PF), also known as the four, is one of the five traditional positions in a regulation basketball game. Traditionally, power forwards have played a role similar to centers. When on offense, they typically play with their ba ...

by Scout.com.

College career

Bolden was 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 ...

in his freshman year at UCLA after he was ruled ineligible to play in 2014–15. Before the season, the

NCAA 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 ...

declared him a partial-qualifier, stemming from his transfer from Australia when his senior year in high school has already began. In January 2015, he was cleared by the NCAA to practice with the Bruins. In May, he underwent

arthroscopic surgery Arthroscopy (also called arthroscopic or keyhole surgery) is a minimally invasive surgical procedure on a joint in which an examination and sometimes treatment of damage is performed using an arthroscope, an endoscope that is inserted into the ...

for a

torn meniscus A tear of a meniscus is a rupturing of one or more of the fibrocartilage strips in the knee called menisci. When doctors and patients refer to "torn cartilage" in the knee, they actually may be referring to an injury to a meniscus at the top of ...

in his right knee that was expected to sideline him for six to eight weeks. A

guard Guard or guards may refer to: Professional occupations * Bodyguard, who protects an individual from personal assault * Crossing guard, who stops traffic so pedestrians can cross the street * Lifeguard, who rescues people from drowning * Prison gu ...

capable of playing either forward position, Bolden entered 2015–16 as the Bruins' projected replacement for wing player

Norman Powell Norman WC Powell (born May 25, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Powell played college basketball with the UCLA Bruins, where he was an all-conference ...

and combo forward

Kevon Looney Kevon Grant Looney (born February 6, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). As a freshman playing college basketball with the UCLA Bruins, he earned secon ...

, who both moved on to the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball sports league, 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 i ...

(NBA). However, his college debut was delayed after he violated unspecified team rules and was held out of UCLA's season opener, an 84–81 upset loss to

Monmouth Monmouth ( , ; cy, Trefynwy meaning "town on the Monnow") is a town and community in Wales. It is situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. Monmouth is northeast of Cardiff, and west of London. ...

. He made his first appearance the following game, making an impact on defense while scoring 11 points and adding five rebounds in an 88–83 win over Cal Poly. On 12 December, Bolden played 30 minutes and had 10 points and 11 rebounds for his first career

double-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 ...

in a 71–66 road win over No. 20 Gonzaga. UCLA coach

Steve Alford Stephen Todd Alford (born November 23, 1964) is an American men's college basketball coach and former professional player who is the head coach for the Nevada Wolf Pack of the Mountain West Conference (MWC). Born and raised in Indiana, he was a ...

inserted him into the game to guard a hot

Kyle Wiltjer Kyle Gregory Wiltjer (born October 20, 1992) is a Canadian-American professional basketball player for the Zhejiang Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He spent two seasons of college basketball with the Kentucky Wildcats before tr ...

, who finished with 20 points but shot only 4 of 12 for the remainder of the game.

Tony Parker William Anthony Parker Jr. (born 17 May 1982) is a French-American former professional basketball player and majority owner of ASVEL Basket in LNB Pro A. Himself the son of a basketball pro, Parker started his career at Paris Basket Racing in ...

had the initial defensive assignment, but Bolden provided more athleticism and mobility. In the following game against Louisiana-Lafayette, Bolden made his first career start when

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

Thomas Welsh was out sick, and the Bruins won 89–80. While he emerged as UCLA's top player off the bench, Bolden's impact on offense was minimal. After UCLA struggled on defense while starting 3–5 in their

Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Divisi ...

schedule, Alford believed their front court was "slow" and moved Bolden into the

starting lineup In sports, a starting lineup is an official list of the set of players who will participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as ''starters'', whereas the others are ''substitutes'' ...

in place of Parker against

Washington State Washington (), officially the State of Washington, is a U.S. state, state in the Northwestern United States, Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. Named for George Washington—the first President of the United States, U.S. p ...

. Bolden scored only three points, but his defense helped the team win 83–50 for their largest margin of victory of the season. On 14 February 2016, he led the team with a career-high 16 points to go with nine rebounds in a 78–65 win over

Arizona State Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...

. The Bruins lost their final five games of the season to finish with a 15–17 record. Bolden made 11 starts, and averaged 4.6 points and 4.8 rebounds in 21.7 minutes in 31 games. He ranked third on the team with 27 blocks. Bolden felt that he was underutilized during his first season. During the offseason, he hoped to move to

small forward The small forward (SF), also known as the three or swingman, is one of the five positions in a regulation basketball game. Small forwards are typically shorter, quicker, and leaner than power forwards and centers but taller, larger, and stronge ...

, the position he was recruited to play, but he remained in a big man role, even with reserve

György Golomán György "G. G." Golomán (born April 2, 1996) is a Hungarian professional basketball player for Lietkabelis Panevėžys of the Lithuanian Basketball League. He played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins. Golomán went undrafted in the 2018 NB ...

healthy again. Possessing potential talent to play in the

(NBA), Bolden decided to forego his remaining two years of college eligibility and play professionally, despite having already missed out on declaring for the 2016 NBA draft.

Professional career

FMP (2016–2017)

Bolden signed with FMP of the

ABA League The ABA League, renamed to the ABA League First Division in 2017, is the 1st-tier regional men's professional basketball league that originally featured clubs from the former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro, North Mace ...

and the

Basketball League of Serbia The Basketball League of Serbia ( sr, Кошаркашка лига Србије, Košarkaška liga Srbije; abbr. КЛС or KLS), is a top-tier men's professional basketball league in Serbia. Founded in 2006, it is run by the Basketball Federatio ...

, where he played both forward positions. On 15 March 2017, Bolden was awarded the

title after averaging 12.9 points and 7.2 rebounds per game in his rookie season. He also averaged 4.2

three-point field goal A three-point field goal (also 3-pointer, three, or trey) is a field goal in a basketball game made from beyond the three-point line, a designated arc surrounding the basket. A successful attempt is worth three points, in contrast to the two poi ...

attempts per game, making 41.9 percent, and added one steal and one block per game.

Maccabi Tel Aviv (2017–2018)

On 10 June 2017, Bolden signed a two-year contract with

Crvena zvezda Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a Serbian professional Association football, foot ...

. Twelve days later, Bolden was selected with the 36th pick of the

by the

. In July 2017, he joined the 76ers 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 ...

. Before even suiting up for a single regular season game for the Crvena zvezda, on 21 July 2017, Bolden signed a three-year contract with the Israeli club

. On 12 December 2017, Bolden recorded a season-high 23 points, shooting 8-of-14 from the field, along with 10 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals in a 98–90 win over

Ironi Nahariya Ironi Nahariya Basketball Club ( he, מועדון הכדורסל עירוני נהריה; ) known for sponsorship reasons as Ironi Rain Nahariya () is a professional basketball club based in city of Nahariya in northern Israel. The team plays in th ...

. Bolden went on to win the 2017 Israeli League Cup and the 2018 Israeli League Championship titles with Maccabi.

Philadelphia 76ers (2018–2020)

On 25 July 2018, Bolden signed with the

. On 16 October 2018, he made his NBA debut playing in a single minute under a 107–85 loss 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 ...

. During his rookie season, Bolden has had multiple assignments to the

Delaware Blue Coats The Delaware Blue Coats are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Wilmington, Delaware, and are affiliated with the Philadelphia 76ers. The Blue Coats play their home games at Chase Fieldhouse. The team was found ...

, the 76ers'

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 ...

affiliate. Bolden was waived on 7 February 2020.

Phoenix Suns (2020)

On 12 February 2020, Bolden was signed to a 10-day contract by the

, who were without big men

Frank Kaminsky Francis Stanley Kaminsky III (born April 4, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Wisconsin Badgers. During his college basket ...

Aron Baynes Aron John Baynes (born 9 December 1986) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Brisbane Bullets of the National Basketball League (NBL). He played college basketball for Washington State University before starting his professi ...

Dario Šarić Dario Šarić (; born 8 April 1994) is a Croatian professional basketball player for the Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 2014 NBA draft. He also represents the senior ...

, and Deandre Ayton during that time. In his debut that day, he had six points, seven rebounds and a plus-minus of +17 in 26 minutes in a 112–106 win over the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

. Bolden played in two more games for the Suns, which saw all of their big men (minus Kaminsky) return to action before he wasn't signed for a second 10-day contract on February 24.

National team career

Bolden played for the Australia national under-19 team at the

in the Czech Republic at the age of 17. He played in eight of the nine games that Australia competed in, averaging 2.6 points and 2.9 rebounds while playing 10.1 minutes per game. His top performance was a nine-point game against

Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...

. Bolden made his senior debut for the

Australian Boomers The Australian men's national basketball team, known as the Boomers after the slang term for a male kangaroo, represents Australia in international basketball competition. Since the late 1980s, Australia has been placed among the world elite ...

in an exhibition match against

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...

in August 2019.

Career statistics

Professional

NBA

=Regular season

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

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, 44 , , 10 , , 14.5 , , .494 , , .354 , , .481 , , 3.8 , , .9 , , .4 , , .9 , , 4.7 , - , style="text-align:left;" rowspan="2", , style="text-align:left;",

, 4 , , 0 , , 3.5 , , .667 , , .000 , , .000 , , .3 , , .0 , , .3 , , .0 , , 1.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

, 3 , , 0 , , 11.0 , , .250 , , .000 , , 1.000 , , 2.7 , , .0 , , .7 , , .7 , , 2.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 51 , , 10 , , 13.5 , , .486 , , .340 , , .484 , , 3.4 , , .8 , , .4 , , .8 , , 4.3

=Playoffs

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

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

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

, 10 , , 0 , , 7.9 , , .263, , .250 , , .500 , , 1.4 , , .3, , .2 , , .1 , , 1.6 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 10 , , 0 , , 7.9 , , .263, , .250 , , .500 , , 1.4 , , .3, , .2 , , .1 , , 1.6

EuroLeague

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 29 , , 28 , , 21.1 , , .487 , , .319 , , .512 , , 5.5 , , 1.6 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , 6.9 , , 10.4 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan=2, Career , 29 , , 28 , , 21.1 , , .487 , , .319 , , .512 , , 5.5 , , 1.6 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , 6.9 , , 10.4

College

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

, 31 , , 11 , , 21.7 , , .415 , , .250 , , .733 , , 4.8 , , 1.1 , , .7, , .9 , , 4.6

References

External links

UCLA Bruins bio

EuroLeague profile

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bolden, Jonah 1996 births Living people ABA League players Australian expatriate basketball people in Israel Australian expatriate basketball people in Serbia Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States Australian men's basketball players Australian people of African-American descent Australian people of Egyptian descent Basketball League of Serbia players Basketball players from Melbourne Brewster Academy alumni Delaware Blue Coats players Findlay Prep alumni KK FMP players Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. players National Basketball Association players from Australia Philadelphia 76ers draft picks Philadelphia 76ers players Phoenix Suns players Power forwards (basketball) UCLA Bruins men's basketball players