Kobi Jordan Simmons (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 court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for the

Greensboro Swarm The Greensboro Swarm are an American basketball team of the NBA G League based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and are affiliated with the Charlotte Hornets. The Swarm play their home games at the Greensboro Coliseum Fieldhouse. The team became ...

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 ...

. 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 Arizona Wildcats.

High school career

Simmons attended St. Francis in

Milton, Georgia Milton is a city in Fulton County, Georgia, United States. Located about 30 miles due north of Atlanta, Milton is known for its rural and equestrian heritage. The City was incorporated on December 1, 2006, out of the unincorporated northernmost p ...

. In his freshman year, Simmons averaged 14.1 points, 3.9 assists, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.0 steals per game. As a sophomore in 2013–14, he averaged 17.4 points, 4.8 assists, and 3.5 rebounds per game. As a junior, Simmons averaged 21.2 points per game, 4.2

assists per game In basketball, an assist is attributed to a player who passes the ball to a teammate in a way that leads directly to a score by field goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the basket. An assist is also credited when a basket is awarded due ...

, and 2.9 rebounds per game in 32 games. In the summer of his junior year, Simmons played in the 2015

Under Armour Under Armour, Inc. is an American sports equipment company that manufactures footwear, sports and casual apparel. Under Armour's global headquarters are located in Baltimore, Maryland, with additional offices located in Amsterdam (European head ...

Elite 24 Game in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. He was later invited to camps such as the Adidas Nations and Adidas Euro-camps. As a senior, Simmons averaged 26.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.0 assists per outing. In his last game for the Knights, he scored 36 points, including seven three-pointers in the semi-final game against Milton High School. Throughout his high school career, Simmons led St. Francis to 100 victories, two state championships and Four state championship appearances. On January 16, Simmons committed to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

. In January 2016, Simmons was named a

McDonald's All-American McDonald's Corporation is an American multinational fast food chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechristened their business as a hamburger s ...

and played in the 2016 McDonald's All-American Game on March 30 at the

United Center United Center is an indoor arena on the Near West Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is home to the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League (NHL). It is named ...

in Chicago, where he recorded 12 points, 2 assists, and 1 steal in a 114–107 loss to the West Team. Simmons was rated as a five-star recruit and ranked 20th in the Class of 2016 according to

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%). Th ...

. He also earned Atlanta Journal-Constitution Player of the Year honors. His number has been retired at St. Francis.

College career

Simmons played one season of college basketball for

. On November 11, 2016, Simmons scored 18 points, tying the most points in an NCAA debut for an Arizona player in a decade, leading the Wildcats to victory in a 65–63 win against No. 12 ranked

Michigan State Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...

in the Armed Forces Classic. On January 21, 2017, Simmons recorded 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists in a 96–85 win against No. 3 ranked

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 ...

. As the No. 2 seed in the

Pac-12 Conference men's basketball tournament The Pac-12 Conference men's basketball tournament, otherwise known as the Pac-12 tournament, is the annual concluding tournament for the NCAA college basketball in the Pac-12, taking place in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile Arena. History The predecess ...

, Arizona defeated

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, 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 wes ...

in the quarter-finals and UCLA in the semi-finals. On March 11, 2017, Simmons and Arizona defeated

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. T ...

83–80 to win the Pac-12 Conference Championship. The Wildcats entered the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 Seed in the West Region, where Arizona defeated

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

in the first round and St. Mary's in the second round before losing to Xavier in the Sweet Sixteen. Simmons appeared in 37 games (19 starts) as a freshman and averaged 8.7 points, 1.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 23.5 minutes per game. On April 5, 2017, Simmons declared for the NBA draft, forgoing his final three years of college eligibility.

Professional career

Memphis Grizzlies (2017–2018)

Simmons and split playing time between the Grizzlies and their new G League affiliate, the

Memphis Hustle The Memphis Hustle are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in the Greater Memphis suburb of Southaven, Mississippi, and are affiliated with the Memphis Grizzlies. The team plays their home games at the Landers Ce ...

. His NBA debut with the Grizzlies came on November 29, 2017, in a 95–104 loss to the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its home ...

. He played a total of 32 games (12 starts) for the Grizzlies, averaging 6.1 points, 2.1 assists and 1.6 rebounds per contest. He converted all 25 of his 25 free throws during his NBA stint. Simmons was waived by the Grizzlies on August 28, 2018. In G League play, Simmons averaged 15.1 points, 3.9 assists and 2.7 rebounds in 26 outings for the Memphis Hustle.

Canton Charge (2018–2019)

On September 14, 2018, Simmons signed with the Cleveland Cavaliers. On October 13, he was waived by the Cavaliers. He then joined the Cavs’

affiliate, the

Canton Charge The Cleveland Charge are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cleveland, Ohio, and are affiliated with the Cleveland Cavaliers. The team plays its home games at the Wolstein Center in downtown Cleveland. The fr ...

Cleveland Cavaliers (2019)

On January 27, 2019, the Cleveland Cavaliers signed Simmons to a 10-day contract, but was later waived by the Cleveland Cavaliers on February 4.

Greensboro Swarm (2019–2021)

On September 16, 2019, the Charlotte Hornets announced that they had signed with Simmons. On October 20, 2019, the Charlotte Hornets announced that they had converted Simmons' contract into a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless of ...

. For the 2020–21 season, Simmons rejoined the

of the G League where he averaged 18 points 6 assist and 5 rebounds a game.

Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski (2021–2022)

On September 25, 2021, Simmons signed with Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski of the

Polish Basketball League Polska Liga Koszykówki (PLK) (English: Polish Basketball League) is a professional men's club basketball league in Poland. It constitutes the first and highest-tier level of the Polish league pyramid. The winning team of the final round are crow ...

Return to Greensboro (2022–present)

On November 4, 2022, Simmons was named to the opening night roster for the

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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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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Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

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References

External links

Arizona Wildcats bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simmons, Kobi 1997 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportspeople African-American basketball players American men's basketball players Arizona Wildcats men's basketball players Basketball players from Atlanta Canton Charge players Cleveland Cavaliers players Greensboro Swarm players McDonald's High School All-Americans Memphis Grizzlies players Memphis Hustle players Point guards Stal Ostrów Wielkopolski players Undrafted National Basketball Association players