Wikipedia

Alex Ducas

Alexander Ducas (born 11 December 2000) is an Australian professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA G League. He began his career in the Australian state leagues before moving to the United States in 2019 to play college basketball for the Saint Mary's Gaels. He played five seasons for the Gaels and earned second-team All-WCC in 2022 and 2024.

Alex Ducas
No. 88 – Oklahoma City Thunder
PositionShooting guard / small forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (2000-12-11) 11 December 2000 (age 23)
Geraldton, Western Australia, Australia
Listed height6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Listed weight220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeSaint Mary's (2019–2024)
NBA draft2024: undrafted
Playing career2016–present
Career history
2016–2019Geraldton Buccaneers
2017–2019BA Centre of Excellence
2024–presentOklahoma City Thunder
2024–present→Oklahoma City Blue
Career highlights and awards
Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Australia
FIBA Asia Cup
Gold medal – first place 2022 Jakarta

Early life and career

edit

Ducas was born and raised in Geraldton, Western Australia,[1][2] where he attended Nagle Catholic College.[3]

In 2016, Ducas debuted for the Geraldton Buccaneers in the State Basketball League (SBL), averaging 2.27 points in 22 games.[4] In 2017, he played 13 games for the Buccaneers, averaging 5.67 points and 1.47 rebounds per game.[5] He also played five games for the BA Centre of Excellence in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL), averaging 2.4 points and 1.2 rebounds per game.[6] In 2018, he averaged nine points in three SBL games for the Buccaneers[7] before returning to the Centre of Excellence and averaging 12.2 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 14 SEABL games.[8]

In 2019, Ducas played nine games for the Centre of Excellence in the NBL1, averaging 21.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.0 steals per game.[9] He finished the year with the Buccaneers and helped them win the SBL championship.[10] In 13 games, he averaged 15.54 points, 3.92 rebounds and 3.08 assists per game.[11]

While in Canberra at the Centre of Excellence, Ducas attended Lake Ginninderra College.[12][13]

College career

edit

On 5 November 2019, Ducas made his debut for Saint Mary's, recording 3 points and 2 rebounds against Wisconsin.[14] As a freshman, Ducas appeared in 33 games, starting in 11 games – which was more games as a true freshman than any Gael since Matthew Dellavedova.[15] In his sophomore season, Ducas suffered an ankle injury, causing him to appear in only 14 games. Prior to his injury, Ducas averaged 11.3 points on 35.7% from three.[15] He posted 10.3 points per game as a junior.[16] As a senior, Ducas averaged 12.5 points per game shooting 41.4% from beyond the arc.[17]

In his final season with Saint Mary's, Ducas started every single game for the third consecutive season, shooting a career-best 43.8% from three, making 81 – which was the ninth most in team history and second most in the WCC.[15] Against Davidson, Ducas registered a season-high 23 points on 7 made threes.[18] With Saint Mary's, Ducas won the 2024 WCC tournament and was named a second team All-WCC honoree for the second time.[19] Ducas averaged 9.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game.[17]

As a fifth year guard, Ducas finished his collegiate career playing in a program-record 150 games and finished second all-time in program history with 278 threes.[20]

Professional career

edit

Oklahoma City Thunder (2024–present)

edit

After going undrafted in the 2024 NBA draft,[21] Ducas joined the Oklahoma City Thunder for the 2024 NBA Summer League[22] and on 16 July 2024, he signed a two-way deal with them.[23][20]

Career statistics

edit
Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

College

edit
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2019–20 Saint Mary's 33 11 15.1 .478 .414 .750 2.2 0.4 0.3 0.0 3.6
2020–21 Saint Mary's 14 9 22.0 .413 .328 .842 4.4 0.5 0.5 0.1 7.9
2021–22 Saint Mary's 34 34 29.8 .409 .387 .820 3.7 0.9 0.9 0.2 10.3
2022–23 Saint Mary's 35 35 31.3 .433 .414 .868 4.3 1.0 0.9 0.4 12.5
2023–24 Saint Mary's 34 34 28.1 .453 .438 .774 5.6 1.9 0.7 0.2 9.9
Career 150 123 25.8 .433 .406 .828 4.0 1.0 0.7 .2 9.0

Personal life

edit

As of 2024, Ducas' father, Aaron, is an assistant coach for the Geraldton Buccaneers in the NBL1 West.[24]

References

edit
  1. ^ Badkin, Liam (13 October 2023). "NCAA Aussie Player Focus – Alex Ducas". central.rookieme.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  2. ^ O'Donoghue, Craig; Santa Maria, Jake (17 February 2023). "Alex Ducas remains strong prospect for Wildcats as they look to build defence". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  3. ^ "NCC basketball stars compete in national championship". CEWA Stories. 3 May 2017. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  4. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2016". WA State Basketball League. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  5. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2017". WA State Basketball League. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  6. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2017". SEABL. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  7. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2018". WA State Basketball League. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  8. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2018". SEABL. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  9. ^ "Alex Ducas". usbasket.com. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
  10. ^ Harradine, Natasha (27 June 2020). "Aspiring Australian basketballer Alex Ducas leaves WA after COVID-19 repatriation". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  11. ^ "Player statistics for Alex Ducas – 2019". WA State Basketball League. Archived from the original on 29 June 2024.
  12. ^ "Lake News May 2018" (PDF). Lake Ginninderra College. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  13. ^ "Lake News #1 2024" (PDF). Lake Ginninderra College. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Saint Mary's Gaels vs Wisconsin Badgers - Boxscore". ESPN.com. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  15. ^ a b c "Santa Mary's Gaels: Alex Ducas's Bio". SMCGaels.com. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  16. ^ Kroner, Steve (11 April 2023). "St. Mary's forward Alex Ducas returning for a 5th season". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  17. ^ a b Sweet, Randall (30 June 2024). "Why Two-Way Signee Alex Ducas Could be More Than a Summer League Star for OKC Thunder". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  18. ^ "Saint Mary's Gaels vs Davidson Wildcats - Boxscore". ESPN.com. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  19. ^ "WCC Announces 2023-24 Men's Basketball All-Conference Awards". WCCSports.com. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  20. ^ a b "MBB: Ducas Signs Two Way Deal with the Oklahoma City Thunder". SMCGaels.com. 27 June 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  21. ^ Paddick, Matthew (28 June 2024). "Geraldton's Alex Ducas set to sign with Oklahoma City Thunder in NBA following five years in US college system". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 June 2024.
  22. ^ "Thunder Announces 2024 Summer League Roster". NBA.com. 7 July 2024. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  23. ^ "Thunder Signs Alex Ducas to Two-Way Contract". NBA.com. 16 July 2024. Retrieved 16 July 2024.
  24. ^ "Former country WA basketballer Alex Ducas lands NBA deal". ABC News. 28 June 2024. Retrieved 2 September 2024.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alex_Ducas&oldid=1257286431"