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Ben Lawson (basketball)

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For the Australian actor, see Ben Lawson. For the fictional character, see Ben Drowned.

Ben Lawson
No. 34 – Fukui Blowinds
PositionCenter
LeagueB.League
Personal information
Born (1995-06-12) 12 June 1995 (age 29)
Welwyn Garden City, England
NationalityBritish
Listed height7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Listed weight252 lb (114 kg)
Career information
High schoolHitchin Boys School

(Hertfordshire, England)

Oaklands College
(Hertfordshire, England)
CollegeWestern Kentucky (2013–2017)
NBA draft2017: undrafted
Playing career2017–present
Career history
2017–2018Lefke Avrupa Üniversitesi
2018–2019Rizing Zephyr Fukuoka
2019-2020Toyotsu Fighting Eagles Nagoya
2020Koshigaya Alphas
2020Kyoto Hannaryz
2021Toyotsu Fighting Eagles Nagoya
2021-2023Kumamoto Volters
2023-Fukui Blowinds
Career highlights and awards

Benjamin Ethan Lawson (born 12 June 1995) is a British professional basketball player who plays for the Fukui Blowinds of the B.League in Japan.[1] He played college basketball for Western Kentucky. Standing at 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m), Lawson plays the power forward / center positions.

High school career

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Oaklands College (2011–13)

Lawson's basketball career began at Oaklands College in St. Albans, England. He averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds, and 4.7 blocks during the 2012-13 season. Shot 45 percent from the floor and 40 percent from three-point range; season highs were 32 points and 21 rebounds.[2]

College career

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Western Kentucky (2013–17)

Lawson played for Western Kentucky. As a senior, he averaged 5.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game.[3] Lawson finished his college career with 185 blocks, ranking fourth on WKU’s all-time list.[4]

Professional career

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European University of Lefke (2017–18)

Played his first professional season with the European University of Lefke in the North Cyprus first league. Lawson hit the decisive game winning shot in the playoff series, sending EUL into the Championship final.[5]

Fukuoka Rizing Zephyr (2018–19)

Lawson played his second professional season with Rizing Zephyr Fukuoka in Japan. He appeared in 44 games (43 starts) and averaged 15 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.18 steals, and 1.7 blocks in 34.6 minutes; he shot 49.8 percent from the field and 68.8 percent from the free throw line in the Japanese B.League. Lawson scored in double figures 40 times, including 6 games with at least 20 points; he grabbed double-digit rebounds 21 times and posted 20 double-doubles.[6]

Memphis Grizzlies NBA Summer League (2019)

Lawson competed with the Memphis Grizzlies in the NBA Summer League in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas. Memphis became the NBA Summer League Champions on 15 July 2019. Earning quality minutes in the tournament, Lawson was an integral part of the Grizzlies run to the final.[7]

National team career

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In 2013, Lawson and Basketball England played in Latvia for the 2013 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship. In a valuable and experience-gaining tournament, Lawson and the team finished 9th out of 16th. In a historic overtime game Vs Spain, England were victors 75-66.

The 2014 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship was hosted by Crete, Greece. After a promising group stage with Great Britain placing 2nd, Lawson sustained a back injury leaving him out of action until the last two remaining games of the tournament. Great Britain finished 11th out of 20.

Italy was the location for the 2015 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship. The team finished 15th in the tournament; Lawson had a standout game of 11 points and 9 rebounds against Germany.

Personal life

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Having been a rugby player from a young age, Lawson realised his body type had become less suited to rugby, and switched to basketball at the age of 15. He transferred over to Oaklands College from Hitchin Boys School at the age of 16 and spent 2011 - 2013 developing his game with the basketball academy and competing in the EABL (Elite Academy Basketball League). In the two years with Oaklands, he went from school to county, to regional, and then was invited to join the national team squads at U18 and U20.[8] Lawson married former University of Utah and University of Hawaii Basketball player Rachael Morris in 2024. They have one daughter.

Career statistics

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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

Professional career

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017-18 European University of Lefke* 42 42 28.4 .563 .327 .781 11.8 1.21 1.91 2.38 20.3
2018-19 Fukuoka Rizing Zephyr 44 43 34.6 .498 .200 .688 10.5 1.94 1.27 1.76 15.0
2019 Memphis Grizzlies 8 1 14.8 .412 .231 .729 5.50 0.12 0.62 0.75 6.12

*No official statistics accessible for the 2017-18 season.

National team career

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2012-13 Team England U18 3 2 23.3 .500 1.000 .750 2.7 0.3 3 1.3 6.7
2013 Team GB U18 7 7 14.2 .414 .000 .500 2.1 0.1 0.4 0.3 3.6
2014 Team GB U20 8 8 19.5 .400 .000 .812 4.2 0.9 0.8 1.6 5.1
2015 Team GB U20 9 9 25.3 .542 .000 .462 4.6 0.6 0.8 1.4 7.8

College career

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013-14 Western Kentucky 12 2 7.9 .471 .000 .667 1.50 0.17 0.08 0.75 2.00
2014-15 Western Kentucky 32 8 18.8 .583 .000 .490 3.22 0.66 0.44 1.66 3.84
2015-16 Western Kentucky 34 11 16.1 .863 1.000 .767 3.29 0.38 0.32 1.91 5.03
2016-17 Western Kentucky 32 15 15.8 .569 .000 .643 3.25 0.22 0.44 1.78 5.28
Career Western Kentucky 110 36 15.8 .575 .200 .650 3.06 0.39 0.36 1.67 4.43

References

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  1. ^ Rizing Zephyr Fukuoka (26 June 2018). "2018-19 ベンジャミン ローソン選手契約合意のお知らせ". Retrieved 26 June 2018.
  2. ^ "Ben Lawson Bio". WKU Sports. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
  3. ^ "Ben Lawson Player Profile". RealGM. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  4. ^ "Ben Lawson Bio". WKU Sports. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Ben Lawson Game Winning Buzzer Beater". YouTube. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  6. ^ "Memphis Grizzlies MGM resorts NBA Summer League 2019 Media Guide" (PDF). NBA. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  7. ^ "Big Ben in Las Vegas - Ben Lawson's Summer League experience is just the start". DoubleClutch. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
  8. ^ "NBA: GB's Ben Lawson joins Memphis Grizzlies in NBA Summer League". BasketballEngland. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
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