mario hezonja – NBA Blog – NBA Basketball Blog

Three-team NBA trade sends Enes Kanter to Trail Blazers, Mario Hezonja to Grizzlies

The Memphis Grizzlies today announced that the team acquired the 2020 draft rights to Texas Christian University guard Desmond Bane (No. 30 overall, first round) from the Boston Celtics and forward Mario Hezonja (HEH-zone-yuh) from the Portland Trail Blazers in a three-team trade.

As part of the deal, Memphis traded two future second round draft picks to Boston and cash considerations to Portland, and the Celtics traded center Enes Kanter to the Trail Blazers.

As part of the transaction, the Celtics will receive the better draft pick between Houston’s second round selection in 2023, and whichever 2023 second round draft pick is worst between Memphis or Dallas. Boston will also receive Memphis’s own 2025 second round draft pick.

Kanter, a nine-year NBA veteran, played for the Celtics during the 2019-20 season after joining the team as a free agent last summer. In 58 games (seven starts) for Boston, he averaged 8.1 points (57.2% FG, 70.7% FT), 7.4 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 16.9 minutes.

It is a return to Portland for Kanter, 28, who was signed by the Trail Blazers in February 2019 and was a part of the team’s run to the 2019 Western Conference Finals. In 23 games (eight starts) with the Trail Blazers, Kanter averaged 13.1 points (57.7% FG, 73.5% FT), 8.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists. He averaged 11.4 points, 9.7 rebounds and 28.8 minutes in 16 games (14 starts) during Portland’s playoff run.

Originally selected out of Kentucky with the 3rd overall pick of the 2011 NBA Draft, Kanter holds career averages of 11.6 points (54.3% FG, 77.6% FT) and 7.6 rebounds in 641 games (223 starts) with Utah, Oklahoma City, New York, Boston and Portland.

Bane (6-6, 215) was selected to the 2019-20 All-Big 12 First Team and named a Top 10 finalist for the 2019-20 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award after posting 16.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.47 steals in 36.1 minutes over 32 games (all starts) last season as a senior at TCU. Bane led the Big 12 in 3-pointers made (92) and attempted (208) and 3-point field goal percentage (.442) and averaged a Big 12-high 36.0 minutes in conference games, including six games in which he played at least 40 minutes.

The 22-year-old Richmond, Ind. native appeared in 141 games (114 starts) over during his four-year collegiate career at TCU (2016-20) and averaged 12.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 30.4 minutes while shooting 49.5 percent from the field, 43.3 percent from 3-point range and 80.4 percent from the free throw line. He left TCU as the Horned Frogs’ all-time leader in 3-pointers (249), wins (84) and games played (141) and ranks third in program history in points (1,784) and fifth in 3-point percentage (.433).

Hezonja (6-8, 220) has appeared in 330 games (69 starts) and has averaged 6.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 18.5 minutes over his five-year NBA career (2015-20) with the Orlando Magic, New York Knicks and Portland Trail Blazers. The 25-year-old Dubrovnik, Croatia native was selected by Orlando with the fifth overall pick in the first round of the 2015 NBA Draft.

Knicks sign Mario Hezonja

The New York Knicks signed free agent guard/forward Mario Hezonja.

According to the New York Post, the deal is a “one-year, $6.5 million contract with a portion of the Knicks’ mid-level exception.”

The 23-year old Croatia native, originally drafted fifth overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2015 NBA Draft, joins the Knicks following a career year where he nearly doubled his scoring average from the previous season (9.6) and averaged personal bests in rebounding (3.7), assists (1.4), steals (1.1), minutes (22.1) and games played (75).

“Mario is an extremely talented, multi-dimensional player who we’re excited to have join the Knicks,” said Scott Perry, General Manager. “With Mario, we’re adding another young, athletic and driven player. We’re confident he will further develop under this coaching staff and excel playing in New York.”

Hezonja is a 6-8, 215-pound guard/forward who appeared in 219 career NBA regular season games (41 starts), all with Orlando, averaging 6.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 18.4 minutes. Hezonja recorded a career-high 28 points on Dec. 17, 2017 at Detroit, connecting on 8-of-12 from three-point range, becoming just the ninth player in Magic history to make eight-or-more three-pointers in a game. Internationally, he played in 54 games during two-plus seasons with FC Barcelona of the Spanish ACB League. He also helped lead the Croatia men’s national basketball team to fifth place in the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Magic rookie Mario Hezonja still learning the ropes

The Orlando Magic are 6-7 this season, and getting double-digit scoring from Evan Fournier, Nikola Vucevic, Tobias Harris, Victor Oladipo and Elfrid Payton. Rookie shooting guard Mario Hezonja is playing just 14.5 minutes per game, good for 4.8 ppg. Here’s the Orlando Sentinel reporting:

Hezonja has shown tantalizing glimpses of the potential that prompted the Magic to select him fifth overall in the 2015 NBA Draft, but his rookie mistakes on the defensive end and a logjam of other talented wing players are reducing his playing time. Coaches review tape with Hezonja almost daily in an attempt to cut down on his errors.

By all accounts, Hezonja, a 6-foot-8 swingman, has been an eager student.

“It’s a team sport, so I’m looking forward to help the team the best that I can and, of course, [I’m] individually looking to improve because I’m here to play,” he said after he played almost 17 minutes in the Magic’s 97-91 loss Saturday night to the Sacramento Kings.