Malaki Branham
Branham with Ohio State in 2022
No. 22 – San Antonio Spurs
PositionShooting guard / small forward
LeagueNBA
Personal information
Born (2003-05-12) May 12, 2003
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolSt. Vincent–St. Mary
(Akron, Ohio)
CollegeOhio State (2021–2022)
NBA draft2022: 1st round, 20th overall pick
Selected by the San Antonio Spurs
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–presentSan Antonio Spurs
2022→Austin Spurs
Career highlights and awards
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

Malaki Lamar Branham (born May 12, 2003) is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Early life and high school career

Branham was raised in Columbus, Ohio. Starting in 5th grade, he trained under Jason Dawson in Columbus.[1] He moved to Akron, Ohio where he attended high school at St. Vincent–St. Mary High School.[2] At St. Vincent-St. Mary, he won two state championships in 2018 and 2021.[3] He was named first team All-Ohio in his junior and senior seasons.[4][5] As a senior, Branham averaged 21.3 points, 5.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.8 steals per game. In his senior season, he was named Ohio Mr. Basketball[6] and made the Jordan Brand Classic, which was not played due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7]

Recruiting

Branham was a consensus four-star recruit and ranked as the best player in Ohio. On July 22, 2020, Branham committed to playing college basketball for Ohio State over offers from teams such as Alabama, Baylor, and Iowa.[8]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Malaki Branham
SG / SF		 Columbus, OH St. Vincent–St. Mary 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jul 22, 2020 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:4/5 stars   247Sports:4/5 stars    ESPN:4/5 stars   ESPN grade: 88
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 44  247Sports: 35  ESPN: 34
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Ohio State 2021 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  • "2021 Ohio State Buckeyes Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 26, 2022.
  • "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 26, 2022.

College career

Branham started his college career off the bench, but quickly became a regular starter.[9] He scored a career-high 35 points in a 87–79 overtime win against Nebraska after a nearly month-long COVID pause.[10] In a three-game stretch in February, he scored 22, 27, and 31 points.[11] As a freshman, he averaged 13.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and two assists per game. Branham was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year as well as Third Team All-Big Ten.[12] On April 1, 2022, Branham declared for the 2022 NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility.[13] He later signed with an agent, forgoing his remaining eligibility.[14] He was projected as a potential lottery pick in the draft.[13]

Professional career

San Antonio Spurs (2022–present)

Branham was selected with the 20th overall pick by the San Antonio Spurs in the 2022 NBA draft.[15] Branham joined the Spurs' 2022 NBA Summer League team.[16] In his Summer League debut, Branham scored fifteen points in a 99–90 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers.[17] On July 8, 2022, Branham signed a rookie-scale contract with the Spurs.[18]

Career statistics

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

NBA

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2022–23 San Antonio 663223.5.440.302.8292.71.9.5.110.2
Career 663223.5.440.302.8292.71.9.5.110.2

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2021–22 Ohio State 323129.6.498.416.8333.62.0.7.313.7

References

  1. ↑ Hass-Hill, Colin. "CHASING PERFECTION: HOW MALAKI BRANHAM WENT FROM A GANGLY FIFTH-GRADER TO HERALDED OHIO STATE FRESHMAN". Eleven Warriors.
  2. ↑ Hass-Hill, Colin. "Q&A: ST. VINCENT-ST. MARY COACH DRU JOYCE EXPLAINS WHAT MALAKI BRANHAM BRINGS TO OHIO STATE". Eleven Warriors.
  3. ↑ "Malaki Branham Bio". Ohio State Athletics.
  4. ↑ "2020 OPSWA All-Ohio Boys Teams" (PDF). OHSAA.org.
  5. ↑ "All-Ohio Boys Teams" (PDF). OHSAA.org.
  6. ↑ "Malaki Branham Named Ohio Mr. Basketball". OHSAA.org.
  7. ↑ Lind, Andrew. "2021 Ohio State Basketball Signee Malaki Branham Named To Jordan Brand Classic". Buckeyes Now FN.
  8. ↑ Borzello, Jeff. "Top-30 prospect Malaki Branham commits to Ohio State". ESPN.com.
  9. ↑ Strom, Griffin. "MALAKI BRANHAM CONTINUES TO LOOK LIKE TRUE SECOND OPTION FOR OHIO STATE AMID IMPRESSIVE THREE-GAME RUN". Eleven Warriors.
  10. ↑ Jardy, Adam. "Ohio State's Malaki Branham enjoys 'Welcome to Star City' in Nebraska". The Columbus Dispatch.
  11. ↑ Stano, Ryan. "Ohio State basketball fans nervous about Malaki Branham". ScarletAndGame.com.
  12. ↑ "2021–22 Big Ten Men's Basketball Postseason Honors Announced" (Press release). Big Ten Conference. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  13. 1 2 "Ohio St.'s Branham enters draft, but may return". ESPN.com. 2022-04-01. Retrieved 2022-04-01.
  14. ↑ Jardy, Adam (April 27, 2022). "2022 NBA draft: Ohio State's Malaki Branham says goodbye to Buckeyes". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved April 29, 2022.
  15. ↑ "Spurs select Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley in 2022 NBA draft". NBA.com. June 23, 2022. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
  16. ↑ "San Antonio Spurs 2022 NBA2K23 Summer League Roster | NBA.com". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  17. ↑ "San Antonio Spurs vs Cleveland Cavaliers Jul 8, 2022 Box Scores | NBA.com". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
  18. ↑ "SPURS SIGN 2022 FIRST ROUND DRAFT PICK MALAKI BRANHAM". www.nba.com. Retrieved 2022-07-14.
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