Ra Gun-ah
No. 20 – Busan KCC Egis
PositionPower forward
LeagueKBL
Personal information
Born (1989-02-20) February 20, 1989
Hampton, Virginia, U.S.
NationalityAmerican / South Korean
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High schoolKecoughtan (Hampton, Virginia)
College
NBA draft2012: undrafted
Playing career2012–present
Career history
2012–2015Mobis Phoebus
2015–2016Seoul Samsung Thunders
2016Star Hotshots
2016–2017Seoul Samsung Thunders
2017Star Hotshots
2018–2020Mobis Phoebus
2020–presentBusan KCC Egis
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  South Korea
Asian Games
Bronze medal – third placeJakarta–Palembang 2018Team
William Jones Cup
Gold medal – first place2014 Taipei
Bronze medal – third place2018 Taipei

Ra Gun-ah[1] (Korean: 라건아; born Ricardo Preston Ratliffe; February 20, 1989) is an American-born South Korean basketball player for Busan KCC Egis of the Korean Basketball League (KBL) and the South Korea national basketball team. Ra played collegiately at the University of Missouri.

Early life and college career

Ra Gun-ah was born Ricardo Preston Ratliffe in Hampton, Virginia, played at Kecoughtan High School and the College of Central Florida. While there, he twice earned first team National Junior College Athletic Association All-American honors. He averaged 27.4 points and 11.3 rebounds per game as a sophomore.[2]

To complete his college career, Ratliffe chose Missouri over Alabama, Clemson and Arkansas. He averaged 10.6 points and 6.0 rebounds per game in his junior season and was named Big 12 Conference Newcomer of the Year.[3]

In his senior season, Ratliffe helped lead the Tigers to a 30–5 record and a Big 12 tournament championship. Ratliffe averaged 13.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game as the team's primary post presence. At the close of the season, Ratliffe was named second team All-Big 12.[2] On the season, Ratliffe attained a 69.3% field goal percentage, which led the nation for the 2011–12 season and was a Missouri and Big 12 Conference record.[2] Ratliffe spent much of the season chasing the all-time single-season NCAA record of 74.6%, held by Steve Johnson of Oregon State, leading the mark as late as February 2012.[4]

Following the close of the regular season, Ratliffe competed in the 2012 Reese's College All-Star Game at the 2012 Final Four. He scored 21 points and collected 10 rebounds to earn the West team's "Perfect Player" award.[5]

Professional career

Following the close of his college career, Ratliffe was not selected in the 2012 NBA draft. However, he was the first American college player selected in the Korean Basketball League. He was selected sixth overall by Ulsan Mobis Phoebus and began his professional career with them in the 2012–13 season.[6]

In 2014, Ratliffe won the William Jones Cup MVP and joined teammates Chang Yong Song and Tae Young Moon on the tournament Best Five. At the William Jones Cup, He averaged 24.3 points, 15.7 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks per game.

On March 5, 2016, Ratliffe was signed by Star Hotshots of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) to replace Denzel Bowles who had to leave for the United States after the death of a relative.[7]

On May 9, 2017, Ratliffe was again called by the Star Hotshots as their import for the 2017 Commissioners Cup.[8] On Game 2 of the 2017 semifinal round against the San Miguel Beermen, Ratliffe recorded 25 points and a career-high 35 rebounds in a 76–77 loss to the Beermen.[9]

Ra Gun-ah signed with Jeonju KCC Egis in 2020. He averaged 17 points, 10.3 rebounds, one steal and 1.3 blocks per game. Ratliffe re-signed with the team on September 26.[10]

National team career

In January 2018, Ratliffe became a naturalized South Korean.[11] Ratliffe played for the South Korean national team against the North Korean national team in Pyongyang Arena, Pyongyang, during a July 2018 friendly match.[12] He was given the Korean name Ra Gun-ah after he was naturalized.[13]

At the 2019 FIBA World Cup, although playing in only five games, Ra Gun-ah led the tournament with 23.0 points and 12.8 rebounds per game. The South Korean national team finished the tournament in 26th place of 32 teams, after being eliminated in preliminary group.

References

  1. ↑ "[Herald Interview] More than changing passport". June 29, 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 "Ricardo Ratliffe Missouri bio". Missouri Tigers. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  3. ↑ "2011 Phillips 66 All-Big 12 Men's Basketball Awards Announced". Big 12 Conference. March 6, 2011. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  4. ↑ Fallstrom, R. B. (February 14, 2012). "Ricardo Ratliffe chasing NCAA single-season accuracy mark". KSDK.com. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Marquette's Crowder Leads East All-Stars to Win in Reese's College All-Star Game". National Association of Basketball Coaches. March 30, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  6. ↑ Walentik, Steve (July 26, 2012). "Ratliffe drafted into Korean Basketball League". Columbia Tribune. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  7. ↑ Sacamos, Karlo (March 5, 2016). "Star Hotshots to field new import Ricardo Ratliffe in place of Denzel Bowles in game against TNT Texters". Spin.ph. Retrieved March 5, 2016.
  8. ↑ Beltran, Nelson (May 9, 2017). "Star Hotshots bring back Ratliffe". PhilStar. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  9. ↑ "San Miguel 77 - Star 76". EuroBasket. June 12, 2017. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
  10. ↑ "KCC Egis keep Ratliffe for another season". Asia Basket. September 26, 2020. Retrieved September 26, 2020.
  11. ↑ Lee, Tae-dong (January 22, 2018). "U.S. Basketball Player Becomes Naturalized Korean". The Chosun Ilbo. Retrieved January 25, 2018.
  12. ↑ Denney, Steven; Abrahamian, Andray (July 17, 2018). "A Black Korean in Pyongyang". Foreign Policy.
  13. ↑ "Ra Guna leads fifth window Korean pool for Asian Qualifiers". FIBA.basketball.
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