Walt Lemon Jr.
Lemon with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants
No. 25 – Al Arabi
PositionPoint guard
Personal information
Born (1992-07-26) July 26, 1992
Chicago, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight180 lb (82 kg)
Career information
High schoolJulian (Chicago, Illinois)
CollegeBradley (2010–2014)
NBA draft2014: undrafted
Playing career2014–present
Career history
2014EGIS Körmend
2015Crailsheim Merlins
2015–2016Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2016–2017Istanbulspor Beylikduzu
2017Rethymno Cretan Kings
2017–2018Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2018New Orleans Pelicans
2018Maine Red Claws
2018–2019Windy City Bulls
2019Chicago Bulls
2019–2020Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2020–2021Hapoel Tel Aviv
2021Ezzahra Sports
2021–2022Fort Wayne Mad Ants
2022–2023Club Africain
2023Mineros de Zacatecas
Career highlights and awards
  • Third-team All NBA G League (2018)
  • 2× Second-team All-MVC (2013, 2014)
  • 2× MVC All-Defensive Team (2013, 2014)
  • 2× MVC Most-Improved Team (2012, 2013)
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Walter Lemon Jr. (born July 26, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Mineros de Zacatecas of Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP). He played college basketball for four years with the Bradley Braves.[1]

High school career

Lemon attended Julian High School where he averaged 19 points, six assists, five rebounds and three steals per game as a senior, earning him a third-team 3A all-state pick by the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association and a second-team All-Chicago Public League.[2][3][4]

College career

After graduating, Lemon went to Bradley where he averaged 18 points and 3 rebounds as a senior. When he graduated he ranked among Bradley's all-time top 10 in career points (1721, 7th), assists (367, 10th) and steals (222, 3rd) and had several awards, including the MVC Men's Basketball Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2014, Bradley's first player ever to win the award.[2]

Professional career

Körmend (2014)

After going undrafted in the 2014 NBA draft, Lemon joined the Golden State Warriors for the 2015 NBA Summer League. On September 10, 2014, he signed with Hungarian team EGIS Körmend for the 2014–15 season.[5] On December 23, 2014, he parted ways with the club after appearing in 12 league games.[6]

Crailsheim Merlins (2015)

On February 6, 2015, he signed with the Crailsheim Merlins of Germany for the rest of the season.[7] In eight games for the Merlins, he averaged 6.4 points, 1.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game.

Fort Wayne Mad Ants (2015–2016)

On October 31, 2015, Lemon was selected by the Fort Wayne Mad Ants in the second round of the 2015 NBA Development League Draft.[8]

İstanbulspor Beylikdüzü (2016)

On July 15, 2016, Lemon signed with İstanbulspor Beylikdüzü of the TBL.[9]

Rethymno Cretan Kings (2017)

On February 20, 2017, Lemon Jr. signed with the Greek team Rethymno Cretan Kings.[10]

Fort Wayne Mad Ants (2017–2018)

On November 2, 2017, Lemon was included in the opening night roster for Fort Wayne Mad Ants.[11] Lemon was later named G League Player of the Month for November.[12]

New Orleans Pelicans (2018)

On February 21, 2018, the New Orleans Pelicans signed Lemon to a 10-day contract.[13] He made his NBA debut two days later in a 124–123 overtime win over the Miami Heat, playing in four minutes that night. Lemon signed his second 10-day contract on March 4. After the expiration of his second 10-day contract, Lemon returned to Fort Wayne.[14]

Maine Red Claws (2018)

On July 25, Lemon signed a two-way contract with the Boston Celtics. During this time, he was expected to split his playing time between the Celtics and their NBA G League affiliate, the Maine Red Claws. On November 29, 2018, Lemon was waived by the Celtics without appearing in a game for the parent club.[15]

Windy City Bulls (2018–2019)

On December 8, 2018, the Fort Wayne Mad Ants announced that they had acquired the right of Alex Hamilton and a first round pick in the 2019 NBA G League draft from the Windy City Bulls in exchange for the right to Lemon.[16]

On January 16, 2019, Lemon was suspended for one game without pay and fined for directing inappropriate language towards a game official.[17]

Chicago Bulls (2019)

On March 29, 2019, the Chicago Bulls announced that they had signed Lemon.[18] On March 30, 2019, Lemon made his debut with the Bulls, scoring 19 points with 6 assists and four steals. In his third game in a Chicago Bulls uniform, in a game against the Wizards in Washington, D.C., on April 3, 2019, Lemon led all players with 24 points in a very efficient 11 of 16 from the floor while leading all players with eight assists. In the final minute of the game, Lemon hit one go ahead basket and afterwards a go-ahead free throw. On the other end of the floor Lemon played hard, tenacious defense to secure the victory for the Bulls, 115–114.

Fort Wayne Mad Ants (2019–2020)

On October 10, 2019, the Indiana Pacers announced that they had signed Lemon.[19] This comes after the release of 2x Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year JaKeenan Gant. Terms of the contract weren't released.[20] On October 16, 2019, Lemon was waived by the Indiana Pacers.[21] On October 26, 2019, Lemon was included in the training camp roster for the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.[22] On November 6, 2019, Lemon was included in the opening night roster of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.[23] He averaged 20.3 points, 6.8 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game.[24]

Hapoel Tel Aviv (2020–2021)

On August 15, 2020, Lemon signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv of the Israeli Premier League.[25] He averaged 10.6 points, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game.[26]

Ezzahra Sports (2021)

On September 11, 2021, Lemon signed with Ezzahra Sports of the Championnat National A.[26]

Return to the Fort Wayne Mad Ants (2021–2022)

On December 30, 2021, Lemon signed with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA G League,[27] averaging 12.3 points and 6.2 assists in 32 games.[28]

Ottawa BlackJacks (2022)

On May 2, 2022, Lemon signed with the Ottawa BlackJacks of the CEBL.[28]

Club Africain (2022–present)

Lemon signed with Club Africain in Tunisia in 2022.

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

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 New Orleans 507.0.4381.000.667.41.0.0.23.4
2018–19 Chicago 6327.8.437.400.7274.55.01.8.214.3
Career 11318.4.437.500.7142.63.21.0.29.4

College

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2010–11 Bradley 31520.0.419.324.6602.4.9.9.46.4
2011–12 Bradley 322530.7.471.345.6673.12.51.3.512.6
2012–13 Bradley 353434.3.451.330.7614.23.82.1.415.6
2013–14 Bradley 323135.5.424.290.7463.13.92.4.118.0
Career 1309530.3.442.321.7193.22.81.7.313.2

Personal life

He is the son of Walter Sr. and Katrina Lemon and is one of three siblings. Earning a spot on the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll three times, Lemon earned his bachelor's degree in psychology.[2] Growing up in Chicago, he always wanted to be like Derrick Rose and it shows in his game with flashy passes and hard cuts to the hoop.

References

  1. ↑ "Walt Lemon, Jr. Player Profile". Basketball.realgm.com. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 "Walt Lemon, Jr. bio". BradleyBraves.com. Retrieved November 14, 2015.
  3. ↑ WALTER LEMON JR. LOOKS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE WITH THE WINDY CITY BULLS - “IT’S BEEN ABOUT PLAYING TOGETHER, UNSELFISH BASKETBALL AND THAT HAS TO START WITH ME.” - WALTER LEMON JR..Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  4. ↑ WGN (Chicago) Walter Lemon Jr. completes memorable day by helping the Bulls to a win.Retrieved November 14, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Walter Lemon jr signs with Kormend". Sportando.com. September 10, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Walter Lemon jr. leaves Kormend". Sportando.com. December 23, 2014. Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  7. ↑ Helmstetter, Klaus (February 6, 2015). "Spiel gegen Trier: Merlins holen Walter Lemon Jr. an Bord". Swp.de (in German). Retrieved April 11, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Mad Ants select: Lemon". JournalGazette.net. October 31, 2015. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Walter Lemon Jr. is a newcomer at Istanbulspor". Eurobasket.com. July 15, 2016. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Rethymno BC inks Walter Lemon jr". 20 February 2017. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
  11. ↑ "Mad Ants Announce 2017-18 Opening Night Roster". NBA.com. November 2, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Walter Lemon Jr. Named G League Player of the Month". NBA.com. December 1, 2017. Retrieved December 1, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Pelicans sign Walter Lemon, Jr. to 10-day contract". NBA.com. February 21, 2018. Retrieved February 21, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Walt Lemon Jr. returns to Fort Wayne". NBA.com. March 15, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  15. ↑ "We have waived guard Walt Lemon Jr". Boston Celtics on Twitter. November 29, 2018. Retrieved November 29, 2018.
  16. ↑ Stevens, Ryan (December 8, 2018). "Mad Ants Acquire Rights for Alex Hamilton and 2019 Draft Pick". NBA.com. Retrieved December 8, 2018.
  17. ↑ "Windy City's Lemon Jr. suspended and fined". NBA. 16 January 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  18. ↑ "Bulls sign Walt Lemon Jr". NBA.com. March 29, 2019. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  19. ↑ "PACERS BRING BACK WALT LEMON JR". SLAM.com. October 10, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  20. ↑ "Indiana Pacers Make Handful Of Transactions To Prepare For Season". Forbes.com. October 11, 2019. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  21. ↑ "Pacers Waive Three". NBA.com. October 16, 2019. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  22. ↑ Stevens, Ryan (October 26, 2019). "Mad Ants draft two players, announce 2019 training camp roster". NBA.com. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  23. ↑ Stevens, Ryan (November 6, 2019). "Mad Ants Finalize 2019-20 Opening Night Roster". NBA.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  24. ↑ Cohn, Justin (March 13, 2020). "G League follows NBA: Halts season". The Journal Gazette. Retrieved July 15, 2020.
  25. ↑ Carchia, Emiliano (August 15, 2020). "Hapoel Tel Aviv signs Walter Lemon". Sportando. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  26. 1 2 Skerletic, Dario (September 11, 2021). "Walt Lemon Jr signs with Ezzahra Sports". Sportando. Retrieved September 11, 2021.
  27. ↑ "2021-22 NBA G League transactions". gleague.nba.com. December 30, 2021. Retrieved December 30, 2021.
  28. 1 2 "BlackJacks Sign NBA Experienced Guard Walter Lemon Jr". CEBL.com. May 2, 2022. Retrieved May 2, 2022.
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