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Alexis Ajinça
Alexis Ajinca Pelicans (cropped).jpg
Ajinça with the New Orleans Pelicans in 2014
Capital City Go-Go
Assistant coach
Personal information
Born (1988-05-06) May 6, 1988 (age 35)
Saint-Étienne, France
High school INSEP (Paris, France)
Listed height 7 ft 2 in (2.18 m)
Listed weight 248 lb (112 kg)
Career information
NBA Draft 2008 / Round: 1 / Pick: 20th overall
Selected by the Charlotte Bobcats
Pro career 2006–2019
Coaching career 2023–present
League NBA G League
Career history
As player:
2006–2007 Pau-Orthez
2007–2008 Hyères-Toulon
2008–2010 Charlotte Bobcats
2009 →Sioux Falls Skyforce
2009–2010 →Maine Red Claws
2010–2011 Dallas Mavericks
2011 Toronto Raptors
2011 Hyères-Toulon
2011–2013 SIG Strasbourg
2013–2018 New Orleans Pelicans
2018–2019 ASVEL Basket
As coach:
2023–present Capital City Go-Go (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
  • All-French League First Team (2013)
  • LNB Pro A All-Star (2013)
  • All-French League Third Team (2012)
  • All-French League Defensive Team (2012)
  • 2× All-French League Domestic Team (2012, 2013)
  • NBA D-League All-Star (2010)
  • French Cup winner (2007)
  • Albert Schweitzer Tournament Most Talented Player (2006)
Career NBA G League statistics
Points 1,553 (5.3 ppg)
Rebounds 1,150 (3.9 rpg)
Blocks 181 (.6 bpg)
Medals
FIBA EuroBasket
Gold 2013 Slovenia National Team
U-18 European Championship
Gold 2006 Greece U-18 Team

Alexis Ajinça (French pronunciation: [alɛksi aʒɛ̃sa]; born May 6, 1988) is a French professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Capital City Go-Go of the NBA G League. He played seven seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for the Charlotte Bobcats, Dallas Mavericks, Toronto Raptors and New Orleans Pelicans.

Early life

Ajinça was a promising BMX rider during his childhood and routinely won racing competitions for his age group in France. He started playing basketball at age of 12 because he thought that it would help him improve his bike jumps. Ajinça gave up BMX riding when he blossomed in basketball.

Professional career

Early years (2006–2008)

After attending France's INSEP, Ajinça played for Pau-Orthez during the 2006–07 season. He joined Hyères-Toulon for the 2007–08 season and averaged 5.0 points and 3.1 rebounds per game.

Charlotte Bobcats (2008–2010)

Ajinça was selected with the 20th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft by the Charlotte Bobcats. The Bobcats wanted to select a big man after selecting guard D. J. Augustin earlier in the draft and believed that Ajinça possessed the most potential of players available.

During his rookie season, he spent time with the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League. During his second season with Charlotte, he spent time with the Maine Red Claws.

Dallas Mavericks (2010–2011)

On July 13, 2010, Ajinça was traded, along with Tyson Chandler, to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Erick Dampier, Eduardo Nájera, Matt Carroll.

Toronto Raptors (2011)

On January 24, 2011, Ajinça was traded, along with a future second-round draft pick and cash considerations, to the Toronto Raptors in exchange for the draft rights to Georgios Printezis.

Return to France (2011–2013)

On November 2, 2011, Ajinça joined Paris-Levallois for a one-week tryout. He left the team on November 8 and joined Hyères-Toulon two days later. He appeared in just two games with Hyères-Toulon before parting ways with the team.

After failing to make a return to the NBA following the conclusion of the NBA lockout, Ajinça returned to France and signed with SIG Strasbourg on December 29, 2011. On August 13, 2012, he re-signed with Strasbourg for the 2012–13 season. On August 6, 2013, he re-signed with Strasbourg for the 2013–14 season. On December 18, 2013, he left Strasbourg to return to the NBA.

New Orleans Pelicans (2013–2018)

On December 20, 2013, Ajinça signed with the New Orleans Pelicans. On July 9, 2015, he re-signed with the Pelicans. On April 8, 2016, he recorded career highs with 28 points and 15 rebounds in a 110–102 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

On December 7, 2017, after missing all of the 2017–18 season up to that point, Ajinça was ruled out for the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on his right patellar tendon, an injury that typically takes four to six months to recover.

On October 15, 2018, Ajinça was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in exchange for Wesley Johnson. He was waived by the Clippers immediately upon being acquired.

ASVEL (2018–2019)

On December 28, 2018, Ajinça returned to France and signed with ASVEL Basket.

Coaching career

On October 13, 2023, Ajinça was hired as an assistant coach by the Capital City Go-Go of the NBA G League.

National team career

In September 2013, Ajinça represented the French national team at EuroBasket 2013 in Slovenia. He averaged 9.1 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.

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  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

NBA

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2008–09 Charlotte 31 4 5.9 .362 .000 .714 1.0 .1 .2 .2 2.3
2009–10 Charlotte 6 0 5.0 .500 .000 .000 .7 .0 .2 .2 1.7
2010–11 Dallas 10 2 7.5 .375 .429 .667 1.7 .2 .3 .5 2.9
2010–11 Toronto 24 0 11.0 .465 .333 .733 2.5 .3 .3 .6 4.8
2013–14 New Orleans 56 30 17.0 .544 .000 .836 4.9 .7 .4 .8 5.9
2014–15 New Orleans 68 8 14.1 .550 .000 .818 4.6 .7 .3 .8 6.5
2015–16 New Orleans 59 17 14.6 .476 .000 .839 4.6 .5 .3 .6 6.0
2016–17 New Orleans 39 15 15.0 .500 .000 .725 4.5 .3 .5 .6 5.3
Career 293 76 13.3 .503 .286 .797 3.9 .5 .3 .6 5.3

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015 New Orleans 3 0 3.3 1.000 .000 .000 .3 .3 .3 .0 2.7
Career 3 0 3.3 1.000 .000 .000 .3 .3 .3 .0 2.7

EuroLeague

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2006–07 Pau-Orthez 2 0 4.2 .000 .000 .000 1.5 .0 .0 .0 .0 -3.0
2013–14 SIG Strasbourg 9 9 25.5 .553 .000 .757 5.4 1.7 .9 .9 17.1 17.2
Career 11 9 21.6 .534 .000 .757 4.7 1.4 .7 .7 14.0 13.5

Personal life

Ajinça and his wife Courtney have two sons, Carter and Caysen. His cousin, Melvin Ajinça, is a professional basketball player.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Alexis Ajinça para niños

  • List of European basketball players in the United States
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