Cleanthony Early facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Cleanthony Early

Early with the New York Knicks in 2014
No. 22 – Central Club
Power forward
Personal information
Born	(1991-04-17) April 17, 1991 (age 34) The Bronx, New York, U.S.
High school	Pine Bush (Pine Bush, New York) Mount Zion Christian Academy (Durham, North Carolina)
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight	220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
College	SUNY Sullivan (2010–2012) Wichita State (2012–2014)
NBA Draft	2014 / Round: 2 / Pick: 34th overall
Selected by the New York Knicks
Pro career	2014–present
League	Lebanese Basketball League
Career history
2014–2016	New York Knicks
2015–2016	Westchester Knicks
2016–2017	Santa Cruz Warriors
2017–2018	Rio Grande Valley Vipers
2018	Enriquillo
2018–2019	Tokyo Hachioji Bee Trains
2019	Atomerőmű SE
2019–2020	Al Ahli Jeddah
2020–2021	Antibes Sharks
2021	Al Ahli Jeddah
2021	Ohud Medina
2021	Al-Nasr
2021–2022	New Taipei CTBC DEA
2022	Cape Town Tigers
2022	Gladiadores de Anzoátegui
2022	TaiwanBeer HeroBears
2023	Dynamo Lebanon
2023	BCH Garid
2023	Al-Ittihad Manama
2024	Sagesse Club
2025–present	Central Club
Career highlights and awards
Consensus second-team All-American (2014) 2× First-team All-MVC (2013, 2014) MVC Newcomer of the Year (2013) 2× NJCAA Division III Player of the Year (2011, 2012) 2× NJCAA All-American (2011, 2012)

Cleanthony Early (born April 17, 1991) is an American professional basketball player. He currently plays for the Central Club in the Lebanese Basketball League. Before becoming a pro, he was an All-American college player at Wichita State University. He also played at Sullivan County Community College.

Early Life and School

Cleanthony Early was born in the Bronx, a part of New York City. When he was 14, his family moved to Middletown, New York. This move was to be closer to family after some sad events.

He went to Pine Bush High School in New York. Later, he moved to Mount Zion Christian Academy in North Carolina. Early always wanted to stay close to his family. This led him to attend Sullivan County Community College.

When he was a junior in high school, Early was about 6 feet 5 inches tall. Experts at ESPN.com thought he was a promising player. They listed him as one of the top small forwards in the country in 2010.

College Basketball Star

Early became a big star at Sullivan County Community College. This is a type of college where students often go for two years. He was named the best player in Division III of the NJCAA twice!

After his time there, many big universities wanted him. He decided to join Wichita State University. There, he played for coach Gregg Marshall.

Making an Impact at Wichita State

Early quickly made a difference for the Wichita State Shockers. In his first year, he scored about 14 points and grabbed 5 rebounds per game per game. He was chosen for the first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference. He was also named the MVC Newcomer of the Year.

In 2013, Early helped his team reach the Final Four tournament. This is a very big deal in college basketball! In a close game against Louisville, he scored 24 points and got 10 rebounds. Even though his team lost, he was named to the All-Final Four team.

An Undefeated Season

Before his final year, Early became very famous across the country. He was named the preseason Player of the Year for his conference. He was also on watch lists for national player of the year awards.

In the 2013–14 season, Early helped his team achieve something amazing. The Shockers went undefeated with a 34–0 record! They were the first team in over 20 years to do this in Division I men's basketball.

In the NCAA Tournament, Early played a great game. He scored 31 points and had 7 rebounds. However, the Shockers lost a very close game to Kentucky, ending their perfect season.

Professional Basketball Journey

Playing for the New York Knicks

On June 26, 2014, Cleanthony Early was chosen by the New York Knicks in the 2014 NBA draft. He was the 34th player picked overall. He officially signed with the Knicks on August 1, 2014.

During his first year, he also played for the Westchester Knicks. This team is part of the NBA Development League, which helps players get more experience. In some games for Westchester, he averaged over 20 points and almost 10 rebounds. In March 2015, he had his best game for the New York Knicks. He scored 18 points and grabbed 4 rebounds against the Los Angeles Clippers.

In the 2015–16 season, Early continued to play for both the New York Knicks and the Westchester Knicks. He even played in both leagues on the same day once! He was out for almost three months with a knee injury. He returned to play for New York in March 2016.

Early re-signed with the New York Knicks in October 2016. However, he was waived a few days later. He then joined the Westchester Knicks again as a player connected to the New York Knicks.

Moving to Other Teams

On December 21, 2016, Early joined the Santa Cruz Warriors. He played 16 games for them, averaging about 9 points and 4 rebounds. He also played 19 games for them in the 2017–18 season.

After that, Early played for many different teams around the world.

• In September 2017, he signed with AEK Athens in Greece, but his contract ended quickly.
• In December 2017, he was traded to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
• In 2018, he played for Parque Hostos and Enriquillo in the Dominican Republic.
• He then signed with the Tokyo Hachioji Bee Trains in Japan for the 2018–19 season.
• In 2019, he played for Atomerőmű SE in Hungary.
• Later in 2019, he joined Al Ahli in Saudi Arabia.

Recent Years

In August 2020, Early signed a five-year deal with Antibes Sharks in France. He had an amazing game in October, scoring 41 points and getting 8 rebounds! This earned him the "Player of the Week" award.

In March 2021, he moved back to Saudi Arabia. He played for Ohud Medina and Al-Nasr. In November 2021, he signed with New Taipei CTBC DEA in Taiwan.

In May 2022, Early joined the Cape Town Tigers for the Basketball Africa League (BAL) playoffs. He scored 15 points in his first game. In August 2022, he played for Kazma in Kuwait.

He also played for TaiwanBeer HeroBears in Taiwan in November 2022. His contract with them ended in January 2023.

2023 and Beyond

In January 2023, Early joined Dynamo Lebanon in Lebanon. He also played for BCH Garid in Mongolia and Al-Ittihad Manama in Bahrain in March 2023. In March 2024, he signed with Sagesse Club in Lebanon.

As of January 2025, Early plays for the Central Club in the Lebanese Basketball League.

NBA Career Statistics

Regular Season

See also

In Spanish: Cleanthony Early para niños