Damion Lee facts for kids
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Lee with the Phoenix Suns in 2022
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| No. 10 – Phoenix Suns | |
|---|---|
| Shooting guard / small forward | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | October 21, 1992 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. |
| High school |
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| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 210 lb (95 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College |
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| NBA Draft | 2016 / Undrafted |
| Pro career | 2016–present |
| League | NBA |
| Career history | |
| 2016–2017 | Maine Red Claws |
| 2017–2018 | Santa Cruz Warriors |
| 2018 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 2018–2020 | →Santa Cruz Warriors |
| 2018–2022 | Golden State Warriors |
| 2022–present | Phoenix Suns |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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Damion Lee (born October 21, 1992) is an American professional basketball player. He plays for the Phoenix Suns in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Damion played college basketball at Drexel University for four years. Then, he transferred to Louisville for his last year. After not being picked in the 2016 NBA draft, Lee played in the NBA G League. He later joined the Atlanta Hawks in 2018. The next season, he signed a special contract with the Golden State Warriors. He won an NBA championship with them in 2022.
Contents
High School Basketball Journey
Damion Lee finished high school at Calvert Hall College High School in Towson, Maryland. In his final year, he was a top player in the Baltimore area. He was named to the Second-Team Baltimore Sun All-Metro. He also made the First-Team All-Baltimore Catholic League.
After Calvert Hall, Lee went to a prep school called St. Thomas More. This school is in Oakdale, Connecticut. During the 2010–11 season, he averaged 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per game. He was chosen for the First Team All-New England Preparatory School Athletic Council. His team had a great record of 30 wins and 7 losses. They even won the National Prep School Championship.
College Career Highlights
Playing for Drexel Dragons
As a freshman in the 2011–12 season, Damion Lee started as the team's point guard. He averaged 12 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Because of his strong start, he was named the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) Rookie of the Year. He also played well in the CAA tournament, averaging over 15 points.
In the CAA championship game, Drexel lost a close game to Virginia Commonwealth University. Even though Drexel had a great season, they were not invited to the NCAA Tournament. Instead, they played in the 2012 National Invitation Tournament. They won two games before losing in the regional final.
In his second season, Lee was named to the Second-Team All-CAA. He led Drexel in scoring, averaging 17.1 points per game. He also shot well from the free-throw line and made many three-pointers. In one game against Old Dominion, he scored a career-high 34 points.
During his third season at Drexel, Lee faced a challenge. He tore his ACL (a knee ligament) in a game against Arizona. This injury meant he had to miss the whole season. He used this time to "redshirt," which means he didn't play but kept his year of college eligibility.
Before his "redshirt junior" season, Lee was again named to the Preseason CAA All-Conference First Team. In February 2015, he broke his right hand during a game. This injury ended his season early. Even with the injury, Lee averaged 21.4 points per game, which was one of the best in the nation. He also shot 88.7% from the free-throw line. He was very close to winning the CAA Player of the Year award. He did win awards for CAA All-Conference First Team and CAA All-Defensive Team.
On March 30, 2015, Lee decided to transfer from Drexel University. He was considered one of the best college basketball players looking to transfer.
Time with Louisville Cardinals
On April 23, 2015, Damion Lee announced he would play his final college season at Louisville. He chose Louisville because he loved the community and the college basketball atmosphere there. By December 2015, he was Louisville's top scorer.
Louisville was ranked as a top team in the country. However, the team announced they would not play in the postseason for the 2015–16 season. This was due to an ongoing investigation. They finished the regular season with a strong record of 23 wins and 8 losses.
Professional Basketball Journey
Starting with Maine Red Claws (2016–2017)
After the 2016 NBA draft, Damion Lee was not drafted by any NBA team. He joined the Miami Heat for the 2016 NBA Summer League. In September 2016, he signed with the Boston Celtics, but they later let him go.
In October, he joined the Maine Red Claws in the NBA Development League. He played 16 games, averaging 17.8 points and 6.3 rebounds. However, he suffered a season-ending injury in January 2017.
Playing for Santa Cruz Warriors (2017–2018)
In August 2017, Lee was traded to the Santa Cruz Warriors in the NBA G League.
Brief Stint with Atlanta Hawks (2018)
On March 13, 2018, Damion Lee signed a 10-day contract with the Atlanta Hawks. He played well, and the Hawks signed him for the rest of the season.
Joining Golden State Warriors (2018–2022)
In July 2018, Lee signed a special two-way contract with the Golden State Warriors. This meant he would play for both the Warriors and their G League team, the Santa Cruz Warriors.
In July 2019, the Warriors re-signed Lee to another two-way contract. On October 28, Lee had a great game against the New Orleans Pelicans. He scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. On December 25, he had another strong game against the Houston Rockets, with 22 points and a career-high 15 rebounds.
Lee got a lot of playing time because many Warriors players were injured. In January 2020, the Golden State Warriors signed Lee to a multi-year contract. This meant he was a full-time NBA player.
On December 27, 2020, Lee scored 12 points, including a game-winning three-pointer, against the Chicago Bulls.
On June 16, 2022, Damion Lee and the Warriors won the 2022 NBA Finals, making him an NBA champion!
Moving to Phoenix Suns (2022–present)
On July 7, 2022, Lee signed with the Phoenix Suns. He made his Suns debut on October 19, 2022. He scored 11 points and hit a game-winning shot against the Dallas Mavericks. On January 13, 2023, Lee scored a career-high 31 points coming off the bench.
During training camp for the next season, Lee injured his right meniscus, which required surgery. This injury caused him to miss the entire season. He later shared that the injury was serious and needed a long time to heal.
On July 6, 2024, Lee re-signed with the Suns.
Playing for the National Team
On February 22, 2018, Damion Lee was chosen to join the United States national team. He played in the qualification games for the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup.
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 | Atlanta | 15 | 11 | 26.9 | .408 | .250 | .759 | 4.7 | 1.9 | 1.3 | .1 | 10.7 |
| 2018–19 | Golden State | 32 | 0 | 11.7 | .441 | .397 | .864 | 2.0 | .4 | .4 | .0 | 4.9 |
| 2019–20 | Golden State | 49 | 36 | 29.0 | .417 | .356 | .873 | 4.9 | 2.7 | 1.0 | .1 | 12.7 |
| 2020–21 | Golden State | 57 | 1 | 18.9 | .467 | .397 | .909 | 3.2 | 1.3 | .7 | .1 | 6.5 |
| 2021–22† | Golden State | 63 | 5 | 19.9 | .441 | .337 | .880 | 3.2 | 1.0 | .6 | .1 | 7.4 |
| 2022–23 | Phoenix | 74 | 5 | 20.4 | .442 | .445 | .904 | 3.0 | 1.3 | .4 | .1 | 8.2 |
| Career | 290 | 58 | 20.8 | .436 | .379 | .878 | 3.4 | 1.4 | .7 | .1 | 8.2 | |
Playoffs
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022† | Golden State | 16 | 0 | 7.8 | .382 | .250 | .667 | 1.6 | .4 | .1 | .0 | 2.0 |
| 2023 | Phoenix | 8 | 0 | 11.1 | .300 | .200 | 1.000 | 1.4 | .6 | .3 | .0 | 2.1 |
| Career | 24 | 0 | 8.9 | .352 | .226 | .800 | 1.5 | .5 | .1 | .0 | 2.0 | |
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | Drexel | 36 | 35 | 28.9 | .454 | .375 | .773 | 4.4 | 1.7 | .8 | .3 | 12.0 |
| 2012–13 | Drexel | 27 | 24 | 33.0 | .425 | .360 | .829 | 5.1 | 1.8 | .8 | .1 | 17.1 |
| 2013–14 | Drexel | 5 | 5 | 26.8 | .370 | .273 | .864 | 4.2 | 2.2 | .6 | .2 | 13.0 |
| 2014–15 | Drexel | 27 | 27 | 38.1 | .438 | .385 | .887 | 6.1 | 2.3 | 1.5 | .3 | 21.4 |
| 2015–16 | Louisville | 30 | 30 | 33.6 | .428 | .341 | .843 | 3.9 | 2.0 | 1.5 | .0 | 15.9 |
| Career | 125 | 121 | 32.8 | .433 | .362 | .843 | 4.8 | 2.0 | 1.1 | .2 | 16.1 | |
Personal Life
Damion Lee studied general humanities and social science at Drexel. At Louisville, he focused on special education, learning about assistive technology.
Damion is married to Sydel Curry. Sydel is the daughter of former NBA player Dell Curry. She is also the younger sister of NBA stars Stephen Curry and Seth Curry. Damion and Sydel got married on September 1, 2018. They have a son named Daxon Wardell-Xavier Lee, who was born on November 26, 2021.
On March 21, 2023, Damion and Sydel shared that they were expecting a baby girl. Their daughter, Daryn Alicia Lee, was born on August 23, 2023.
