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Damon Stoudamire
Damon Stoudamire 2021.png
Stoudamire in 2021 as a Celtics assistant coach
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Head coach
Personal information
Born (1973-09-03) September 3, 1973 (age 51)
Portland, Oregon, U.S.
High school Woodrow Wilson
(Portland, Oregon)
Listed height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Listed weight 171 lb (78 kg)
Career information
College Arizona (1991–1995)
NBA Draft 1995 / Round: 1 / Pick: 7th overall
Selected by the Toronto Raptors
Pro career 1995–2008
Coaching career 2009–present
League Atlantic Coast Conference
Career history
As player:
1995–1998 Toronto Raptors
1998–2005 Portland Trail Blazers
2005–2008 Memphis Grizzlies
2008 San Antonio Spurs
As coach:
2008–2009 Rice (director of player development)
2009–2011 Memphis Grizzlies (assistant)
2011–2013 Memphis (assistant)
2013–2015 Arizona (assistant)
2015–2016 Memphis (assistant)
2016–2021 Pacific
2021–2023 Boston Celtics (assistant)
2023–present Georgia Tech
Career highlights and awards
As player:
  • NBA Rookie of the Year (1996)
  • NBA All-Rookie First Team (1996)
  • Consensus first-team All-American (1995)
  • Pac-10 Player of the Year (1995)
  • 3× First-team All-Pac-10 (1993–1995)

As coach:

  • Ben Jobe Award (2020)
  • WCC Coach of the Year (2020)
Career NBA statistics
Points 11,763 (13.4 ppg)
Assists 5,371 (6.1 apg)
Steals 953 (1.1 spg)
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  United States
Goodwill Games
Bronze 1994 St. Petersburg National team
Summer Universiade
Gold 1993 Buffalo National team

Damon Lamon Stoudamire (born September 3, 1973), known as Mighty Mouse, is an American college basketball coach and former player. He is currently the head coach for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).

Damon was a point guard who stood 5 feet 10 inches tall and weighed 171 pounds. The Toronto Raptors picked him as the 7th overall player in the 1995 NBA draft. He won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award in the 1995–96 NBA season. He played college basketball at the University of Arizona. Professionally, he played for the Toronto Raptors, Portland Trail Blazers, Memphis Grizzlies, and San Antonio Spurs.

Damon Stoudamire's Early Life

Damon Stoudamire was born in Portland, Oregon. He was raised by his mother, Liz Washington, and his grandmother, Wanda Stoudamire-Matthews. His uncles, Charles and Anthony Stoudamire, helped him get involved in sports, especially basketball. They were like fathers and coaches to him when he was young.

Damon loved watching Nate Archibald play basketball and tried to play like him. He played basketball at local parks and community centers in Portland. He went to Holy Redeemer grade school and Harriet Tubman Middle School. Later, he attended Woodrow Wilson High School.

High School Basketball Career

At Wilson High School (now Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School), Damon was a star basketball player. He led his team, the Trojans, to an amazing 74–4 record. They won state championships in 1989 and 1991.

During his high school career, he averaged 26.1 points, 9.2 assists, and 3.6 rebounds per game. He was named Oregon Player of the Year twice. In his senior year, he was also chosen for the Converse High School All-America Team.

College Basketball Career

Damon Stoudamire played point guard for the Arizona Wildcats under coach Lute Olson. He was a first-team All-American and a finalist for College Player of the Year. In his junior year, he and Khalid Reeves helped their team reach the Final Four.

In his senior year, he earned All-American honors by averaging 22.8 points per game. He finished his college career as Arizona's all-time leader in three-pointers made (272). He was also second in points (1,849) and fourth in assists (663). Damon was the only player in Arizona history to score 40 points or more in two different games. His career-high was 45 points against Stanford University on January 14, 1995. He shared the Pac-10 Player of the Year award with Ed O'Bannon in 1995.

Even though he was the youngest player on the United States men's national basketball team, Damon led the team in assists and steals. They won a gold medal at the 1993 Summer Universiade.

Professional Basketball Career

Playing for the Toronto Raptors (1995–1998)

Damon Stoudamire made a big impression with the Toronto Raptors right away. At the 1995 NBA draft in Toronto, fans wanted the Raptors to pick UCLA star Ed O'Bannon. They booed loudly when the team chose Stoudamire instead. Damon later said the boos motivated him, as he believed fans would change their minds once they saw him play.

He had a great rookie season, averaging 9.3 assists and 19 points per game. He earned the nickname "Mighty Mouse" because he was 5 feet 10 inches tall and had a Mighty Mouse tattoo on his arm. He set a rookie record with 133 three-point field goals. He was second in scoring and led all rookies in minutes played and assists in the 1995–96 NBA season. He won the Schick Rookie of the Month award twice and was unanimously named to the Schick All Rookie First Team. He also won the Rookie of the Year award, receiving most of the votes. He is known as the shortest player to ever win this award. The Raptors finished his rookie season with 21 wins and 61 losses.

Damon held the record for most triple-doubles with the Toronto Raptors (3) until 2014. In his second season, he averaged 20.2 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 8.8 assists, playing in 81 games.

Playing for the Portland Trail Blazers (1998–2005)

After the Raptors' vice president, Isiah Thomas, resigned, Stoudamire asked to be traded. On February 13, 1998, he was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers. He joined Walt Williams and Carlos Rogers in the trade. In return, the Raptors received Kenny Anderson, Alvin Williams, Gary Trent, draft picks, and cash.

During the 1998 NBA Playoffs, Damon scored 17 points and had 14 assists in a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. On December 28, 2000, he scored 32 points and made the game-winning shot with 0.4 seconds left against the Utah Jazz. In the 2002–03 NBA season, the Blazers sometimes kept Stoudamire on the bench. The new coach, Maurice Cheeks, preferred Scottie Pippen and Bonzi Wells at guard. However, Damon played a lot during the playoffs that season.

On January 14, 2005, Stoudamire scored a career-high and then-franchise record 54 points for the Blazers. This included 8 3-pointers against the New Orleans Hornets. His contract with the Blazers ended after the 2004–05 NBA season.

Playing for the Memphis Grizzlies (2005–2008)

On August 5, 2005, Damon signed a 4-year deal with the Memphis Grizzlies. He became their starting point guard, replacing Jason Williams. On December 30, 2005, he injured his right patellar tendon in his hometown of Portland. He had surgery and missed the rest of the 2005–06 NBA season. He returned for the 2006–07 NBA season, playing 62 games and starting 51.

During the 2007–08 NBA season, Damon worked with Mike Conley Jr., a 2007 draft pick by the Grizzlies. When Conley returned from an injury, Grizzlies coach Marc Iavaroni made Conley the starting point guard. This led Stoudamire to seek a trade or a buyout. On January 26, 2008, the Grizzlies and Stoudamire agreed to end his contract. The San Antonio Spurs, Boston Celtics, Phoenix Suns, Denver Nuggets, and Toronto Raptors were interested in signing him. On February 3, 2008, Stoudamire signed with the San Antonio Spurs.

Playing for the San Antonio Spurs (2008)

Damon briefly started for the San Antonio Spurs when Tony Parker was injured. After Parker returned, Damon played less for the rest of the season and the playoffs.

Coaching Career

Rice Owls (2008–2009)

In December 2008, Damon Stoudamire became the director of player development for the Rice University Owls basketball team.

Memphis Grizzlies (2009–2011)

In February 2009, Stoudamire joined the coaching staff of the Memphis Grizzlies as an assistant coach.

Return to College Coaching (2011–2021)

In May 2011, Stoudamire became an assistant coach for the University of Memphis Tigers men's basketball team. His coaching and recruiting skills were highly praised.

In May 2013, he left Memphis to join the coaching staff of the Arizona Wildcats men's basketball team, his former college team.

In May 2015, Stoudamire returned to the Memphis Tigers men's basketball team as an assistant coach.

In March 2016, Stoudamire took over as the head coach for the Pacific Tigers men's basketball team. He coached Pacific until 2021.

Boston Celtics (2021–2023)

In July 2021, Stoudamire left Pacific to become an assistant coach for the Boston Celtics.

Georgia Tech (2023–Present)

On March 13, 2023, Damon Stoudamire was announced as the new head coach of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. He made history by becoming the first Tech coach in ACC history to defeat Duke in his first try, when the Yellow Jackets beat the then-seventh-ranked Blue Devils 72–68 on December 2, 2023. He also became the third coach in ACC history to beat both Duke and North Carolina in his first year. On January 30, 2024, Tech beat #3 UNC 74–73 in a sold-out McCamish Pavilion.

Career Statistics

NBA Regular Season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1995–96 Toronto 70 70 40.9 .426 .395 .797 4.0 9.3 1.4 .3 19.0
1996–97 Toronto 81 81 40.9 .401 .355 .823 4.1 8.8 1.5 .2 20.2
1997–98 Toronto 49 49 41.5 .425 .317 .844 4.4 8.1 1.6 .1 19.4
Portland 22 22 36.6 .364 .263 .787 3.7 8.2 1.5 .1 12.4
1998–99 Portland 50* 50* 33.5 .396 .310 .730 3.3 6.2 1.0 .1 12.6
1999–00 Portland 78 78 30.4 .432 .377 .841 3.1 5.2 1.0 .0 12.5
2000–01 Portland 82 82* 32.4 .434 .374 .831 3.7 5.7 1.3 .1 13.0
2001–02 Portland 75 71 37.3 .402 .353 .888 3.9 6.5 .9 .1 13.5
2002–03 Portland 59 27 22.3 .376 .386 .791 2.6 3.5 .7 .1 6.9
2003–04 Portland 82 82 38.0 .401 .365 .876 3.8 6.1 1.2 .1 13.4
2004–05 Portland 81 70 34.1 .392 .369 .915 3.8 5.7 1.1 .0 15.8
2005–06 Memphis 27 27 31.9 .397 .346 .855 3.5 4.7 .7 .0 11.7
2006–07 Memphis 62 51 24.2 .391 .337 .795 2.2 4.8 .8 .0 7.5
2007–08 Memphis 29 29 21.5 .397 .383 .808 2.4 3.9 .7 .0 7.3
San Antonio 31 4 13.3 .301 .255 .750 1.5 1.7 .4 .1 3.4
Career 878 793 33.2 .406 .357 .833 3.5 6.1 1.1 .1 13.4

NBA Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1998 Portland 4 4 41.5 .397 .364 1.000 4.3 9.5 1.3 .3 17.8
1999 Portland 13 13 31.0 .380 .455 .706 3.2 5.6 .6 .1 10.2
2000 Portland 16 16 27.9 .415 .333 .833 2.6 3.6 .5 .3 8.9
2001 Portland 3 3 38.0 .413 .154 1.000 3.0 4.3 .7 .3 17.7
2002 Portland 3 3 33.0 .227 .750 .667 2.3 3.3 .7 .0 5.0
2003 Portland 7 6 33.1 .456 .484 .952 5.1 5.6 .9 .3 15.3
2008 San Antonio 7 0 5.0 .333 .250 .667 1.0 .3 .1 .0 1.9
Career 53 45 28.2 .399 .389 .847 3.0 4.4 .6 .2 10.1

College Statistics

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1991–92 Arizona 30 0 18.0 .455 .406 .771 2.2 2.5 .7 .1 7.2
1992–93 Arizona 28 27 31.1 .438 .382 .791 4.1 5.7 1.6 .2 11.0
1993–94 Arizona 35 35 33.3 .448 .351 .800 4.5 5.9 1.6 .1 18.3
1994–95 Arizona 30 30 36.4 .476 .465 .826 4.3 7.3 1.7 .0 22.8
Career 123 92 29.8 .457 .402 .804 3.8 5.4 1.4 .1 15.0

Head Coaching Record

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Pacific Tigers (West Coast Conference) (2016–2021)
2016–17 Pacific 11–22 4–14 9th
2017–18 Pacific 14–18 9–9 T–4th
2018–19 Pacific 14–18 4–12 9th
2019–20 Pacific 23–10 11–5 T–3rd
2020–21 Pacific 9–9 6–7 5th
Pacific: 71–77 (.480) 34–47 (.420)
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Atlantic Coast Conference) (2023–present)
2023–24 Georgia Tech 14–18 7–13 T–12th
2024–25 Georgia Tech 17–17 10–10 8th NIT First Round
Georgia Tech: 31–35 (.470) 17–23 (.425)
Total: 102–112 (.477)

Personal Life and Family

Damon Stoudamire is related to several other basketball players. He is the cousin of former NBA players Salim Stoudamire and Terrence Jones. He is also the cousin of current NBA player Grant Williams. His uncles, Anthony Stoudamire and Charles Stoudamire, were also athletes at Portland State University.

See also

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