Elijah Millsap facts for kids

Elijah Millsap (born August 12, 1987) is an American former professional basketball player. He played as a shooting guard or small forward. Elijah played for several teams during his career, including some in the NBA G League and even a few games in the NBA. He is also the brother of famous NBA player Paul Millsap.

Early Basketball Years

High School Success

Elijah Millsap went to Grambling High School in Louisiana. In his final year, he was an amazing player, scoring almost 30 points and grabbing over 14 rebounds per game. This made him the most valuable player (MVP) in his high school league.

College Journey

After high school, Elijah played college basketball for two years at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. He played in 53 games there, starting 40 of them. He averaged 9.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. After that, he moved to the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). In his senior year at UAB, he averaged 16.1 points per game and was chosen for the All-Conference USA team, which means he was one of the best players in his college conference.

Professional Basketball Career

Starting in the D-League

After college, Elijah wasn't picked in the 2010 NBA draft, but he still joined the Detroit Pistons for a summer league. He later signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder but was waived (released) before the season started. He then joined the Tulsa 66ers in the NBA Development League (now called the NBA G League). He played so well that he was named to the D-League All-Rookie second team in his first year.

Time with the Los Angeles D-Fenders

In 2011, Elijah moved to the Los Angeles D-Fenders, another D-League team. He even signed a short contract with the Los Angeles Lakers of the NBA, but he was waived before the regular season began. He returned to the D-Fenders and played there for a while. He also tried playing overseas, briefly joining the Shanghai Sharks in China in 2012.

Playing Around the World

Elijah's career took him to different countries. In 2013, he played for the Petron Blaze Boosters in the Philippines. In 2014, he played for Maccabi Ashdod B.C. in Israel. He then returned to the Los Angeles D-Fenders and later joined the Bakersfield Jam in the D-League.

Making it to the NBA

Utah Jazz Debut

On January 5, 2015, Elijah got his big chance! He signed a 10-day contract with the Utah Jazz and played his first NBA game that very night. He played well, getting 5 rebounds and 4 assists. He signed a longer contract with the Jazz later that month and played for them until January 2016.

Return Overseas and Back to the G League

After his time with the Jazz, Elijah played for Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. in Israel and then the San Miguel Beermen in the Philippines again in 2016.

He then returned to the NBA G League, joining the Northern Arizona Suns. He had an amazing season there in 2016–17, leading his team in scoring with almost 20 points per game and steals. He was the only player on his team to start all 50 games that season. In one game, he scored a career-high 38 points!

Phoenix Suns and Later Career

Because of his great performance, Elijah was called up to the NBA again and signed a contract with the Phoenix Suns in April 2017. He played a couple of games for them before being waived later that year.

He continued his career in the G League with the Iowa Wolves and then played in Spain for CB Breogán. His last professional games were in 2022 with the College Park Skyhawks in the NBA G League.

Personal Life

Elijah Millsap was born in Grambling, Louisiana. He comes from a family of basketball players! His brother, Paul Millsap, is a very famous player who was an NBA All-Star four times. Elijah also has two other brothers, John and Abraham, who play basketball.

See also

In Spanish: Elijah Millsap para niños

• List of NBA G League career scoring leaders