Kosta Koufos facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Kostas Koufos

Koufos with the Nuggets in 2013
Free agent
Center
Personal information
Born	(1989-02-24) February 24, 1989 (age 36) Canton, Ohio, U.S.
Nationality	Greek / American
High school	GlenOak (Canton, Ohio)
Listed height	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)
Listed weight	275 lb (125 kg)
Career information
College	Ohio State (2007–2008)
NBA Draft	2008 / Round: 1 / Pick: 23rd overall
Selected by the Utah Jazz
Pro career	2008–present
Career history
2008–2010	Utah Jazz
2009–2010	→ Utah Flash
2010–2011	Minnesota Timberwolves
2011–2013	Denver Nuggets
2013–2015	Memphis Grizzlies
2015–2019	Sacramento Kings
2019–2020	CSKA Moscow
2021	Olympiacos
2021	NBA G League Ignite
2022–2023	London Lions
Career highlights and awards
Third-team All-Big Ten (2008) Big Ten All-Freshman Team (2008) National Invitation Tournament MVP (2008) FIBA U18 European Championship MVP (2007) McDonald's All-American (2007) Third-team Parade All-American (2007)
Medals Men's basketball Representing  Greece EuroBasket Bronze 2009 Poland FIBA Under-18 European Championship Silver 2007 Spain Team

Konstantine Demetrios "Kostas" Koufos is a professional basketball player. He was born on February 24, 1989. Kostas is a Greek-American player who used to play as a center. He played one season of college basketball at Ohio State. After that, he was chosen by the Utah Jazz in the 2008 NBA draft.

High School Basketball Journey

Kostas Koufos went to GlenOak High School in Canton, Ohio. He was a star player for the GlenOak Golden Eagles basketball team. As a junior, he was amazing, averaging 24 points, 11.1 rebounds, and four blocked shots per game. He was even named Second-Team All-State.

Senior Year Success

In his senior year, Kostas was even better. He averaged 25.9 points, 15.4 rebounds, and 5.2 blocked shots per game. He helped his team end Canton McKinley's 41-game winning streak. In that game, he scored 32 points, grabbed 19 rebounds, and blocked 10 shots.

After his senior season, Kostas was named the best player in Division I. He also earned First-Team All-State honors. He was chosen to play in the 2007 McDonald's All-American Game. Experts like Rivals.com thought he was one of the top players in the country.

College Basketball Career

Kostas Koufos played for the Ohio State Buckeyes for one season. This was during the 2007–08 season. He quickly became a key player for his team.

Ohio State Achievements

During his time at Ohio State, Kostas was recognized as one of the best players. He was named to the third-team All-Big Ten conference. He also made the league's All-Freshman Team. He was one of the top players in the Big Ten for scoring, rebounding, and blocked shots.

Kostas helped the Buckeyes reach the final of the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). They won the championship game against UMass. Kostas played a huge role in that win, scoring 22 points, getting nine rebounds, and blocking three shots. Because of his great performance, he was named the NIT Most Valuable Player (MVP). After this successful freshman year, he decided to enter the 2008 NBA draft.

Professional Basketball Highlights

Kostas Koufos has had a long career playing basketball professionally. He played for several teams in the NBA and also overseas.

Starting with the Utah Jazz

The Utah Jazz picked Kostas as the 23rd player in the 2008 NBA draft. During his first years, he also played some games in the NBA D-League for the Utah Flash. He spent two seasons with the Jazz. In those seasons, he played 84 games. He averaged about 3.3 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

Moving to Minnesota and Denver

In 2010, Kostas was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves. He played there for a short time. In 2011, he was traded again, this time to the Denver Nuggets. He signed a new contract with the Nuggets in 2012. While playing for Denver, he had some of his best seasons. He averaged 6.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.

Time with Memphis and Sacramento

In 2013, Kostas was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies. He played two seasons with them. He averaged 5.8 points and 5.2 rebounds per game. In 2015, he signed with the Sacramento Kings. He played for the Kings for several years. He became a free agent in 2019.

Playing Overseas and G League

After his time in the NBA, Kostas went to play basketball in Europe. In 2019, he signed a two-year deal with CSKA Moscow in Russia. He then played for Olympiacos in Greece in 2021. Later that year, he joined the NBA G League Ignite in the NBA G League. From 2022 to 2023, he played for the London Lions in the UK.

Representing Greece

Kostas Koufos has proudly played for the Greek national basketball team. He has represented Greece in both junior and senior competitions.

Junior National Team

In 2007, Kostas was part of the junior Greek national under-18 team. They played in the 2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship in Spain. He led his team to the final game. Even though Greece lost to Serbia in the finals, Kostas was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player (MVP). He led the competition in points, rebounds, and blocked shots. He averaged 26.5 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game.

Senior National Team

Koufos playing for Greece against Jonas Valančiūnas from Lithuania.

In 2009, Kostas joined the senior Greek national basketball team. He played in the EuroBasket 2009 tournament. There, he helped Greece win a bronze medal. He also played in EuroBasket 2011 and EuroBasket 2015. His best performance with the senior team was in EuroBasket 2015. He averaged 10 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. He also played in the 2016 Olympic Qualifying Tournament. From 2009 to 2016, Kostas played in 57 games for Greece. He scored a total of 503 points.

About Kostas Koufos

Kostas Koufos is the son of Katerina and Alex Koufos. His parents were immigrants from Greece. His father, Alex, was a pediatric doctor in Canton, Ohio. Sadly, his father passed away when Kostas was nine years old. Kostas has dual citizenship. This means he is a citizen of both the United States and Greece. This allowed him to play for the Greek national team. He can also speak the Greek language.

Major Awards and Accomplishments

• 2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship: 2 Silver

• 2007 FIBA Europe Under-18 Championship: MVP
• 2008 National Invitation Tournament: MVP
• EuroBasket 2009: 3 Bronze

Career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

EuroLeague

College

See also

In Spanish: Kosta Koufos para niños

• List of European basketball players in the United States