Mickell Gladness facts for kids
Gladness as a member of the Miami Heat in December 2011
|
|
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 26, 1986 Jasper, Alabama, U.S. |
| High school | Sylacauga (Sylacauga, Alabama) |
| Listed height | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) |
| Listed weight | 230 lb (104 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College |
|
| NBA Draft | 2008 / Undrafted |
| Pro career | 2008–2020 |
| Career history | |
| 2008–2009 | Matrixx Magixx |
| 2009–2011 | Rio Grande Valley Vipers |
| 2011 | Dakota Wizards |
| 2011–2012 | Miami Heat |
| 2012 | Golden State Warriors |
| 2012–2013 | Santa Cruz Warriors |
| 2013–2014 | Reno Bighorns |
| 2014 | Jiangxi Xinye |
| 2014–2015 | Townsville Crocodiles |
| 2015 | Canterbury Rams |
| 2015–2016 | Maccabi Ashdod |
| 2016 | San Lorenzo de Almagro |
| 2016–2017 | BC Kalev |
| 2017–2018 | Bilbao Basket |
| 2018 | Ironi Nes Ziona |
| 2018–2019 | Pistoia Basket |
| 2019 | Benfica |
| 2019 | SeaHorses Mikawa |
| 2019–2020 | San-en NeoPhoenix |
| 2020 | Arka Gdynia |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
|
Mickell Jawaun Gladness (born July 26, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player. He grew up in Alabama and played college basketball for Lawson State Community College and Alabama A&M University. After not being chosen in the 2008 NBA draft, he started his professional career in the Netherlands. In 2011, Gladness made his debut in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Miami Heat.
Contents
Early Life and High School Years
Mickell Gladness was born in Jasper, Alabama. He spent his childhood in Sylacauga, where he went to Sylacauga High School from 2000 to 2004.
College Basketball Journey
Starting at Lawson State
Gladness played basketball for one season at Lawson State Community College. During this time, he averaged 3.1 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.
Moving to Alabama A&M
In 2005, Gladness transferred to Alabama A&M. He played there for the remaining three years of his college career. While at Alabama A&M, he studied business management.
Playing Right Away
Thanks to NCAA rules, Gladness could start playing right away as a sophomore in the 2005–06 season. This was because he transferred from a community college to a Division I school. He played in 26 games and blocked 77 shots.
Becoming a Shot-Blocking Star
Gladness really shined in his junior season. He played in 30 games and was the best in the nation at blocking shots, averaging 6.3 blocks per game. On February 24, 2007, he set an amazing NCAA Division I record by blocking 16 shots in one game against Texas Southern. No other player in Division I has ever blocked 15 shots in a single game!
Finishing Strong
In his senior year, Gladness's blocks per game dropped to 4.5. This might have been because other teams knew how good he was at blocking shots and tried to avoid him. Even so, he finished his college career with 396 blocks in just three Division I seasons. This placed him among the top 25 all-time shot blockers when he graduated. In his last two seasons, Gladness was named a first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference player. He also won the SWAC Defensive Player of the Year award in both 2007 and 2008.
Professional Basketball Career
Starting in Europe and the D-League
After the 2008 NBA draft, Mickell Gladness was not drafted by any NBA team. In July 2008, he signed a two-year contract with Matrixx Magixx in the Dutch Basketball League. However, he left the team after one year in 2009.
In November 2009, Gladness joined the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the NBA Development League. He helped the Vipers win the D-League championship in 2010. He then played for the Miami Heat in the 2010 NBA Summer League and signed with them in September 2010. But he was later released and rejoined the Vipers. He also played briefly for the Dakota Wizards in 2011.
Making it to the NBA
In November 2011, Gladness returned to the Dakota Wizards. On December 9, 2011, he signed with the Miami Heat again. He made his NBA debut on December 25 against the Dallas Mavericks. He played eight games for the Heat before signing a 10-day contract with the Golden State Warriors on March 22, 2012. He then signed with the Warriors for the rest of the 2011–12 season. Gladness started the last seven games of the season for the Warriors. In his best game on April 26, he scored 14 points and grabbed 9 rebounds against San Antonio.
Back to the D-League and Overseas
Gladness signed with the Miami Heat again in September 2012 but was released in October. He then joined the Santa Cruz Warriors in November 2012. In September 2013, he signed with the Orlando Magic, but was released before the season started. He returned to Santa Cruz and was later traded to the Reno Bighorns. After the 2013–14 D-League season, he played for Jiangxi Xinye in China.
Playing in Australia and New Zealand
On June 12, 2014, Gladness signed with the Townsville Crocodiles for the 2014–15 NBL season in Australia. In 27 games, he averaged 9.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, and led the league with 2.2 blocks per game. In February 2015, he joined the Canterbury Rams in New Zealand. He averaged 11.1 points, 11.3 rebounds, and led that league with 2.3 blocks per game in 18 games.
More International Play
In September 2015, Gladness signed with Maccabi Ashdod in Israel. He left the team in March 2016 and briefly played for San Lorenzo de Almagro in Argentina. In May 2016, he played for an NBL All-Australian team in China.
On September 16, 2016, Gladness signed with the Estonian club Kalev/Cramo. That season, he led the VTB League in blocks with 1.5 per game. He also helped Kalev/Cramo win the 2017 Estonian League Championship.
In September 2017, Gladness signed with the Spanish club Bilbao Basket. He played 42 games, averaging 5.8 points and 4.2 rebounds.
Later Career Years
In September 2018, Gladness returned to Israel to play for Ironi Nes Ziona. He had a great game on September 26, 2018, scoring 22 points, along with seven rebounds and three blocks. He later joined the Italian team Pistoia Basket in November 2018.
In February 2019, Gladness joined the Portuguese team Benfica. He then played for San-en NeoPhoenix in Japan starting in December 2019. His last professional team was Arka Gdynia in Poland, where he signed in February 2020.
Career Statistics
NBA Regular Season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–12 | Miami | 8 | 0 | 3.5 | .333 | .000 | .000 | 1.4 | .3 | .1 | .1 | .3 |
| 2011–12 | Golden State | 18 | 7 | 12.4 | .429 | .000 | .500 | 2.6 | .2 | .2 | 1.1 | 3.0 |
| Career | 26 | 7 | 9.7 | .424 | .000 | .500 | 2.2 | .2 | .2 | .8 | 2.2 | |
NBL Regular Season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014–15 | Townsville | 27 | 27 | 25.1 | .531 | .000 | .506 | 7.7 | .4 | .3 | 2.2 | 9.1 |
| Career | 27 | 27 | 25.1 | .531 | .000 | .506 | 7.7 | .4 | .3 | 2.2 | 9.1 | |
Personal Life
Mickell Gladness is married to Adriana, and they have two sons.
See also
In Spanish: Mickell Gladness para niños
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball players with 13 or more blocks in a game
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season blocks leaders
- List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career blocks leaders
