Justin_Kier
Justin Kier
American basketball player (born 1998)
Justin Kier (born May 30, 1998) is an American professional basketball player for the Austin Spurs of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Arizona Wildcats of the Pac-12 Conference. He also played for the George Mason Patriots and the Georgia Bulldogs.
Kier with Arizona in 2021 | |
| No. 5 – Austin Spurs | |
|---|---|
| Position | Shooting guard |
| League | NBA G League |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1998-05-30) May 30, 1998 (age 26) |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Listed weight | 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Spotswood (Penn Laird, Virginia) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2022: undrafted |
| Playing career | 2022–present |
| Career history | |
| 2022–present | Austin Spurs |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
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Kier attended Spotswood High School. In his career, he scored 1700 points for Spotswood and earned Valley District Player of the Year honors.[1] He committed to George Mason over scholarship offers from Coastal Carolina, UNC Greensboro, Radford and Fairfield.[2]
Kier made an immediate impact at George Mason as a freshman, averaging 5.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game.[2] He averaged 11.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game as a sophomore.[3] On December 3, 2018, he scored a career-high 32 points in a 72–67 loss to Vermont.[4] As a junior, Kier averaged 14.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 47.1 percent from the field.[5] He was named to the Second Team All-Atlantic 10 as well as the Atlantic 10 Most Improved Player.[6] He suffered a stress fracture in the offseason that caused him to miss the first six games of his senior season. Kier missed a game with an unrelated injury in December 2019. On January 15, 2020, he reinjured his stress fracture which caused him to miss the remainder of the season.[7] In nine games, he averaged 9.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game.[8]
On April 8, 2020, Kier decided to enter the transfer portal after being granted a fifth season of eligibility.[6] He announced he was transferring to Georgia on April 26 and will be eligible immediately as a graduate transfer.[5] Kier chose the Bulldogs over offers from Minnesota and NC State.[8] He averaged 9.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game while shooting 39.4 percent from the field. Kier transferred to Arizona Wildcats for his final season of eligibility.[9] Kier led his team to the Sweet 16 in the 2022 March Madnes, where they lost to the Houston Cougars 72 - 60.
Austin Spurs (2022–present)
After going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, Kier joined the Austin Spurs on October 24, 2022.[10]
| 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 |
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 | George Mason | 33 | 29 | 27.7 | .428 | .386 | .744 | 4.5 | 1.1 | .6 | .2 | 5.8 |
| 2017–18 | George Mason | 33 | 32 | 33.2 | .451 | .174 | .784 | 4.6 | 2.3 | 1.3 | .1 | 11.0 |
| 2018–19 | George Mason | 33 | 31 | 34.8 | .471 | .371 | .769 | 6.5 | 2.6 | 1.6 | .3 | 14.5 |
| 2019–20 | George Mason | 9 | 2 | 22.6 | .464 | .458 | .846 | 3.6 | 1.3 | .7 | .2 | 9.6 |
| 2020–21 | Georgia | 25 | 25 | 31.0 | .394 | .366 | .750 | 3.7 | 2.4 | 1.7 | .1 | 9.5 |
| 2021–22 | Arizona | 36 | 6 | 20.1 | .444 | .358 | .830 | 3.1 | 2.3 | .6 | .0 | 6.9 |
| Career | 169 | 125 | 28.8 | .444 | .351 | .781 | 4.4 | 2.1 | 1.1 | .2 | 9.5 | |
At the age of seven, Kier's mother Keley suffered a heart attack while driving a car, crashed into a tree and is now paralyzed, blind and cannot speak. Kier was in the automobile with her but was not injured, escaping through a window. As a consequence of the accident and with his father not in his life, Kier and his older brother, Rasheed, came into the custody of their grandmother, Evelyn.[11]
- Flum, Alex (April 26, 2020). "Former Spotswood star Justin Kier transferring to Georgia". WHSV. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Goff, Steven (December 28, 2017). "A small town in Virginia embraced a child. Now it cheers his rise in college basketball". Washington Post. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Sang, Orion (April 21, 2020). "Grad transfer Justin Kier includes Michigan basketball in final list of suitors". Detroit Free Press. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- "Duncan, Lamb each score 19 as Vermont holds off George Mason". ESPN. Associated Press. December 3, 2018. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Wilson, Brent (April 26, 2020). "Former George Mason guard, Justin Kier commits to Georgia Basketball". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Byrum, Tyler (April 8, 2020). "George Mason grad transfer Justin Kier enters transfer portal, could return to Patriots". NBC Sports. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Byrum, Tyler (January 15, 2020). "George Mason loses senior Justin Kier to another foot injury". NBC Sports. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Page, Fletcher (April 26, 2020). "George Mason transfer Justin Kier commits to UGA". Athens Banner-Herald. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- Scheer, Jason (May 26, 2021). "Former Georgia guard Justin Kier headed to Arizona". 247 Sports. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
- "Austin Spurs Announce 2022-23 Training Camp Roster". OurSportsCentral.com. October 24, 2022. Retrieved October 24, 2022.
- Cristodero, Damian (February 16, 2020). "For senior, 'some light coming into a dark place'". George Mason University. Retrieved April 27, 2020.