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Paul Atkinson (basketball)

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Paul Atkinson
Atkinson with Yale in 2019
Free Agent
PositionPower forward
Personal information
Born (1999-03-27) March 27, 1999 (age 25)
Georgia, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight230 lb (104 kg)
Career information
High schoolWestminster Academy
(Fort Lauderdale, Florida)
College
NBA draft2022: undrafted
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–2023Atomerőmű SE
2023–2024Kortrijk Spurs
Career highlights and awards

Paul Atkinson Jr. (born March 27, 1999) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Kortrijk Spurs of the BNXT League. He played college basketball player for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Yale Bulldogs.

Early life

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Atkinson grew up in West Palm Beach, Florida and attended the Westminster Academy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. As a junior, he led Westminster Academy to the Class 3A state championship game, where they fell to Windermere Prep. Atkinson committed to play college basketball at Yale at the beginning of his senior year after receiving interest from Dayton, UNC-Wilmington, and Richmond.[1] As a senior, Atkinson averaged 20.6 points, 13.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game and was the Sun-Sentinel South Florida Player of the Year. He had 17 points and 12 rebounds in the 3A championship game.[2]

College career

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Atkinson was a starter for Yale as a true freshman and averaged 9.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game.[3][4] Atkinson was forced to play major minutes due to an injury to Jordan Bruner, and Yale coach James Jones praised Atkinson for his shot selection and accuracy, but wanted more aggressiveness from him.[2] He mostly came off the bench as a sophomore and averaged 9.1 points and 5.0 rebounds per game.[5][6] Prior to his junior season, Atkinson gained 20 pounds and worked on his athleticism.[7] As a junior, Akinson was named the Ivy League Co-Player of the Year alongside Penn's A. J. Brodeur after averaging 17.6 points and 7.3 rebounds per game and leading the Ivy League with .630 field goal percentage during the regular season.[8] Following the season, Atkinson declared for the 2020 NBA draft.[9]

Atkinson entered the transfer portal after the 2020–2021 Ivy League season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He chose to transfer to Notre Dame as a graduate transfer after considering offers from Miami (Florida), Iowa, NC State and Texas.[10] Atkinson was named Honorable Mention All-ACC.[11] He averaged 12.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game.[12]

Professional career

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On July 10, 2022, Atkinson signed with Atomerőmű SE of the Nemzeti Bajnokság I/A.[12] On July 21, 2022, after a whirlwind season with ASE, Atkinson signed with Kortrijk Spurs of the BNXT League where he plays to the present day.

Career statistics

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Legend
  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

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2017–18 Yale 31 30 24.2 .692 – .667 4.6 1.0 .7 .5 9.3
2018–19 Yale 30 1 20.2 .697 .000 .653 5.0 1.0 .5 .6 9.1
2019–20 Yale 30 29 31.8 .630 .308 .671 7.3 1.5 1.2 .8 17.6
Career 91 60 25.4 .661 .286 .665 5.6 1.2 .8 .6 12.0

Personal life

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Atkinson's parents, Paul and Laura, met in Stamford, Connecticut, in high school. They moved to Georgia, where Paul Jr. was born, before returning to Stamford and finally moving to West Palm Beach.[13]

References

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  1. ^ Lammer, Pat (September 6, 2016). "Westminster standout big Paul Atkinson commits to Yale". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  2. ^ a b Malafonte, Paul (January 25, 2018). "Yale coaches look for Paul Atkinson to turn up the volume". New Haven Register. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  3. ^ Templon, John (February 19, 2019). "James Jones has assembled a machine at Yale that is cruising to another NCAA Tournament bid". MidMajorMadness.com. SB Nation. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  4. ^ Browne, Rob. "Yale men add to its deep roster to make a run at the league title". IvyHoopsOnline.com. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  5. ^ Borges, David (November 3, 2019). "'Different' Yale men's basketball team kicks off season on Tuesday". New Haven Register. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  6. ^ Templon, John (February 12, 2020). "Paul Atkinson and AJ Brodeur lead the Ivy League's big man revolution". MidMajorMadness.com. SB Nation. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  7. ^ McCormack, William (February 19, 2020). "MEN'S BASKETBALL: On cusp of 1,000 points, Paul Atkinson '21 redefining dependability". Yale Daily News. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
  8. ^ "Yale's Paul Atkinson is co-Ivy League Player of the Year". New Haven Register. March 11, 2020. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  9. ^ McCormack, William (March 31, 2020). "MEN'S BASKETBALL: Forward Paul Atkinson '21 to declare for NBA Draft". yaledaileynews.com. Yale Daily News. Retrieved March 31, 2020.
  10. ^ Borzello, Jeff (January 3, 2021). "Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's basketball lands prized grad transfer Paul Atkinson". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
  11. ^ "ACC Unveils 2021-22 Men's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Atlantic Coast Conference. March 7, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
  12. ^ a b Beres, Arnold (July 10, 2022). "Atomeromu tabs rookie Paul Atkinson". Eurobasket. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  13. ^ Anthony, Mike (January 15, 2020). "Mike Anthony: Yale's Atkinson rarely misses, and Bulldogs don't miss a beat in a season of roster turnover". Hartford Courant. Retrieved March 12, 2020.
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