Cameron Spencer (born April 6, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA), on a two-way contract with the Memphis Hustle of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Loyola Greyhounds, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and the UConn Huskies.
 Spencer in 2024 | |
| No. 24 – Memphis Grizzlies | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard / shooting guard |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | April 6, 2000 Davidsonville, Maryland, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 205 lb (93 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Boys' Latin School of Maryland (Baltimore, Maryland) |
| College |
|
| NBA draft | 2024: 2nd round, 53rd overall pick |
| Selected by the Detroit Pistons | |
| Playing career | 2024–present |
| Career history | |
| 2024–present | Memphis Grizzlies |
| 2024–present | →Memphis Hustle |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Early life
editSpencer grew up in Davidsonville, Maryland and attended the Boys' Latin School of Maryland in Baltimore, Maryland.[1] He was named the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) Player of the Year as a senior after he averaged 25 points, seven rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game.[2]
College career
editSpencer began his college basketball career with the Loyola Greyhounds. He averaged ten points, 3.1 assists, and 3.4 rebounds in 23 games before suffering a hip injury and was named to the Patriot League All-Freshman team.[3] Spencer missed most of his sophomore season while recovering from his hip injury. He returned for the final five games of the season and averaged 10.2 points.[4] Spencer was named first-team All-Patriot League as a junior after averaging 18.9 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.3 steals per game.[2] Following the end of the season, Spencer entered the NCAA transfer portal.[5][6]
Spencer ultimately transferred to Rutgers after also receiving interest from Minnesota and NC State.[7][8] He entered the 2022–23 as a starting guard for the Scarlet Knights.[9] Spencer scored 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including a go-ahead three-point shot with 13.3 seconds left, in Rutgers' 65–64 upset win over top-ranked Purdue.[10] Spencer was named the Big Ten Conference Player of the Week after scored another go-ahead three pointer with 15 seconds left and scored 23 points overall in a 65–62 win against Northwestern on January 11, 2023, and scored 21 points with six rebounds, six assists, and four steals as Rutgers beat Ohio State 68–64.[11] He finished the season averaging 13.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and two steals per game.[12] After the season, Spencer decided to utilize the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes who played in the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic and entered the NCAA transfer portal for a second time.[13]
Spencer transferred to UConn.[14] He was named first-team All-Big East Conference after starting all 40 of the Huskies' games and averaging 14.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 1.5 steals per game as UConn won the national championship[15] Spencer scored 11 points with eight rebounds, two assists, and two steals in UConn's 75–60 win over Purdue in the National Championship game.[16]
Professional career
editOn June 27, 2024, Spencer was selected with the 53rd overall pick by the Detroit Pistons in the 2024 NBA draft, however, immediately on draft night, he was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies.[17] On July 8, he signed a two-way contract with the Grizzlies.[18]
Career statistics
edit| 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
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–20 | Loyola | 23 | 9 | 28.0 | .491 | .436 | .857 | 3.4 | 3.1 | .3 | .0 | 10.0 |
| 2020–21 | Loyola | 5 | 3 | 25.6 | .425 | .467 | .769 | 4.4 | 3.0 | 1.0 | .2 | 10.2 |
| 2021–22 | Loyola | 30 | 30 | 36.9 | .468 | .353 | .858 | 4.8 | 3.2 | 2.3 | .2 | 18.9 |
| 2022–23 | Rutgers | 34 | 34 | 31.5 | .444 | .434 | .894 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 2.0 | .1 | 13.2 |
| 2023–24 | UConn | 40 | 40 | 33.0 | .484 | .440 | .911 | 4.9 | 3.6 | 1.5 | .3 | 14.3 |
| Career | 132 | 116 | 32.3 | .468 | .417 | .878 | 4.3 | 3.3 | 1.6 | .2 | 14.2 | |
Personal life
editSpencer's older brother, Pat, was a four-time All-American and won the Tewaaraton Award as a lacrosse player at Loyola before playing a season of college basketball at Northwestern.[19] He now plays basketball professionally for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association.[20]
References
edit- ^ Graham, Glenn (February 2, 2019). "We can get a little loud': Spencer family leaving lasting impression on Boys' Latin basketball". The Baltimore Sun. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ a b Fonseca, Brian (November 7, 2022). "Meet Rutgers' Cam Spencer: a competitive 'animal' eager to make B1G jump with Scarlet Knights". NJ.com. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ "Boiling' to return from hip surgery, Cameron Spencer is back at the perfect time for Loyola Maryland basketball". The Baltimore Sun. March 9, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ "After missing much of last season to recover from hip surgery, Cam Spencer relishing healthy, full-time return to Loyola". The Baltimore Sun. December 31, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ London, Dushawn (April 7, 2022). "Loyola Maryland transfer Cam Spencer talks visits". 247Sports. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ Fonseca, Brian (April 19, 2022). "Sharpshooting transfer Cam Spencer details why he chose Rutgers, Steve Pikiell". NJ.com. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ "Rutgers basketball adds transfer Cam Spencer, guard from Loyola". Asbury Park Press. April 19, 2022. Retrieved November 11, 2022.
- ^ Breitman, Aaron (April 19, 2022). "First Team All-Patriot League guard Cam Spencer commits to Rutgers". OnTheBanks.com. SB Nation. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ "Rutgers basketball: Cam Spencer wows crowd in debut". Asbury Park Press. November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ Young, Ryan (January 2, 2023). "Rutgers stuns top-ranked Purdue, again, behind winning 3-pointer from Cam Spencer". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved January 5, 2023.
- ^ Deren, Bobby (January 17, 2023). "Cam Spencer earns Big Ten co-player of the week". 247Sports. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
- ^ Deen, Bobby (March 18, 2023). "Cam Spencer delivers for Rutgers despite being underutilized". 247Sports. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
- ^ "Rutgers basketball: Cam Spencer enters transfer portal, a late hit to 2023-24 roster". Asbury Park Press. May 19, 2023. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
- ^ Borzello, Jeff (June 7, 2023). "Sources: UConn lands sharpshooting transfer guard Cam Spencer". ESPN.com. Retrieved June 7, 2023.
- ^ Fonseca, Brian (April 9, 2024). "Cam Spencer won a title with UConn, but what about Paul Mulcahy, other Rutgers transfers?". NJ.com. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
- ^ "UConn guard Cam Spencer fulfills dream with NCAA title in one season". CT Insider. April 9, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
- ^ Arruda, Joe (June 27, 2024). "Former UConn guard Cam Spencer with 53rd pick, heading to Memphis Grizzlies". Hartford Courant. Retrieved June 28, 2024.
- ^ Grizzlies PR [@GrizzliesPR] (July 8, 2024). "The @memgrizz today signed Cam Spencer to a two-way contract" (Tweet). Retrieved July 14, 2024 – via Twitter.
- ^ Stepner, Shawn (January 27, 2022). "Another Spencer sparking Loyola". WMAR-TV. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Gordon, Ellis (November 1, 2022). "Cam Spencer: Rutgers men's basketball lone transfer primed to make impact". The Daily Targum. Retrieved January 5, 2023.