Michael Flowers (born January 14, 1999) is an American basketball player for Antwerp Giants of the BNXT League. He previously played for the Western Michigan Broncos, South Alabama Jaguars and the Washington State Cougars. He was named second-team All-Pac-12 with Washington State in 2022.
| No. 6 – Windrose Giants Antwerp | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard |
| League | BNXT League |
| Personal information | |
| Born | January 14, 1999 Southfield, Michigan |
| Nationality | American |
| Listed height | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Listed weight | 190 lb (86 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Southfield A&T (Southfield, Michigan) |
| College |
|
| Career history | |
| 2022–2023 | VfL Kirchheim Knights |
| 2023 | Ottawa BlackJacks |
| 2023–2024 | VfL Kirchheim Knights |
| 2024–present | Antwerp Giants |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
High school career
editFlowers played basketball for Southfield High School for the Arts and Technology in Southfield, Michigan.[1] As a junior, he averaged 25 points, six rebounds and two steals per game. In his senior season, Flowers averaged 23 points, six assists and five rebounds per game. He was a two-time all-state selection in high school.[2]
College career
editAs a freshman at Western Michigan, Flowers averaged 3.4 points per game.[3] On December 15, 2018, he scored a sophomore season-high 31 points and seven rebounds in a 70–62 loss to Michigan. As a sophomore, Flowers averaged 15.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.[4] On March 9, 2020, he scored a career-high 35 points in a 76–73 loss to Toledo at the first round of the MAC tournament.[5] As a junior, he averaged 16.9 points, 3.3 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game, earning All-MAC honorable mention. He entered the transfer portal following the departure of head coach Steve Hawkins at the end of the season.[6]
For his senior season, Flowers transferred to South Alabama.[7] He was initially denied a waiver for immediate eligibility by the NCAA. Flowers alleged that Western Michigan had given away his scholarship without his knowledge while he was in the transfer portal, and that inconsistent communication from its athletic department caused some programs to stop recruiting him and resulted in his ineligibility.[8][9] Before the season, the NCAA reversed its decision and ruled him eligible.[10] On March 5, 2021, Flowers posted a season-high 34 points, five rebounds and four assists in an 80–72 victory against Louisiana–Monroe at the first round of the Sun Belt tournament.[11] As a senior, he averaged 21 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, earning First Team All-Sun Belt and Newcomer of the Year recognition.[12]
Flowers opted to return to college for a fifth season of eligibility, granted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and transferred to Washington State. He chose the Cougars over offers from Arkansas, USC, Miami (Florida), Texas A&M, Florida, Colorado, and Marquette.[12] He was named second-team All-Pac-12.[13]
Professional career
editVfL Kirchheim Knights (2022–2023)
editAfter going undrafted in the 2022 NBA draft, Flowers signed with VfL Kirchheim Knights of the German ProA. He averaged 16.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 27.8 minutes in 33 games played.
Ottawa BlackJacks (2023)
editThe Ottawa BlackJacks announced they had signed Flowers on May 2, 2023.[14]
Return to VfL Kirchheim Knights (2023–2024)
editOn August 15, 2023, Flowers returned to VfL Kirchheim Knights.[15]
Antwerp Giants (2024–present)
editOn July 2, 2024, he signed with Antwerp Giants of the BNXT League.[16]
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | Western Michigan | 23 | 0 | 8.7 | .460 | .480 | .700 | 1.0 | .5 | .2 | .0 | 3.4 |
| 2018–19 | Western Michigan | 32 | 32 | 31.3 | .387 | .332 | .784 | 3.9 | 3.3 | .9 | .1 | 15.7 |
| 2019–20 | Western Michigan | 32 | 32 | 32.2 | .428 | .368 | .844 | 2.9 | 3.3 | .8 | .0 | 16.9 |
| 2020–21 | South Alabama | 28 | 28 | 37.2 | .438 | .388 | .818 | 4.6 | 3.6 | 1.6 | .1 | 21.0 |
| 2021–22 | Washington State | 37 | 37 | 32.5 | .400 | .369 | .854 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 1.1 | .1 | 14.2 |
| Career | 152 | 129 | 29.4 | .415 | .368 | .815 | 3.2 | 2.9 | .9 | .1 | 14.7 | |
Professional
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-2023 | VfL Kirchheim Knights | 33 | 27 | 27.8 | .438 | .373 | .890 | 3.0 | 3.3 | .8 | .0 | 16.9 |
| 2023 | Ottawa Blackjacks | 18 | 11 | 23.1 | .388 | .323 | .861 | 3.0 | 2.6 | .6 | .1 | 10.5 |
| Career | 51 | 38 | 26.1 | .420 | .355 | .880 | 3.0 | 3.1 | .7 | .0 | 14.6 | |
Personal life
editFlowers' mother, Joyce, died in 2018 after a three-year battle with pancreatic cancer.[4] In November 2020, his father, Henry, died from cancer after a lengthy fight.[17]
References
edit- ^ Black, Justin (January 7, 2016). "Point Guard Wants Bragging Rights Over Southfield-Lathrup". The Southfield Jay. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Nothaft, Patrick (January 30, 2019). "Mike Flowers' breakout season a bright spot for struggling WMU hoops". MLive. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ "Flowers signs with Jaguar basketball program". University of South Alabama Athletics. May 20, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ a b Berry, Seth (November 14, 2019). "Flowers blooming into WMU basketball's next star". Western Herald. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Faraudo, Jeff (April 18, 2020). "Cal Basketball: Western Michigan Combo Guard Michael Flowers Considers the Bears". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Berry, Seth (March 30, 2020). "Breaking: WMU junior guard Michael Flowers enters transfer portal". Western Herald. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Nothaft, Patrick (May 18, 2020). "Former WMU top-scoring guard Michael Flowers transfers to South Alabama". MLive. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Nothaft, Patrick (September 10, 2020). "Former WMU hoops guard Mike Flowers claims school held up transfer, nixed eligibility waiver". MLive. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Paul, Tony (September 9, 2020). "Ex-WMU hoops star Michael Flowers puts old school on blast, alleging lies in holding up transfer". The Detroit News. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Stephenson, Creg (October 20, 2020). "South Alabama basketball player Michael Flowers eligible after NCAA reverses decision". AL.com. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ Stephenson, Creg (March 5, 2021). "Michael Flowers carries South Alabama to 80-72 win over ULM in Sun Belt tourney opener". AL.com. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ a b Givony, Jonathan (April 10, 2021). "Former South Alabama guard Michael Flowers transferring to Washington State basketball program". ESPN. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ "2021-22 Pac-12 Men's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 8, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2022.
- ^ "Ottawa BlackJacks Sign American Guard Michael Flowers kehrt". TheBlackJacks.ca. May 2, 2023. Retrieved June 1, 2023.
- ^ "Flowers kehrt zurück". Kirchheim-Knights.de (in German). August 15, 2023. Retrieved August 15, 2023.
- ^ "Michael Flowers joins Antwerp". Eurobasket. July 2, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2024.
- ^ Paul, Tony (November 25, 2020). "Ex-WMU, Southfield A&T star plays hero for new school the day after his dad's death". The Detroit News. Retrieved October 29, 2021.