Jerel McNeal

Jerel McNeal (born June 1, 1987) is an American professional basketball player for Ironi Nahariya of the Israeli Basketball Premier League. He played college basketball for Marquette University before playing professionally in Belgium, the NBA D-League, Italy, China, Greece, Germany and Israel, including a short stint in the NBA with the Phoenix Suns in 2014.

Jerel McNeal
Free agent
PositionPoint guard / Shooting guard
Personal information
Born (1987-06-01) June 1, 1987
Chicago, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High schoolHillcrest
(Country Club Hills, Illinois)
CollegeMarquette (2005–2009)
NBA draft2009 / Undrafted
Playing career2009–present
Career history
2009–2010Dexia Mons-Hainaut
2010–2011Rio Grande Valley Vipers
2011–2012Sutor Basket Montegranaro
2012–2013Bakersfield Jam
2013Zhejiang Golden Bulls
2014–2015Bakersfield Jam
2015Phoenix Suns
2015–2016Aris Thessaloniki
2016–2017Brose Bamberg
2017–2019Hapoel Tel Aviv
2019–2020Ironi Nahariya
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

Early life

McNeal was born in Chicago, Illinois to parents Edward and Meryln McNeal. He has 2 siblings (January and Jeremy). He attended Hillcrest High School along with point guard Maurice Acker, an eventual college teammate. McNeal was a third-team Parade All-American in 2005.

College career

McNeal won the Big East's Defensive Player of the Year award as a sophomore in the 2006–07 season and was the only guard on the Big East's All-First Team in 2008–09. McNeal was an Associated Press second team All-American in 2008–09 as well.

On February 10, 2009, in a 102-84 loss at Villanova, McNeal broke George Thompson's 41-year-old school record of 1,773 points. Markus Howard passed McNeal for the Marquette scoring record, but McNeal remains Marquette's all-time leader in steals, field goals made, and field goal attempts. He is third all-time in games played and seventh in assists.[1]

Professional career

2009–10 season

After going undrafted in the 2009 NBA draft, McNeal joined the Sacramento Kings for the 2009 Las Vegas Summer League. On September 28, 2009, he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. However, he was waived on October 19, 2009. In November 2009, he signed with Dexia Mons-Hainaut of Belgium for the 2009–10 season. In March 2010, he left Dexia after drawing a two-week suspension for a positive marijuana test.[2]

2010–11 season

In July 2010, he joined the Charlotte Bobcats for the Orlando Summer League[3] and the Chicago Bulls for the Las Vegas Summer League. On October 9, 2010, he signed with the Houston Rockets. However, he was waived by the Rockets on October 18. On October 30, 2010, he was acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. On March 9, 2011, he signed a 10-day contract with the New Orleans Hornets.[4] On March 19, he returned to the Vipers after his 10-day contract expired. He did not appear in a game for the Hornets during his 10 days with the team.[5]

2011–12 season

In July 2011, he signed with Sutor Basket Montegranaro of Italy for the 2011–12 season.[6]

2012–13 season

On September 21, 2012, McNeal signed with the Toronto Raptors.[7] However, he was waived by the Raptors on October 22.[8] On November 1, 2012, he was re-acquired by the Vipers. The next day, he was traded to the Bakersfield Jam.[9] On February 4, 2013, McNeal was named to the Prospects All-Star roster for the 2013 NBA D-League All-Star Game.[10]

On March 27, 2013, McNeal signed a 10-day contract with the Utah Jazz.[11] On April 6, 2013, McNeal signed with the Utah Jazz for the rest of the 2012–13 season.[12] He joined the Jazz for the 2013 NBA Summer League. On September 25, 2013, he was waived by the Jazz before appearing in a game for them.[13]

2013–14 season

In October 2013, McNeal signed with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls for the 2013–14 season.[14] In December 2013, he was released by the Golden Bulls after 15 games. On February 24, 2014, he was reacquired by the Bakersfield Jam.

2014–15 season

On August 4, 2014, McNeal signed a one-year deal with the Spanish team Baloncesto Sevilla.[15] However, he left the team in September 2014 before appearing in a game for them following the death of his father.[16] On January 13, 2015, he was reacquired by the Bakersfield Jam once again[17] and was later named the NBA D-League Impact Player of the Year.[18]

On April 1, 2015, McNeal signed a 10-day contract with the Phoenix Suns.[19] The following day, he made his NBA debut, scoring two points in a 107–106 loss to the Golden State Warriors.[20] On April 11, he signed with the Suns through the 2015–16 season.[21] On July 17, 2015, he was waived by the Suns.[22] Despite this, McNeal continued to play for the Suns at the 2015 Las Vegas Summer League, where he averaged 2.1 points and 1.3 rebounds in seven games.[23]

2015–16 season

On July 31, 2015, McNeal signed with Aris Thessaloniki of Greece for the 2015–16 season.[24] In 36 league games for Aris, he averaged 14.1 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He also appeared in 16 EuroCup games, averaging 14.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game.

2016–17 season

On December 21, 2016, McNeal signed a two-month contract with German club Brose Bamberg.[25] On February 23, 2017, he re-signed with Bamberg for the rest of the season.[26]

2017–18 season

On August 22, 2017, McNeal signed with French team SIG Strasbourg.[27] However, on September 2, 2017, he parted ways with Strasbourg before appearing in a game for them.[28]

On September 30, 2017, McNeal signed a one-year deal with the Israeli team Hapoel Tel Aviv.[29] On March 10, 2018, McNeal recorded a season-high 25 points along with eight rebounds, four assists and four steals in a 90–87 win over Maccabi Rishon LeZion.[30] In 37 games played for Hapoel, he averaged 13.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4 assists and 1.9 steals per game. McNeal helped Hapoel reach the 2018 Israeli League Final Four, where they eventually lost to Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Semifinals.

2018–19 season

On November 2, 2018, McNeal returned to Hapoel Tel Aviv for the 2018–19 season.[31] On April 12, 2019, McNeal participated in the 2019 Israeli League All-Star game.[32] McNeal helped Hapoel reach the 2019 Israeli League Playoffs, where they eventually were eliminated by Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Quarterfinals.

2019–20 season

On September 6, 2019, McNeal signed a one-year deal with Ironi Nahariya, joining his former head coach Danny Franco and teammate Tony Gaffney.[33] On October 28, 2019, McNeal recorded a season-high 27 points, shooting 9-of-13 from the field, along with eight rebounds and two assists in an 86–84 win over his former team Hapoel Tel Aviv.[34]

The Basketball Tournament

Jerel McNeal played for the Golden Eagles in the 2018 edition of The Basketball Tournament. In five games, he averaged 13.4 points, 5 rebounds, and 2.4 steals per game all while shooting an impressive 53 percent from the field. The Golden Eagles reached the semi-finals before falling to Overseas Elite.

Career statistics
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

Regular season
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 Phoenix 606.1.273.5001.000.5.3.5.11.5
Career 606.1.273.5001.000.5.3.5.11.5

College
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2005–06 Marquette 313127.5.442.283.7504.52.72.1.511.1
2006–07 Marquette 292830.2.417.313.6824.83.82.6.614.7
2007–08 Marquette 353530.2.456.304.7024.93.52.2.414.9
2008–09 Marquette 313133.9.452.407.7204.63.92.2.620.1

See also

References
  1. MARQUETTE MEN’S BASKETBALL RECORD BOOK
  2. Jerel McNeal leaves Dexia Mons-Hainaut
  3. NBA Summer League Rosters - Orlando
  4. Hornets sign Jerel McNeal to a 10-day contract
  5. New Orleans Hornets' David West bracing for double-team against Celtics
  6. Sutor Montegranaro announces Jerel McNeal
  7. Raptors Sign McNeal And Wright
  8. "Toronto Raptors waive Jerel McNeal and Chris Wright". Archived from the original on 2015-09-08. Retrieved 2012-10-24.
  9. "Bakersfield Jam Acquire Jerel McNeal from Vipers". Archived from the original on 2015-03-20. Retrieved 2012-11-05.
  10. 2013 NBA Development League All-Star Game Rosters Announced Archived 2013-10-22 at the Wayback Machine
  11. "Jazz Signs Jerel McNeal to a 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. March 27, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2013.
  12. "Jazz Signs Jerel McNeal for Remainder of Season". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. April 6, 2013. Retrieved April 7, 2013.
  13. "Utah Jazz waive guard Jerel McNeal". Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2013-09-26.
  14. Zhejiang fills out import roster, signs Jerel McNeal
  15. "Sevilla adds McNeal at point". Eurocupbasketball.com. Retrieved August 4, 2014.
  16. Marcelus Kemp moves to Sevilla for a try out
  17. Two-Time NBA D-League All-Star Jerel McNeal Returns to Bakersfield
  18. Jam Guard Jerel McNeal Named 2015 NBA Development League Impact Player of the Year
  19. Suns Sign Jerel McNeal to 10-Day Contract
  20. "Barnes' shot lifts Warriors to 107-106 win over Suns". Archived from the original on 2015-10-03. Retrieved 2015-04-03.
  21. "Suns sign Jerel McNeal". Archived from the original on 2015-11-04. Retrieved 2015-04-12.
  22. "Suns Sign Teletovic, Weems, Price". NBA.com. July 17, 2015. Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  23. "2015 Summer League Player Profile – Jerel McNeal". Archived from the original on 2015-08-03. Retrieved 2015-07-22.
  24. "Jerel McNeal inks with Aris Thessaloniki". Sportando.com. July 31, 2015. Retrieved July 31, 2015.
  25. "Jerel McNeal officially signs with Brose Bamberg". Sportando.com. December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  26. Brose Bamberg keeps Jerel McNeal for the season
  27. Jerel McNeal is the new member of Strasbourg
  28. "Strasbourg : Finalement, Jerel McNeal ne viendra pas". sport365.fr (in French). September 2, 2017. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  29. "Jerel McNeal signs with Hapoel Tel Aviv". Sportando.com. September 30, 2017. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
  30. "Winner League, Game 19: M. Rishon Vs Hapoel TA - Box Score". basket.co.il. March 10, 2018. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
  31. "Jerel McNeal returns to Hapoel Tel Aviv". Sportando.basketball. November 2, 2018. Retrieved November 3, 2018.
  32. "אולסטאר: ניצחון שלישי ברציפות לזרים". basket.co.il (in Hebrew). April 12, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  33. "Jerel McNeal joins Ironi Nahariya". Sportando. September 6, 2019. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  34. "איקס על האקסית: מקניל גבר על האדומים" (in Hebrew). basket.co.il. October 28, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2019.
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