Sonny Weems

Weems signed with the Arkansas Razorbacks as a junior, which was also Stan Heath's final season as head coach. He averaged 11.8 points per game and was named to all-tournament teams at the Old Spice Classic and the SEC Tournament as he helped the Razorbacks to their third consecutive winning season and their second straight NCAA Tournament appearance, losing to the USC Trojans in the first round.

Weems played his senior season with a new head coach, John Pelphrey, and was named first team All-SEC after averaging 15.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.[5] Weems led the Razorbacks to their first NCAA tournament win in nine years with an upset victory of Indiana University. He finished the game with 31 points, out-dueling the much-heralded freshman Eric Gordon, who was held to only eight points.[6] After his team lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Weems later won the State Farm College Slam Dunk Championship held at the Final Four.[7]

In April 2008, Weems accepted an invitation to participate in the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, but later decided not to attend.[8] Instead, Weems worked out with several teams: the Memphis Grizzlies, Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls, Boston Celtics, Golden State Warriors, New Jersey Nets, New Orleans Hornets, and Portland Trail Blazers, receiving increased interest because of his high scores in speed and agility drills.[9] Weems was selected with the 39th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft by the Bulls, but he was traded almost immediately to the Denver Nuggets for a 2009 second-round pick in a three-team trade involving the Portland Trail Blazers.[10][11]

On December 10, 2008, the Nuggets, for whom he had yet to play because of a surgery for sports hernia and then a groin strain, assigned Weems to their NBA Development League affiliate the Colorado 14ers.[12][13]

Weems averaged 18.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 10 games for the 14ers.[14][15] On December 14, Weems led the 14ers with 20 points, including 9-of-14 field goals, in a 129–108 home win over the Reno Bighorns.[16] Other notable Weems performances include a team-leading 24 points in a thrilling 99–98 loss to Sioux Falls on December 17,[17] a 26-point effort in a 111–104 loss to the Tulsa 66ers on December 20,[18] 25 points in a 99–95 victory over the 66ers on December 23,[19] and 24 points and 10 rebounds in a 131–120 14ers win over Fort Wayne on December 30.[20] On January 6, 2009, Weems was recalled by the Denver Nuggets.[14]

Weems scored 4 points in his NBA regular season debut with the Nuggets on January 17, 2009, when he substituted for Anthony Carter with 3:31 remaining in a 106–88 loss to Orlando.[21]

On July 31, 2009, he was traded along with Walter Sharpe and cash considerations to the Milwaukee Bucks for Malik Allen.[22]

Weems with the Toronto Raptors in 2012

On August 18, 2009, Weems was traded by the Bucks to the Toronto Raptors along with Amir Johnson in exchange for Carlos Delfino and Roko Ukić.[23] On April 7, 2010, Weems was placed in the starting lineup and scored a then career-high 21 points to lead the Raptors, but the Raptors lost the game to the Boston Celtics. He went on to score a career-high 25 points on November 17, 2010 against the Philadelphia 76ers.

On July 8, 2011, Weems signed a one-year contract with the Lithuanian team Žalgiris Kaunas.[24][25] His contract was terminated in March 2012, after he suffered a season-ending ankle injury.[26] Weems later complained on social media saying that he had to go to U.S. to heal his sore ankle, after not receiving any medical care in Lithuania.[27] Over 15 games in the EuroLeague, he averaged 15.5 points and 5 rebounds per game.[28]

On July 30, 2012, he signed a three-year contract with CSKA Moscow.[29][30] His signing was largely seen as a replacement to former team leader Andrei Kirilenko.[31] On October 18, 2012, he had a EuroLeague career-high 30 points in a 76–71 overtime win over Partizan Belgrade.[32] In his first season with the team, in a roster loaded with big European names like Miloš Teodosić, Nenad Krstić, Theo Papaloukas and Victor Khryapa, CSKA Moscow won 3rd place in the EuroLeague Final Four, after a 69–52 loss to Olympiacos in the semi-final game.[33] Weems was seen as one of the team leaders, a starting small forward who averaged 13.7 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists over 28 games in the EuroLeague. CSKA eventually won the VTB United League after defeating Lokomotiv Kuban, 3–1, in the final series.

In the 2013–14 season, CSKA's roster didn't change much, and Weems was again one of the team leaders. On January 17, 2014, he had career-high 10 assists, along with 16 points, in 72–73 EuroLeague loss to Partizan Belgrade.[34] In May 2014, Weems was named the All-EuroLeague First Team of the EuroLeague, for his performances over the season.[35] Although his points per game slightly dropped to 12.2 in the EuroLeague, he improved his defensive play and generally had a bigger impact on the game itself. However, CSKA Moscow was yet again stopped in the semi-final game, this time to the eventual champion Maccabi Tel Aviv.[36] Later in the season, CSKA won its third consecutive VTB United League championship by defeating Nizhny Novgorod, 3–0, in the final series.[37]

On July 4, 2014, Weems extended his contract with the club until 2017.[38]

In the 2014–15 season, CSKA Moscow advanced to the EuroLeague Final Four for the fourth straight season, after eliminating Panathinaikos for the second straight season in the quarter-final series, 3–1.[39] However, in the semi-final game, despite being dubbed by media as an absolute favorite to advance, they once again lost to Olympiacos. The final score was 70–68, after an Olympiacos comeback in fourth quarter, led by Vassilis Spanoulis.[40] CSKA Moscow then won the third place after defeating Fenerbahçe, 86–80.[41] Weems' third season saw a slight increase in statistics, as he averaged 13.1 points, 4 rebounds and 3.5 assists over 26 games played. CSKA Moscow finished the season by winning the VTB United League, after eliminating Khimki with 3–0 in the final series.[42]

On June 16, 2015, he parted ways with CSKA Moscow to return to the NBA.[43] Over three seasons spent with CSKA, Weems played in 166 games, averaging 12.1 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3 assists per game in the EuroLeague and the VTB United League.

On July 17, 2015, Weems signed a two-year deal with the Phoenix Suns.[44][45] He made his debut for the Suns in the team's season opener against the Dallas Mavericks on October 28, recording 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal in a 111–95 loss.[46] On January 26, 2016, he scored a season-high 12 points in a loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.[47] On March 5, 2016, he was waived by the Suns after averaging 2.5 points, 1.3 assists, 1.1 rebounds and 11.7 minutes in 36 games.[48]

On March 7, 2016, Weems was claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia 76ers.[49] Weems struggled during his time with the 76ers, and after straining his right quadriceps on March 26 against the Portland Trail Blazers,[50] he was waived by the team the next day.[51]

On June 14, 2016, Weems signed a two-year contract with Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv.[52] On January 30, 2017, Weems was released by the club after he failed to complete an anti-doping test.[53]

In July 2017, Weems signed with the Zhejiang Golden Bulls of the Chinese Basketball Association.[54] Weems played 38 games for Zhejiang and averaged 31.7 points per game, 8 rebounds and 5.9 assists.

On February 24, 2018, Weems signed with the Turkish team Anadolu Efes for the rest of the season.[55] On March 1, 2018, Weems made his debut in a 64–77 loss to Olimpia Milano, scoring 19 points, along with 6 rebounds and 2 assists.[56]

On October 8, 2018, Weems signed with the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association.[57]