Brandon Ashley set to join South East Melbourne Phoenix
January 10, 2022
Brandon Ashley
- Nationality: USA
- Date of Birth: 15/07/94
- Place of Birth: Oakland, California (USA)
- Position: PF
- Height (CM): 201
- Weight (KG): 104
- Junior Assoc: None
- College: Arizona (2012–2015)
- NBL DEBUT: 18/10/19
- AGE AT DEBUT: 25
- LAST NBL GAME: 24/04/22
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 27
- NBL History: New Zealand 2020 | South East Melbourne 2022
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: Brandon Ashley was born in Oakland, California (USA). Ashley attended Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, California before transferring to Findlay Prep in Henderson, Nevada for his senior season. He averaged 15.3 points and 6.8 rebounds per game as a senior, and led Findlay to a 32-1 record and a ESPN NHSI national title.
NBL EXPERIENCE
Brandon Ashley made his NBL debut with the New Zealand Breakers at 25 years of age. He scored four points in his first game.
In 2019/20, Ashley averaged 10.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 0.8 assists as the Breakers finished in sixth place (15-13).
SOUTH EAST MELBOURNE PHOENIX
2021/22
After making their maiden Finals appearance the year prior, South East Melbourne looked to go one step further. The Phoenix’s first move was re-signing coach Simon Mitchell (one year deal), who then went about retaining the majority of the team’s local core, locking in Kyle Adnam, Ryan Broekhoff, Izayah Le’Afa and Mitch Creek re-signing.
Although both Keifer Sykes (to NBA) and Yanni Wetzell (to New Zealand) would exit the club, they would be replaced by Tohi Smith-Milner (via Melbourne), Zhou Qi, a member of the Chinese national team and imports Zach Hankins and Xavier Munford.
South East Melbourne started the season on fire, winning three of its first four games, with Qi (11.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks) making it extremely difficult for opposing team’s to score inside and Munford (16.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.3 steals) proving to be a more than adequate replacement for Sykes.
The combination of a short-term injury to Qi and Hankins yet to play a game due to a knee cartilage injury resulted in coach Simon Mitchell bringing in import Brandon Ashley (8.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 0.7 assists) as a replacement for Hankins.
The Phoenix had no problems scoring this year, with Mitch Creek (20.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.1 steals) leading the team in scoring and South East Melbourne finishing in the top three highest-scoring team’s in the league (87.7 points per game).
Then, due to COVID interruptions, several of their games had to be postponed, forcing the team into a 28 day hiatus where they were unable to play a single game, leaving them a little bit rusty, to say the least, and they were blown out by Brisbane (84-100) in their first game back.
It wouldn’t take long for South East Melbourne to return to their previous form however, winning eight of their next eleven games to sit second on the ladder (11-5) around the halfway mark of the season.
South East Melbourne saw their season backflip from here on, going on a four-game losing streak, losing to the Hawks twice, the Kings and United. The downfall of South East Melbourne coincided with the season-ending shoulder injury of Ryan Broekhoff (11.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.6 steals), but even with a favourable schedule across the last month of the season, the Phoenix still struggled to get wins, suffering defeats by Adelaide, Cairns, and Melbourne which ended South East Melbourne’s chances of reaching the playoffs.
It was a disappointing second half of the season for the Phoenix, as they managed to win only six out of their last 14 games, the only high point being a overtime win over Perth (102-100) that ended the Wildcat’s 35-year playoff streak.
Brandon Ashley played two seasons in the NBL, playing for both the New Zealand Breakers and the South East Melbourne Phoenix. He averaged 9.8 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 51 NBL games.
NBL TOTAL STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | 27 | South East Melbourne | 15-13 (6) | 23 | 379.3 | 205 | 120 | 18 | 53 | 67 | 9 | 15 | 27 | 79 | 75 | 128 | 59% | 2 | 5 | 40% | 53 | 76 | 70% | 62% | 59% | 25 |
| 2019-20 | 25 | New Zealand | 15-13 (6) | 28 | 583.0 | 295 | 175 | 22 | 63 | 112 | 16 | 24 | 35 | 106 | 119 | 216 | 55% | 11 | 34 | 32% | 46 | 67 | 69% | 60% | 58% | 24 | Totals | 51 | 962 | 500 | 295 | 40 | 116 | 179 | 25 | 39 | 62 | 185 | 194 | 344 | 56.4% | 13 | 39 | 33.3% | 99 | 143 | 69.2% | 61% | 58% | 25 |
NBL PER GAME STATISTICS
| SEASON | AGE | TEAM | TEAM RECORD | GP | MINS | PTS | REB | AST | OR | DR | STL | BLK | TO | PF | FGM | FGA | FG% | 3PM | 3PA | 3P% | FTM | FTA | FT% | TS% | EFG% | HS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-22 | 27 | South East Melbourne | 15-13 (6) | 23 | 16.5 | 8.9 | 5.2 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 2.9 | 0.4 | 0.7 | 1.2 | 3.4 | 3.3 | 5.6 | 59% | 0.1 | 0.2 | 40% | 2.3 | 3.3 | 70% | 62% | 59% | 25 |
| 2019-20 | 25 | New Zealand | 15-13 (6) | 28 | 20.8 | 10.5 | 6.3 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 4.0 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 3.8 | 4.3 | 7.7 | 55% | 0.4 | 1.2 | 32% | 1.6 | 2.4 | 69% | 60% | 58% | 24 | Total | 51 | 18.9 | 9.8 | 5.8 | 0.8 | 2.3 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 6.7 | 56.4% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 33.3% | 0.3 | 0.8 | 69.2% | 61% | 58% | 25 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 25 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 0 |
|---|
NBA EXPERIENCE
Ashley has spent time with Atlanta Hawks in the NBA Summer League and a participated in a pre-season camp with the Dallas Mavericks.
In early 2021, he played with the NBA G League for Ignite, a development team for high school, college and international prospects which included Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga and Kai Sotto.NBA TRANSACTIONS:
- July 27, 2015: Signed a multi-year contract with the Dallas Mavericks
-
October 24, 2015: Waived by the Dallas Mavericks.
-
August 3, 2017: Signed a contract with the Dallas Mavericks.
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October 13, 2017: Waived by the Dallas Mavericks.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
- Germany - ALBA Berlin (2016) | Cyprus - APOEL Nicosia (2019) | Puerto Rico - Indios de Mayagüez (2020) | Italy - Fortitudo Bologna (2021)
Brandon Ashley’s international career included stops in Germany (2016), Cyprus (2019), Puerto Rico (2020), and Italy (2021), beginning when he signed with ALBA Berlin on February 29, 2016 on a 1+1 deal and debuted alongside guard Rob Lowery, who had his contract extended in the same announcement, before appearing in 14 games for ALBA and averaging 8.5 points and 5.7 rebounds in 19.6 minutes per game across the 2015–16 finish.
Ashley moved to Cyprus on February 19, 2019 with a signing for APOEL Nicosia, where he played nine Division A games and averaged 11.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game while shooting 54% from the field and 41% from three-point range, featuring in an import-heavy group that included guards Deonta Vaughn and Q.J. Peterson and wing Torian Graham.
In Puerto Rico, Ashley signed with Indios de Mayagüez on February 2, 2020 and logged three BSN appearances, highlighted by 19 points in 24:20 at Cariduros de Fajardo on February 29 and a March 8 home win over Capitanes de Arecibo where he posted 23 points, 10 rebounds and three assists in 31:24.
Ashley returned to Europe on August 3, 2021 by signing with Fortitudo Bologna in Italy’s Lega Basket Serie A, and in nine regular-season games he averaged 10.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 1.0 block in 22.0 minutes per game while shooting .521 from the field, sharing frontcourt minutes with bigs Geoff Groselle and Leonardo Totè.
COLLEGE
Brandon Ashley played college basketball at Arizona from 2012–13 through 2014–15, developing into a key frontcourt piece in Sean Miller’s rotation across three NCAA seasons before leaving early for the NBA Draft following his junior year.
As a freshman in 2012–13, Ashley played in all 35 games with 21 starts and averaged 7.5 points and 5.3 rebounds in 20.5 minutes per game while shooting .525 from the field, producing two double-doubles and closing the season with NCAA Tournament contributions that included 6 points and 8 rebounds against Harvard and 6 points with 7 rebounds against Belmont.
His first college breakout arrived early that season when he posted 20 points and 10 rebounds against Long Beach State on November 19, and later added a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double against East Tennessee State on December 22 as Arizona used him as a consistent interior finisher alongside its veteran core.
Ashley took a major second-year leap in 2013–14, starting all 22 games he played and averaging 11.5 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 52.2 percent, and he collected tournament recognition as the Fiesta Bowl Classic MVP after scoring 16 points with 7 rebounds and 2 blocks against Long Beach State.
That sophomore season was derailed on February 1, 2014 at California when Ashley suffered a right foot injury that ended his year, with reporting later describing the injury as a torn ligament that required surgery, and Arizona playing out the stretch without him after opening the season 21–0 and reaching No. 1 in the national rankings before the setback.
Arizona still pushed through to the Elite Eight in 2014, but Ashley’s absence became one of the defining storylines of the postseason as the Wildcats fell 64–63 in overtime to Wisconsin, setting up a rehab-focused return narrative heading into his junior year.
In 2014–15, Ashley returned to start all 38 games and averaged 12.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 0.7 blocks in 27.8 minutes, shooting 51.4 percent from the floor, and he earned honorable mention All-Pac-12 recognition as one of Arizona’s most consistent scorers across the full season.
His best stretch came in the 2015 Pac-12 Tournament, where he was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player after averaging 19.7 points and 6.3 rebounds while shooting 73.1 percent, including two 20-point games and 21-of-24 free throws as Arizona won the championship, capped by a 20-point performance in the title-game win over Oregon.
Following that junior season, Ashley announced on April 8, 2015 that he would forgo his senior year and enter the NBA Draft, with reporting noting he left Arizona after a three-year run that included 94 wins and three straight trips to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.
AWARDS
- McDonald's All-American (2012)
Related
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