NICKNAME/S: 2Hard2Guard, Dominican Destroyer

BIO: De León was born in the Dominican Republic, but his family emigrated to the United States and settled down in Washington Heights, Manhattan. De León attended Louis D. Brandeis High School on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, but rarely attended class. He did not play basketball seriously until the summer for his senior year, when he played on the AAU team and traveled the country. In 2009 was named as MVP of the prestigious Rucker Park Summer League in New York.

After college, he carved out his niche at the Dyckman Park, West 4th, Rucker Park, Pro City and Hoops in the Sun summer League. His play earned him the nickname, “2 Hard 2 Guard”. In 2011, De León and NBA player Brandon Jennings competed against each other for the moniker of “2 Hard 2 Guard”. De León led his East squad to a 78–55 win over Jennings and his West team, which included fellow NBA player DeMar DeRozan. Both players went at each other throughout the night but in the end, De León outplayed and outscored Jennings.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Adris De León made his NBL debut with the Gold Coast Blaze at 27 years of age. He scored two points in his first game.

After a lacklustre debut De León exploded in his second game with the Blaze and showcased his true talents. He recorded 21 points and eight assists against the Perth Wildcats. He went on to register two more 20-plus point games to round out November. On December 2, he recorded 17 points and a season-high 11 rebounds against the Cairns Taipans. On February 10, he recorded 29 points and eight assists against the Sydney Kings. On March 4, he scored a season-high 33 points against the Kings.

In 28 games for the Blaze, De León averaged 16.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.6 steals per game for the season.

2011/12
Adris De León had an impressive 2011/12 season, averaging 16.6 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists while playing a crucial role in the Gold Coast Blaze’s third-place finish (17-11) during the regular season.

His standout performances included a 29-point, 8-assist game against the Sydney Kings on 10 February and an even more dominant 33-point, 6-rebound effort on 4 March. De León’s exceptional play against Sydney highlighted his scoring prowess and consistency, making him one of the Blaze’s most valuable players that season.

2012/13
During the 2012/13 season, Adris De León made a significant impact with the Wollongong Hawks, averaging 16.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. His performances earned him the NBL Best Sixth Man Award, the first in the team’s history, and a spot on the All-NBL Third Team. De León was a key contributor, helping the Hawks finish third in the regular season with a 13-15 record. His scoring ability and versatility were instrumental in the team’s overall performance, making him one of the standout players of the season.

2018/19
After narrowly missing out on the NBL championship the previous season, Adelaide was forced into a rebuilding mode with the departure of several key players, most notably second-leading scorer Mitch Creek. Creek left to pursue his NBA dream after a protracted negotiation between Adelaide and Basketball Australia.

During the NBL 2018 off-season, Creek was granted team approval to play in Germany with the understanding that he would return to the 36ers for the 2018/19 season. However, his strong performances in Germany caught the attention of the Brooklyn Nets, who signed him to their G-League team. The 36ers then filed an injunction to prevent Basketball Australia from approving Creek’s NBA deal without compensation, but after some initial backlash, a resolution was reached, allowing Creek to pursue his NBA aspirations.

Other departures included Shannon Shorter (to Japan), Josh Childress (retired), and Matthew Hodgson (to Brisbane). To address these roster gaps, Adelaide signed import Jacob Wiley (via Germany) to replace Creek and added point guard Adris De León to assist in scoring and playmaking duties. Rising stars Harry Froling and Jack McVeigh were also signed straight out of college, injecting youthful energy into the team.

Despite the roster shakeup, Adelaide retained key players from the previous season, including Nathan Sobey, Majok Deng, Adam Doyle, Brendan Teys, and import Ramone Moore. Leading scorer Daniel Johnson also returned and took over as team captain, replacing the departing Creek.

Adelaide began the season with a loss to Perth (91–99) at home in Round 1. However, they bounced back with a win against the Sydney Kings (94–83) on the road in their next game. In Round 3, Sobey delivered one of the standout moments of the season when he recorded a triple-double (22 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists) in the 36ers’ win over Cairns (91–83).

Adelaide then fell into a string of four consecutive losses starting the following game with a loss to New Zealand (114–94), and culminating in a loss to Brisbane (93–90) in Round 4. Key injuries, including a calf injury to Ramone Moore, further disrupted their momentum. An ultimatum was then delivered to De León that if the team couldn’t turn things around with a win over Sydney in their next game, they would look at rejigging the team’s roster.

De Leon (11 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists in 25 minutes) delivered a solid game, but Adelaide suffered their fourth consecutive loss, falling to Sydney by 12 points.. De León (7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists) was released, and former Illawarra import Demitrius Conger was signed as his replacement. With Moore still unable to take the court, Adelaide also signed Shaun Bruce, who had been unsigned after three seasons in Cairns, who then played out the remaining games of the 36ers season.

Despite his limited time on the roster, Adris De León (7.7 points, 2.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists) provided some bright moments for Adelaide. His standout performances included a season-high 21 points, 6 assists, and 1 rebound in a loss to the Sydney Kings (19 Oct 2018), where he shot 7/13 from the field and 6/7 from three-point range.

He also had an 11-point, 1-rebound, and 2-assist game against Perth (11 Oct 2018), where he contributed crucial points off the bench, shooting 4/10 from the field and 3/7 from beyond the arc.

Alongside De León, Daniel Johnson (17.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.4 assists) and Nathan Sobey (16.1 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.3 assists) were both named to the All-NBL Second Team. Other key players included Jacob Wiley (12.3 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1 assist), Demitrius Conger (11.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.4 assists), Anthony Drmic (9.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists), and Harry Froling (7.9 points, 4.6 rebounds) who took home the NBL Rookie of the Year award.

Adelaide hovered between fourth and fifth place for most of the second half of the season, before finishing equal with Brisbane at 14-14. However, the Bullets advanced to the playoffs due to a higher points percentage, bringing Adelaide’s season to an end in fifth place.

Adris De León played three seasons across three NBL teams. This included the Gold Coast Blaze, Wollongong Hawks and Adelaide 36ers. He averaged 15.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3 assists in 67 NBL games.

Dan Boyce (811 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.