David Stiff
July 23, 2020
Jonathan Roberts
- Nationality: USA
- Date of Birth: 1/06/68
- Place of Birth: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA)
- Position: FRD
- Height (CM): 201
- Weight (KG): 113
- Junior Assoc:
- College: East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania (1986–1990)
- NBL DEBUT: 13/04/96
- AGE AT DEBUT: 27
- LAST NBL GAME: 27/09/96
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 28
- NBL History: Hobart 1996
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: Jonathan Roberts was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (USA).
NBL EXPERIENCE
Jonathan Roberts made his NBL debut with the Hobart Devils at 27 years of age. He scored 24 points in his first game.
After finishing last with a 4-22 record in 1995, Hobart entered the new season with further roster changes and continuing financial uncertainty. Andre Moore, Darren Perry and Travis Rousell departed, while head coach Bill Tomlinson retained Jerome Scott, David Stiff, Darren Smith and Mark Nash. American import Jonathan Roberts joined the Devils alongside Tim Brenton, Craig Adams and Mark Banovic as Tomlinson rebuilt the rotation.
Hobart opened the season against Canberra at the Derwent Entertainment Centre on April 13, where Roberts (24 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 steal) led the Devils in his NBL debut. Brenton (21 points) and Scott (16 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, and 6 steals) provided support, but David Close (24 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists) led the Cannons to a 102-89 victory. The defeat began a six-game losing streak for Hobart.
Roberts (21.5 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 1.6 steals across 26 games) appeared in all 26 of Hobart’s games and immediately became the team’s leading scorer during what would prove to be his only NBL season.
His best game also produced his NBL career-high in scoring against Brisbane on May 10. Roberts (33 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, and 1 block) made 14-of-17 field goals, while Scott (13 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals) and Nash (10 points and 6 rebounds) provided the next-best scoring contributions for Hobart. Mike McKay (25 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists) led Brisbane to an 88-75 victory.
One of Hobart’s strongest wins came against Sydney on August 16, when Roberts (19 points, 11 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals, and 2 blocks) impacted the game at both ends. Scott (19 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals) and Brenton (19 points) gave the Devils three 19-point scorers, while Isaac Burton (27 points) led Sydney. Hobart held on for an 82-81 victory, but it would prove to be the Devils’ final win of the season.
Scott (17.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2.4 steals across 26 games) finished as Hobart’s second-leading scorer, while reigning Rookie of the Year Stiff (15.9 points, 9 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.6 steals, and 1.5 blocks across 26 games) led the Devils in rebounding and blocks. Brenton (13.2 points and 3 rebounds across 25 games), Nash (8.2 points and 6 rebounds across 26 games) and Darren Smith (7.7 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.6 steals across 26 games) formed the remainder of Tomlinson’s main rotation.
Hobart closed the season at home against South East Melbourne on September 27, where Roberts (17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 steal) played his final NBL game. Darren Smith (14 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 2 blocks) and Stiff (14 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks) provided support, while Tony Ronaldson (21 points, 5 rebounds, and 6 assists) led the Magic to a 101-79 victory. The loss completed a six-game losing streak and left Hobart 12th with an 8-18 record, missing the playoffs. It was also the final game in Devils history, with the club folding after the season.
Jonathan Roberts played one season in the NBL. He averaged 21.4 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 26 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 28 | Hobart | 8-18 (12) | 26 | 1,086 | 558 | 214 | 58 | 84 | 130 | 42 | 23 | 118 | 104 | 172 | 333 | 52% | 9 | 20 | 45% | 205 | 259 | 79% | 61% | 53% | 33 | Totals | 26 | 1086 | 558 | 214 | 58 | 84 | 130 | 42 | 23 | 118 | 104 | 172 | 333 | 51.7% | 9 | 20 | 45.0% | 205 | 259 | 79.2% | 62% | 53% | 33 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 28 | Hobart | 8-18 (12) | 26 | 41.8 | 21.5 | 8.2 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 6.6 | 12.8 | 52% | 0.3 | 0.8 | 45% | 7.9 | 10.0 | 79% | 61% | 53% | 33 | Total | 26 | 41.8 | 21.5 | 8.2 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 4.5 | 4.0 | 6.6 | 12.8 | 51.7% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 45.0% | 0.3 | 0.8 | 79.2% | 62% | 53% | 33 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 33 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 0 |
|---|
COLLEGE
Roberts played college basketball at East Stroudsburg from 1986-87 through 1989-90, developing into one of the most decorated players in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference history while setting long-standing program records for production and volume statistics.
Across his four seasons at East Stroudsburg, Roberts scored 2,218 career points and pulled down 1,247 rebounds, totals that stood as the school’s career records, and he finished his career as the only PSAC player documented with at least 2,200 points and 1,200 rebounds.
In 1987-88, Roberts posted 23.4 points per game and 12.6 rebounds per game, and his 341 rebounds that season was recorded as an East Stroudsburg single-season record while also ranking among the top single-season rebound totals in NCAA Division II record listings for the 1987-90 era of his career.
That 1987-88 season included a PSAC-record 193 made free throws, and he also authored one of the conference’s notable single-game free-throw performances by making 20 free throws in a game against Pitt-Bradford.
In 1988-89, Roberts averaged 22.5 points per game and 12.4 rebounds per game, and he followed his record-setting rebounding season by grabbing 334 rebounds, which was also tracked among East Stroudsburg’s top single-season totals, while producing another PSAC-record-level free throw season with 207 makes.
During the 1988-89 campaign, he recorded a school-record 41-point game against Millersville, and that same Millersville matchup was tied to one of his other major single-game lines as he was listed among PSAC single-game leaders for free throws attempted in a contest versus Millersville in 1988-89.
In 1989-90, Roberts averaged 20.3 points per game and 9.8 rebounds per game and led East Stroudsburg to the PSAC championship, a season in which he scored a school-record 689 points and was the tournament MVP as the Warriors captured the conference title.
Roberts’ 1989-90 season also included 332 rebounds, continuing a three-year stretch in which he recorded 300-plus rebounds each season from 1987-88 through 1989-90, and he set another PSAC single-season free throw benchmark by making 229 free throws in 1989-90.
His final season included signature postseason moments, highlighted by a 34-point performance in East Stroudsburg’s 99-98 overtime NCAA Tournament first-round win over Slippery Rock, a result that was noted as the program’s first NCAA Tournament trip and included a late-game scoring surge with Roberts leading the way.
Over his peak three-season run, Roberts was recognized as the PSAC Eastern Division Athlete of the Year three times and earned three All-America selections, and he was also named to the Associated Press Little All-America second team while building a résumé that remains central to East Stroudsburg’s record book.
Roberts’ scoring and rebounding volume was paired with repeated trips to the foul line, and his seasons from 1987-88 through 1989-90 were logged among the PSAC’s best single-season free throw totals, with his three-season stretch of 193, 207, and 229 made free throws listed as conference record figures for free throws made in a season.
He completed his college career with 112 games played across four seasons, and his combination of career points and rebounds was later cited in conference historical summaries placing him among the PSAC’s all-time leaders in both scoring and rebounding while anchoring East Stroudsburg’s championship era at the end of the 1980s.
Related
HAVE MORE INFORMATION ON THIS PLAYER?
Whilst we try to source as much information as we can for every player who has ever played in the NBL some information on a player profile may be missing. If you have additional information on a player you'd like us to add to a profile, please send it to us using the enquiry form below.
Submissions are then sent to info@aussiehoopla.com