Keifer Sykes
February 8, 2021
Kendall Stephens
- Nationality: AUS/USA
- Date of Birth: 11/11/94
- Place of Birth: Geelong (VIC)
- Position: GRD
- Height (CM): 198
- Weight (KG): 96
- Junior Assoc:
- College: Purdue (2013- 2016) / Nevada (2017-2018)
- NBL DEBUT: 3/10/19
- AGE AT DEBUT: 24
- LAST NBL GAME: 11/06/21
- AGE AT LAST GAME: 26
- NBL History: South East Melbourne 2020-21
- Championships: 0
- None
BIO: Kendall Stephens was born in Geelong, Victoria, in the suburb of Whittington, while his father Everette Stephens was a import with the Geelong Supercats.
The Stephens’ family settled in St. Charles, Illinois after Everette’s retirement and he attended St. Charles East High School. He was a standout basketball player for the Fighting Saints and was the number 65-ranked recruit in his class by ESPN and a four-star recruit by most major recruiting outlets. He ultimately committed to play for his father’s alma mater, Purdue University.
FAMILY: Kendall Stephens is the son of Everette Stephens who played 77 games in the NBL.
NBL EXPERIENCE
Kendall Stephens made his NBL debut with the South East Melbourne Phoenix at 24 years of age. He scored eight points in his first game.
South East Melbourne entered the NBL as an expansion franchise under inaugural coach Simon Mitchell, building its first roster around marquee signing Mitch Creek. Ben Madgen (via Europe), Adam Gibson (via Brisbane), Kyle Adnam (via Sydney) and Dane Pineau (via Sydney) formed part of the local core, while John Roberson (via Russia), Tai Wesley (via New Zealand) and Keith Benson (via Germany) filled the Phoenix’s three import spots.
The Phoenix also added an Australian-born guard (via Spain) on a one-year deal as a local player on May 1 after he had most recently played with Obradoiro. Born in Victoria while his father was playing in the NBL for Geelong, he had also played for Orlando at the 2018 NBA Summer League before returning to Australia. Coach Mitchell saw his shooting as an important addition, saying, “Kendall is one of those shooters who when he catches fire, will make shots only a few in the NBL would dare take.”
Stephens (8 points, 2 rebounds, 1 steal, and 1 block) made his NBL debut in South East Melbourne’s first-ever game against cross-town rivals Melbourne United on October 3, with Creek (28 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 block) and Roberson (20 points and 3 assists) leading the Phoenix to a 91-88 victory, while Shawn Long (26 points, 13 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 blocks) was Melbourne’s best. South East Melbourne made 12 of 23 three-pointers, but the win came at a cost when Wesley (8 points) suffered a hamstring injury after playing only five minutes.
Stephens (4.4 points across 26 games) provided perimeter shooting during his rookie season, making 33 three-pointers at 38 percent and starting eight games. He made 19 three-pointers across his first eight appearances before an ankle injury hampered him during the latter stages of the season. Wesley’s hamstring injury kept him out for ten weeks, with Jaye Crockett (8.9 points and 4.3 rebounds across 9 games) signed as his temporary injury replacement.
Stephens produced one of his best games in South East Melbourne’s first home game on October 13, making five three-pointers and finishing with 17 points, 3 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block as the Phoenix defeated Brisbane 113-93. Roberson (30 points and 6 assists) and Creek (25 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals) led South East Melbourne, while Lamar Patterson (30 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists) was Brisbane’s best as the Phoenix improved to 2-0.
After missing the January 5 game against New Zealand, Stephens returned with his best game of the season against Illawarra on January 12. Coming off the bench, he made six three-pointers and finished with a career-high 20 points, 6 rebounds, 1 assist, and 2 steals, sparking a 17-0 run with four three-pointers before adding two more when Illawarra closed the margin later in the game. Madgen (17 points, 3 rebounds, and 5 assists) and Pineau (14 points, 19 rebounds, 1 steal, and 3 blocks) provided support, while Todd Blanchfield (15 points and 3 steals) led Illawarra as South East Melbourne won 90-82 at WIN Entertainment Centre. The victory improved the Phoenix to 9-11 and moved them to seventh place as they remained in the finals race.
Benson (5.8 points and 3.9 rebounds across 16 games) departed (to Shabab Al Ahli) during January, with Devondrick Walker (via France) joining South East Melbourne for the final eight games and averaging 7.4 points.
Creek (20.2 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.2 steals) and Roberson (20.2 points and 5.6 assists) carried much of South East Melbourne’s offence, while Madgen (12.1 points and 4.8 rebounds), Wesley (10.7 points and 4.3 rebounds), Adnam (9.1 points), Pineau (8.1 points and 8.7 rebounds) and Gibson (6.7 points) were the other major contributors. South East Melbourne led the NBL in scoring at 95.4 points per game, but after reaching the midpoint of the season at 6-6 the Phoenix managed only three wins from their final 16 games.
Stephens’ ankle injury continued to hamper him late in the season, and he was ruled out through injury when South East Melbourne lost 92-83 to New Zealand on February 14. He returned for the Phoenix’s final game two days later, playing just over three minutes without scoring as Madgen (23 points and 4 rebounds) and Wesley (20 points, 6 rebounds, 1 steal, and 2 blocks) led South East Melbourne, while Chris Goulding (28 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals) led Melbourne United to a 109-90 victory, completing the Phoenix’s eight-game losing streak and leaving them second-last with a 9-19 record.
2020/21
After finishing second last with a 9-19 record during their inaugural season, South East Melbourne looked to add more talent around Mitch Creek. John Roberson (to Spain), Keith Benson (to Lithuania), Daniel Trist (to New Zealand) and Deng Acuoth (to Ballarat) departed, while Tai Wesley and Ben Madgen retired. Cam Gliddon and Reuben Te Rangi (both via Brisbane), imports Ben Moore and Keifer Sykes and development players Izayah Le’Afa and Tristan Forsyth were added, while Yanni Wetzell initially exercised his European out clause (to Riesen Ludwigsburg) before passport complications resulted in him returning to South East Melbourne. Dane Pineau entered the season battling a back injury, leading the Phoenix to sign Mike Karena (via Nelson) as his injury replacement.
Stephens (1.6 points across 13 games) returned for his second season with the Phoenix as a reserve wing behind Te Rangi. His best game came against the previously undefeated Illawarra Hawks on February 7, where Stephens (7 points and 1 rebound) made all three of his shots in seven minutes as South East Melbourne won 98-82. Gliddon (15 points, 2 assists, and 3 steals), Adnam (15 points and 3 steals), Creek (15 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists), Sykes (15 points, 5 rebounds, and 8 assists) and Moore (15 points, 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, and 3 blocks) gave the Phoenix five other players with 15 points, while Deng Adel (17 points) led Illawarra.
Stephens continued to see limited minutes before an Achilles injury brought his regular-season playing time to an end following the March 12 win over Cairns. He remained out indefinitely through April and May before returning to training late in the season. Stephens travelled with the Phoenix again in June but did not take the court in the final three regular-season games, with no other injury responsible for his absences.
Creek (18.2 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 3.5 assists) led South East Melbourne in scoring and earned All-NBL Second Team honours, with Sykes (14.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 5.1 assists), Adnam (12 points and 3.6 assists), Wetzell (11.2 points and 6 rebounds), Gliddon (10.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.5 steals), Moore (10.4 points and 6.5 rebounds), Ryan Broekhoff (7 points and 3.8 rebounds), Te Rangi (6.9 points and 3.4 rebounds) and Le’Afa (6.1 points) providing support. South East Melbourne finished fourth with a 19-17 record and reached the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.
South East Melbourne faced minor premiers Melbourne (28-8) in the semifinals, with all three games played without crowds at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena because of COVID-19 restrictions in Victoria. Melbourne opened the series with a 96-78 victory behind Jock Landale (26 points) and Scotty Hopson (22 points), while Moore (17 points), Creek (15 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists) and Sykes (12 points) led the Phoenix. Stephens (0 points in 1:18) made his first appearance since March 12 late in the game.
Facing elimination in game two, Stephens did not take the court as Sykes (26 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals), Creek (26 points and 4 rebounds) and Wetzell (20 points and 8 rebounds) led South East Melbourne to a 90-79 victory, while Hopson (19 points and 4 rebounds) and Chris Goulding (14 points) led Melbourne.
Stephens again did not take the court in game three as South East Melbourne raced to a 32-15 lead during the second quarter before Melbourne recovered. Te Rangi (22 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 steals), Creek (19 points and 9 rebounds) and Sykes (15 points and 4 assists) led the Phoenix, while Landale (27 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists), Goulding (14 points) and Mitch McCarron (11 points, 8 rebounds, and 6 assists) led Melbourne to an 84-74 win.
Kendall Stephens played two seasons the South East Melbourne Phoenix. He averaged 3.4 points, 0.9 rebounds, and 0.4 assists in 39 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-21 | 26 | South East Melbourne | 19-17 (4) | 13 | 79.0 | 21 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 22 | 36% | 5 | 13 | 38% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 48% | 48% | 7 |
| 2019-20 | 25 | South East Melbourne | 9-19 (8) | 26 | 338.2 | 115 | 29 | 13 | 3 | 26 | 12 | 7 | 15 | 32 | 41 | 108 | 38% | 33 | 87 | 38% | 0 | 0 | 0% | 53% | 53% | 20 | Totals | 39 | 417 | 136 | 36 | 16 | 5 | 31 | 12 | 8 | 17 | 39 | 49 | 130 | 37.7% | 38 | 100 | 38.0% | 0 | 0 | 0.0% | 52% | 52% | 20 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020-21 | 26 | South East Melbourne | 19-17 (4) | 13 | 6.1 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 1.7 | 36% | 0.4 | 1.0 | 38% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 48% | 48% | 7 |
| 2019-20 | 25 | South East Melbourne | 9-19 (8) | 26 | 13.0 | 4.4 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 4.2 | 38% | 1.3 | 3.3 | 38% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0% | 53% | 53% | 20 | Total | 39 | 10.7 | 3.5 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 3.3 | 37.7% | 0.0 | 0.0 | 38.0% | 1.0 | 2.6 | 0.0% | 52% | 52% | 20 |
CAREER HIGHS
| POINTS | REBOUNDS | ASSISTS | STEALS | BLOCKS | TURNOVERS | TRIPLE DOUBLES | 20 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
|---|
STATE LEAGUE EXPERIENCE
- Rockhampton (2021–2022, 2025)
Stephens joined Rockhampton for the 2021 NBL1 North season, with his stint including a nine-point debut against Logan and a late-season 21-point, five-rebound game against Cairns.
Stephens helped Rockhampton beat Cairns 89–86 in 2021, scoring seven points in the closing run and converting a four-point play with 17 seconds left after his fifth three-pointer tied the game.
Stephens returned to Rockhampton for the 2022 NBL1 North season after re-signing on 9 February 2022, with the club noting his 2021 stint had been cut short by COVID-19.
Stephens opened his 2022 season with 15 points, four rebounds and one assist against Cairns on 7 May, then produced 25 points, four rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in 40 minutes against North Gold Coast on 11 June.
Stephens returned to Rockhampton again for the 2025 NBL1 North season, playing two games and recording 13 total points in 52:14 before being released from his playing contract on 20 May 2025.
NBA EXPERIENCE
Played for the Orlando Magic in the 2018 NBA Summer League.
INTERNATIONAL EXPERIENCE
- Spain - Monbus Obradoiro (2018–2019) | Estonia - AVIS Utilitas Rapla (2022–2023) | Brazil - União Corinthians (2023–2024) | Mexico - Santos del Potosí (2024)
Kendall Stephens joined Monbus Obradoiro for the 2018–19 Liga Endesa season in Spain after signing on 19 August 2018, appearing in five league games and averaging 2.8 points, 1.6 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 0.4 steals in 8.8 minutes per game.
Across those five Liga Endesa appearances, he totalled 14 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals while shooting 33.3% on two-point attempts and 28.6% from three-point range.
On 21 October 2018, Stephens produced his best Liga Endesa scoring performance with six points, three rebounds, two assists and one steal against Real Madrid, making two of his three three-point attempts and finishing with a valuation of seven.
Obradoiro and Kendall mutually agreed to terminate his contract on 19 January 2019 after his five Liga Endesa appearances.
Stephens joined AVIS Utilitas Rapla for the 2022–23 season in Estonia, playing 29 Latvian–Estonian Basketball League games and averaging 12.4 points, 2.9 rebounds, 1.0 assist and 1.1 steals in 23.2 minutes while shooting 40.5% from the field, 39.5% from three-point range and 81.6% from the free-throw line.
Rapla finished the Latvian–Estonian League regular season 18–12 in sixth place before losing its quarter-final series to VEF Riga in two games.
In the Estonian Korvpalli Meistriliiga quarter-finals, Kendall scored a team-high 24 points and made five three-pointers as Rapla erased an 18-point deficit to defeat Pärnu Sadam 95–93 in overtime on 13 April 2023.
Pärnu recovered from that opening loss to defeat Rapla 3–2 in the five-game Estonian quarter-final series.
Stephens joined União Corinthians for the 2023–24 Novo Basquete Brasil season in Brazil, appearing in 37 games and averaging 10.3 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists, 0.7 steals and 0.2 blocks in 23.5 minutes while shooting 39.1% from the field, 36.6% from three-point range and 85.7% from the free-throw line.
On 25 January 2024, he scored a season-high 27 points and led all scorers as União Corinthians lost 89–71 to Flamengo.
União Corinthians qualified for the NBB playoffs for the first time in club history during the 2023–24 season, drawing Minas in the best-of-three round of 16.
Stephens joined Santos del Potosí in Mexicos LNBP on 16 October 2024 and played five games, averaging 10.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 0.4 blocks while shooting 35.2% from the field and 35.7% from three-point range.
In the LNBP play-in against Dorados de Chihuahua, Kendall scored 12 points in a 106–71 Game 1 loss before recording a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double as Santos won Game 2 by an 83–72 score on 21 October 2024 to force a deciding game.
Dorados won the deciding game 97–85 on 24 October 2024 to take the play-in series 2–1 and end Santos del Potosís season.
COLLEGE
Kendall Stephens began his NCAA career at Purdue Boilermakers, playing three seasons from 2013–14 to 2015–16 and establishing himself early as one of the Big Ten’s most dangerous perimeter shooters.
As a freshman in the 2013–14 season, Stephens averaged 8.0 points per game, which ranked second among Big Ten freshmen, and he was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team after knocking down 63 three-pointers while playing primarily as a floor-spacing guard off the bench.
During his sophomore campaign in 2014–15, Stephens averaged 8.7 points per game despite dealing with multiple injuries, and he delivered several high-profile scoring performances against elite conference competition, including scoring 19 points against Michigan State while outscoring Travis Trice, and pouring in 22 points in a head-to-head matchup with Penn State scorer DJ Newbill.
Stephens’ most productive season at Purdue came as a junior in 2015–16, when he averaged 17.7 points and 7.5 rebounds per game, led the team in scoring, and ranked among the Big Ten leaders in three-point shooting while playing an expanded role on the wing.
Across his three seasons with the Boilermakers, Stephens appeared in 90 games with 32 starts, scoring 698 total points at an average of 7.8 points per game, before seeing his role reduced late in his junior year due to injuries and the emergence of fellow shooter Dakota Mathias.
After the 2015–16 season, Stephens transferred to Nevada Wolf Pack, sitting out the 2016–17 season under NCAA transfer rules before returning to game action in 2017–18 as a senior.
In his lone season at Nevada during 2017–18, Stephens became a central scoring option, averaging 15.9 points per game while helping the Wolf Pack win the Mountain West regular-season title and advance to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament, including the program’s historic comeback win over Cincinnati in the Round of 32.
Stephens’ Nevada season was cut short after 11 games due to injury, at which point he was averaging 19.2 points per game, but his impact was still recognised with Mountain West Conference honourable mention consideration and inclusion in multiple preseason and midseason watch lists for perimeter scoring guards.
Across his NCAA career at Purdue and Nevada, Stephens was recognised as a high-volume three-point shooter and matchup scorer, finishing his college tenure with multiple 20-point performances against ranked opponents and competing head-to-head with future NBL and NBA guards throughout Big Ten and Mountain West play.
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