Danny Granger

At 41 years old, Danny Granger has this physical status:

Danny Granger Jr. (born April 20, 1983) is an American former professional basketball player who played ten seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA).

After a two-year college stint at New Mexico, he was drafted by the Indiana Pacers in 2005.

Granger averaged 26 points per game on 45 percent shooting in 2009 and was named an All-Star and the league's Most Improved Player.

Granger played just five games during the 2012–13 season, and the Philadelphia 76ers cut him in February 2014.

He went on to play for the Los Angeles Clippers and Miami Heat before playing with the Phoenix Suns and Detroit Pistons in 2015.

Personal life

Granger was raised in a Jehovah's Witnesses household. Scotty, Granger's younger brother, is a singer and songwriter. Granger is Mahalia Jackson's great-nephew of the "Queen of Gospel" period.

Granger has a wife and three children.

Granger, who has a family history with diabetes, is very involved in the "Dribble to Stop Diabetes" movement.

Granger founded a real estate investment firm in the late stages of his playing career.

Granger began working as a studio and game analyst for CBS Sports Network in January 2017.

Granger was inducted into the New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame in April 2017.

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High school career

Granger attended Grace King High School in Metairie, Louisiana. He averaged 24.3 points, 12 rebounds, and 5.5 blocks per game as a senior as a four-year letterman at Grace King. Before his senior year, he was a McDonald's All-American nominee. He received a 30 on his ACT and was accepted to Yale University.

College career

Granger was a member of the Missouri Valley Conference All-Freshman Team for Bradley in 2001-02, averaging 11.1 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. After the first semester of his sophomore season, he was a highly visible transfer to New Mexico, averaging 19.2 points and 7.9 rebounds for the Braves. He wasn't eligible to play for the Los Angeles Kings until January 2004. The reason for the transfer, according to him, was because of Braves head coach Jim Les's intimidating tactics, which included being verbally offensive.'

Granger averaged 19.5 points per game and aided the Lobos in rebounding (9.0 rpg), steals (1.32 spg), and blocks (1.41 bpg) as a junior in 2003-04. He was the first Lobos player to lead the team in all three categories in the same season, and was named Bob King Team MVP. Luc Longley, Willie Long, Mel Daniels, and Ira Harge were the second Lobo in 33 years, and the fifth all-time, to average more than 19 points and nine rebounds for an entire season. Granger was twice named as the Week's Player of the Week for the weeks ending December 22 to January 25 by a First Team All-Mountain West Conference pick.

Granger was the only player in the NCAA to average at least 18.8 points and 8.9 rebounds per game as a senior in 2004, 2005–05, while still averaging at least 2.0 blocks (2.1), 2.0 steals (2.0), and 2.0 assists (2.0). For the second year in a row, he was a leader in scoring, rebounding, stealings, and blocked shots. He was the first player in school history to record 60+ assists, blocks, and steals in a season. He made 91 career blocked shots in 52 games, his sixth best game in New Mexico history. He dropped just six points shy of 1,000 in his New Mexico career, and for the second year in a row, he was named Bob King Team MVP. For the second year in a row, he was named MWC tournament MVP and received First Team All-Mountain West awards. In addition, he finished second to Utah's Andrew Bogut as MWC Player of the Year.

NBA career

The Indiana Pacers drafted Granger 17th overall in the 2005 NBA draft. After averaging 7.5 points and 4.9 rebounds in 78 games, he was drafted to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. On February 17, 2006, he was a starter in the T-Mobile Rookie Challenge in Houston, where he had nine points, three rebounds, two assists, and a blocked shot in six minutes, and shot 2-of-4 from 3-point range.

Granger became one of only four Pacers players to reach 100+ 3-point field goals in a season in the last 15 years in 2006-2007. After making only 30 3-pointers in his rookie season, he led Indiana with 110 points. He was the first Pacers player to play in all 82 games; he played in 57 games, including the first 14 and 42 of the last 44 games.

Granger was the team's top scorer with an average of 19.6 points per game in 2007-08. On Monday, November 5, 2007, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Tuesday, October 30 to Sunday, November 4. It was his first and only NBA Player of the Week award. He set a franchise record by making 65 straight throws (January 21 to February 22), trouncing Reggie Miller's record of 2005.

Granger agreed to a five-year deal with the Pacers on October 31, 2008. The new deal began in 2009–10, with recompenses that may have pushed the total cost closer to $65 million.

Granger became the first NBA player to raise his scoring average in three seasons in a row, and the first Indiana player to average more than 30 points per game in more than 30 years. He came in fifth in the NBA with 25.8 points and was named the NBA's Most Improved Player of the Year. His average surpassed Billy Knight's single-season team record of 26.6 points per game (1976–77) was his highest figure by an Indiana player since his 1977-77 debut. Granger scored 20 or more points in a run-up to 16 straight games from December 15 to January 19, tying the longest streak in the Pacers' NBA history. He scored 35 or more points in each game from January 3 to 7, and is the only Pacers player to do so. In February 2009, he appeared in his first and only NBA All-Star Game. He missed a total of 15 games due to injury or sickness, including 11 in February and March with a torn tendon in his right foot.

Granger led the Pacers to 24.1 points per game in 2009–10, their eighth best in the NBA and third best in the Eastern Conference. In 45 of 62 appearances, he scored 20 or more points and scored 30+ points 16 times. On March 26, 2010, he scored a career-high 44 points against the Utah Jazz. He missed a total of 18 games due to injury or illness, including 16 in a row in December and January with a torn plantar fascia in his right foot.

Granger won gold medals in the 2010 FIBA World Championship as a member of the US national team.

Granger was the Pacers' top scorer for his fourth season in a row, scoring 20.5 points per game, his 16th best in the NBA and his third straight season of 20+ points per game. In all but four games, he scored in double figures and collected 20 or more points 39 times, with 30+ points nine times. In a 98–92 loss to the New York Knicks, he scored a career-high 17 rebounds on January 2, 2011.

Granger was the Pacers' top scorer in the 2011-12 season, scoring 18.7 points per game, his 22nd best in the NBA for the fifth straight season.

Granger missed the first 55 games of the 2012-2013 season due to tibiasis of the left knee. He played five games between February 23 and March 3 before being placed on the inactive list and eventually having knee surgery on April 4.

Granger played in the first 25 games of the 2013–14 season with a strained left calf. Granger received a standing ovation on December 20 when he made his season debut against the Houston Rockets in 114–81 victory, and chanted his name when he finally made his first basket, a 3-pointer, early in the fourth. He appeared in 29 games (two starts) for the Pacers in 2013–14, scoring 8.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 22.5 minutes per game.

Granger was traded with the Philadelphia 76ers on February 20, 2014, along with a 2015 second-round pick for Evan Turner and Lavoy Allen. He was bought out by the 76ers on February 26, and the Los Angeles Clippers signed him for the remainder of the season two days later.

Granger signed with the Miami Heat on July 14, 2014. In a three-team trade involving the New Orleans Pelicans, he was traded to the Phoenix Suns on February 19, 2015. However, he did not play for the Suns in 2014–15 due to knee injuries. He was traded to the Detroit Pistons, along with Reggie Bullock and Marcus Morris, in exchange for a 2020 second-round draft pick. He spent the preseason in Arizona recovering from knee and foot injury, and the Pistons cut him off on October 26, 2015.

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