Fred VanVleet

At 30 years old, Fred VanVleet has this physical status:

High school career

VanVleet was a senior at Auburn High School in Rockford, Illinois, where he was an All-State first team pick by the Chicago Sun-Times (Class 4A), Associated Press (Class 4A), and Chicago Tribune. VanVleet led Auburn to a 22-game winning streak, which culminated in the school's first Illinois High School Association (IHSA) final four since 1975. In the IHSA state tournament, he led the Knights to a 3rd-place finish.

VanVleet remained loyal to his local Rockford Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) team rather than allowing bids to other top-profile teams in Chicago. "As long as you're leading whoever you're playing with, the coaches are going to see it." If they see you playing and winning with guys, perhaps I shouldn't be winning with, which might be a huge advantage for me." He has received basketball scholarship offers from Colorado State, Northern Illinois, Wichita State, Southern Illinois, Drake, Detroit, and Kent State. Because of his decision not to join a Chicago AAU team, his stepfather felt that he was being overlooked by several Chicago metropolitan area schools. He narrowed his list to Kent State, Northern Illinois, and Wichita State. He became the first member of the national class of 2012 Rivals.com top 150 to attend a Missouri Valley Conference school after accepting an invitation to play for Wichita State.

College career

In the 2013 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, VanVleet's double-digit scoring twice (versus Gonzaga and Ohio State) as a freshman. His 13 points against Gonzaga included a basket with 1:28 remaining, helping the Shockers win only their fifth sweet sixteen appearance since the tournament expanded to 64 teams in 1985. When seeding began, he had 12 points against Ohio State, with a late basket that made the Shockers become the fifth team with a seeding greater than eight to make it to the final four since 1979.

VanVleet was born as a sophomore but not expected it. The United States Basketball Writers Association announced him on January 23, 2014, naming him to the 23-man Oscar Robertson Award midseason watchlist. Vanvleet was chosen as one of 23 finalists for the Bob Cousy Award on February 17, 2017. When the Rockford native returned to Wichita State against Loyola on February 19 for a game-high 22 points and 6 assists, helping Wichita State beat Wichita State to 28-0. The 28-0 Shockers (Cleanthony Early, Tekele Cotton, VanVleet, Ron Baker, and Chadrack Lufile) appeared on the front page of the February 24, 2014 Sports Illustrated. On February 28, he was one of the ten semi-finalists for the Naismith Award.

VanVleet was instrumental in the 2013-14 team's first 31-0 regular season in NCAA Division I men's basketball history. As a result, he was selected as the Missouri Valley Conference All-Conference first team and named as the Missouri Valley Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year. He was also selected to the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Most Improved Team. VanVleet was a third-team selection by Sports Illustrated and Bleacher Report in 2014 after the 2014 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball tournament, according to the Sporting News and the NABC's second team pick. The Associated Press has given him an honorable mention. The United States Basketball Writers Association announced VanVleet on March 11 that he had been selected to the all-District VI (IA, MO, OK, NE, SD) team. On March 12, VanVleet was ranked on the National Association of Basketball Coaches Division I All-District 16 first team. VanVleet was selected as one of six finalists for the Cousy Award (along with Kyle Anderson, Aaron Craft, Tyler Ennis, Shabazz Napier, and Marcus Paige). He led the Missouri Valley Conference in assists per game (5.36) on the season. Following his sophomore year, he delivered the commencement address at his high school alma mater and became a highly awaited public speaker.

USA Today, Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated, and Associated Press selected VanVleet as the first American first team pick by the USA Today, Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook. He was a second team pick by Athlon Sports, SB Nation, and NBCSports.com. VanVleet was ranked fifth in the preseason top 100 players poll by ESPN, placing him at number 5 in its preseason top 100 players rankings. VanVleet was selected to the 36-Man Bob Cousy Award Preseason Watchlist. He was also named as a John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 candidate and an Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List pick. In the early December Naismith Award top 50 watch list, VanVleet was also included.

VanVleet had 7 steals in the opener against New Mexico State on November 14, tying a school record. Wichita State fought back from a 9-point deficit in the final 2:45 of regulation with 8 points (including two three-point shots in the final 1:15) and an assist on a three-point shot, but with 7 seconds remaining in overtime and Wichita trailing by one, he missed the front end of a one and a one. On his return to Chicago and the Gentile Center to play Loyola on January 11, he was unstoptable from the field, totaling a 5-for-5 appearance and three steals for his first career double-double. VanVleet, on the other hand, snapped his undefeated streak of 20 free throws made in his home state with a 3-for-4 showing. VanVleet won by 27 points in the rematch against Loyola on January 28, a career-high 27 points. VanVleet achieved his first triple double for Wichita State Shockers men's basketball in 43 years against Missouri State on February 7, winning by 10-point 10-rebound 11-steal. VanVleet, co-player of the week on February 16, was Missouri Valley Conference Co-Player of the Week (with Seth Tuttle). VanVleet set a new Wichita State career assist record against Evansville on February 26, defeating Warren Jabali who had 429 and Toure Murry who had 430. VanVleet was one of 17 finalists for the Cousy Award. The Shockers swept Northern Iowa on February 28 to capture the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship. VanVleet set a record high against Indiana in the first round of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament for the Shockers. He finished the tournament with 17-point and 25-point victories against #2-seeded Kansas and #3-seeded Notre Dame, respectively. He remained the top assists per game (5.23) leader for the Missouri Valley Conference this season.

Following the regular season, VanVleet was named an All-MVC first team selection. He was also selected for its All-America staff by the Associated Press as an honorable mention pick.

VanVleet was chosen for the 20-Man Bob Cousy Award preseason watchlist and the 30-man Lute Olson Award preseason watchlist. He was a second team selection to the Sporting News, Sports Illustrated, and Athlon Sports preseason All-American teams. He was a third member of the CBS Sports, USA Today, and NBC Sports preseason All-American teams. Lindy's Sports did not name an All-America squad, but did place a top-five list at each position and ranked college basketball players by rank. VanVleet was its second best point guard. VanVleet was ranked 14 by ESPN and 17 by NBC Sports in the preseason top 100 player rankings. On November 17, he made the inaugural 50-man John R. Wooden Award watch list. VanVleet received awards on December 2nd, as well as 33-man Robertson Trophy watchlists.

When he rolled his right ankle, VanVleet said he had no more than three minutes playing time in the season opener against the Charleston Southern Buccaneers on November 13. Despite playing in the next game against Tulsa, it aggravated his hamstring enough that he was supposed to miss the next two games. Wichita State's first game under.500 since its 2008–09 squad, as well as its first three-game losing streak since being without a healthy VanVleet. VanVleet returned to the lineup against St. Louis on December 5 to bring the streak of losses to an end. VanVleet received accolades on Monday and another on the 12th over #25 Utah, earning averages of 13.5 points, 5.0 assists, and 4.0 rebounds in two big victories in December, one on the 9th against UNLV and the other on the 12th. He earned Player of the Week honors again on January 11 after leading the Shockers to victories over conference co-leaders Evansville and Southern Illinois on January 6 and 9, respectively, with his 11.0 points, 8.5 rebounds, 7.5 assists, and 2.5 steals averages. His 12 rebounds against Southern Illinois were a career high. VanVleet was selected to the 20-man Oscar Robertson Trophy midseason watch list on January 25, 20-man Robertson Trophy. VanVleet made all 15 of his free throw attempts against Evansville on January 31, bringing his career highs to a career-high 32 points. He earned his third MVC Player of the Week award the following day. VanVleet posted a double-double against Southern Illinois on February 3 in the 1500th victory in Wichita State Shockers men's basketball history and in head coach Gregg Marshall's record-breaking 221st victory. On February 11, he was selected to the 35-man midseason watchlist for the Naismith Trophy. On February 12, VanVleet was included in the Wooden Award for late season. VanVleet led the team to victories over Vanderbilt and Arizona in the 2016 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. In the First Four Round of the Cup, Ron Baker and his fellow senior ran an 11-0 run to snap a 30-30 tie. Both 11 points in the game and tied with a game-high 14 points. VanVleet and Baker led 11-seed Wichita State to a victory over 6-seed and AP Poll 17th-ranked Arizona on March 17. VanVleet had a game-high 16 points, 5 grabs, and four rebounds. VanVleet's last game against Miami on March 19 brought his career total number to 225, breaking a school record. For the third time and as the Missouri Valley Conference's highest assist per game (5.5%) leader, he led the campaign in free throw percentage (81.7%).

For the second time in three years, VanVleet was named to the Missouri Valley Conference all-league first team (for the third straight season) and MVC Larry Bird Trophy Player of the Year for the second time in three years. VanVleet was also an AP All-America honorable mention.

Professional career

After declining two bids to participate in the NBA Development League for two years by teams interested in drafting him in the second round, Vanvleet was not chosen in the 2016 NBA draft. VanVleet has signed up for the 2016 NBA Summer League with the Toronto Raptors with the hopes that he will be in the Raptors' training camp. He had a three-game appearance contract as a result of his summer league work. He signed a multi-year contract with the Raptors on July 18. The Raptors had 14 players enrolling in training camp on negotiated terms, including point guard Kyle Lowry, Cory Joseph, and Delon Wright at the time of his signing. For the final position, VanVleet was competing against Brady Heslip, Drew Crawford, Yanick Moreira, E. J. Singler, and Jarrod Uthoff. VanVleet remained on the roster when the team was cut down to 15 players on October 22.

In a 112–102 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder, VanVleet made his official league debut on November 9, 2016, winning in only 26 seconds in an 112–102 victory. VanVleet appeared in the Raptors' 19th game and his fourth appearance, against the Los Angeles Lakers on December 2. VanVleet, a Lowry player, was on the second unit and hit career-highs against the Brooklyn Nets on January 17 with 25 minutes and ten points. VanVleet scored 15 points in a 102-94 loss to the Orlando Magic on February 3, setting a new career high. VanVleet had various positions with the Raptors 905 of the NBA Development League during his rookie season. In April 2017, he was a member of Raptors 905's championship-winning squad.

VanVleet scored a career-high 16 points against the Indiana Pacers on November 25, 2017. In a 126-113 victory over the Charlotte Hornets, he had a career-high nine assists in a career-high victory. VanVleet recorded new career-highs in points two times during January 2018: first against the Cleveland Cavaliers with 22 on the 11th and then with 25 against the Los Angeles Lakers on the 28th. VanVleet won by 121-119 overtime over the Pistons with a long jump shot from the left corner on March 7, clinching a 121–119 victory over the Raptors, as well as help Toronto to become the first team to clinch a spot in the 2018 NBA Playoffs. VanVleet averaged 8.6 points, 3.2 assists, and 2.4 rebounds in 76 games during the 2017–2018 season, placing fourth in the NBA in net efficiency per possession, behind Stephen Curry, Eric Gordon, and Chris Paul, and was the only full-time bench player in the top 20 (19th) in the league for plus-minus. He was then nominated for the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award.

VanVleet re-signed with the Raptors on July 6, 2018. In a 104–99 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks, he had scored a season-high 19 points on December 9, 2018. In a 123-99 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, he had a career-high 14 assists. He made a go-ahead three-point shot with 25 seconds remaining on December 19, caping a 17-point comeback against the Indiana Pacers on December 19, capped off a 17-point comeback. In a 123-116 victory over the Bucks on January 5, he had a season high-tying 21 points. In a 119–101 victory over the Atlanta Hawks on February 7, he set a new career record of 30 points. He was out for about three weeks in early February with a partial ligament injury to his left thumb, which had occurred two nights before against the New York Knicks.

VanVleet was the team's top seed in the 2019 NBA playoffs, where the Raptors were a key bench player for the team. VanVleet won by 21 points on seven 3-pointers in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals, allowing the Raptors to take the lead by 3–2 in series games after an early post-season shooting slump. VanVleet scored 14 points in a 100–94 series-clinching victory over the Bucks, assisting the Raptors in qualifying for the first time in franchise history. During the NBA Finals, VanVleet had a crucial defensive role against Stephen Curry, who saw him used in a box-and-one defense. VanVleet scored a career-high 22 points off the bench in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, assisting the Raptors in their first NBA championship in franchise history. Kawhi Leonard came in second place in NBA Finals MVP voting.

VanVleet scored a career high 34 points in the season-opener against the New Orleans Pelicans on October 22 after winning his first NBA championship ring. He scored 29 points in the second half, including 22 in the second half, and a season-high 11 assists, tying a 16-point victory over the Brooklyn Nets on January 4, 2020. In a 107–103 victory over the Miami Heat in the Orlando bubble, VanVleet scored a career-high 36 points in the Raptors' second game back from the season's suspension due to the COVID-19 pandemic on August 3, hitting 7 three-pointers. VanVleet won Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarter finals in the 2020 NBA Playoff Bubble on August 17, posting three career-highs in points (30), three-pointers made (8), and assists (11) in a 134–110 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. VanVleet became the first Raptors player to record 30 points and 10+ assists in a playoff game, while Damian Lillard, Stephen Curry, and Chris Paul were the only NBA players to play 30+ points, 10+ assists, and 8+ three pointers in a playoff game.

VanVleet will remain with the Raptors as a result of a four-year, US$85 million contract, as reported in November 2020. Duncan Robinson's five-year deal was the first for an undrafted free agent until he was released. VanVleet scored a season-high 35 points on January 4, 2021, defeating the Boston Celtics by 126-114. Vanvleet set a new franchise record by making a three-pointer in 39 straight regular season games on January 6, 2021, beating the previous record of C. J. Miles with 38 miles per square mile. In a 123-108 victory over the Orlando Magic on February 2, VanVleet scored a career-high 54 points, culminating in a career-high 11 three-pointers. VanVleet set a franchise record for the most points scored in a game, beating DeMar DeRozan's previous record, while still advancing the most points scored by an undrafted NBA player, previously held by Moses Malone with 53 points. VanVleet also set a franchise record for the most three-pointers in the first half, with eight. VanVleet continued his regular season games streak with a made-point shot to 76, only to miss the game against the Golden State Warriors due to a hip flexor injury. During an altercation between the Raptors and the Los Angeles Lakers on April 8, VanVleet was suspended for one game for missing the bench. When VanVleet returned from his 6-game injury and 1-game suspension, he was limited to six points (0 for 6 on three point shots) by the Orlando Magic, snapping the streak. VanVleet's appearances increased to 23–54 (32 games) of the 2019-20 Toronto Raptors' regular season, as well as 1–44 (44 games) of the 2020-21 Toronto Raptors. This includes the 11 games of the 2020 NBA playoffs, in which VanVleet converted 3-point shots.

VanVleet extended his streak of consecutive games against the Utah Jazz from at least three 3-point shots made to eight on three separate possessions on November 18. The streak came to an end against Sacramento the next night, when he only made two. VanVleet scored 31, 35 and 33 points against the Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks, and San Antonio Spurs on December 31, 2021, January 2, 2022. VanVleet was the fourth undrafted player (along with Moses Malone, Mike James, and Connie Hawkins) to score 30 or more points in three straight games. VanVleet, 402, recorded his first triple-double, with 37 points, ten rebounds, and ten assists, with 24 points in the third quarter alone, leading Toronto to a 122-108 victory over the Utah Jazz on January 7, 2022. VanVleet unanswered points in a 2 minute and 27 seconds span during his third quarter appearance. VanVleet was named NBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week for week 12 (January 3–9) of the 2021-22 NBA season for the first time on January 10 for leading the Raptors to a 4–0 record, 6.5 assists, 4.8 steals, 2.0 steals, and 36.5 minutes per game average. For the first time in his career, VanVleet was named an NBA All-Star for the fourth time in his career, joining John Starks (1994), Ben Wallace (2003–06) and Brad Miller (2003–04), then rank fifth or sixth if you include Connie Hawkins and/or Moses Malone who were draft eligible when playing leagues existed but were not drafted in the NBA draft). When playing against Lowry as he was on the court, VanVleet tied for most 3-pointers in a season (238) vs. the Miami Heat. VanVleet won 242 in 65 games played on the season. Over the course of the season, VanVleet (37.88%) came in second place behind teammate Pascal Siakam (37.91) in minutes played per game. During game 4 of the 2022 NBA playoffs against the Philadelphia 76ers and the Raptors, VanVleet sustained a hip flexor injury while the Philadelphia 76ers were eliminated in six games.

National team career

At the 2015 Pan American Games, VanVleet was one of 22 players selected to try out for the 12-man Team USA. He was one of the 16 finalists for the team, but he did not make the final 12-man team.

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