Ronnie Price

infobox NBA Player


name = Ronnie Price
position = Point guard
height_ft = 6| height_in = 2
weight_lbs = 190
league = NBA
team = Utah Jazz
number = 17
nationality = USA
birth_date = birth date and age|1983|6|21
birth_place = Friendswood, Texas
college = Nicholls State,
Utah Valley
draft = Not drafted
career_start = 2005
former_teams = Sacramento Kings (2005–07)
awards =

Ronnie Price (born June 21 1983 in Friendswood, Texas) is an American professional basketball player currently with the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association. Ronnie Price married his college sweetheart on July 25th, 2008.

College career

At 5-foot-8, Price was considered undersized as a senior at Clear Brook High School. Because of his lack of height, he wasn’t offered any scholarships after graduation. He walked-on at Nicholls State University (Louisiana). He grew to 5-foot-11 by the beginning of his freshman season and surprised many people by averaging 11.3 points per game. He continued growing to his current height of 6-foot-2, but he felt the situation at Nicholls State wasn’t right for him. He transferred to Utah Valley State College in Orem, Utah.

As a sophomore (2002-03), Price averaged 15.3 points per game, earning Honorable Mention honors in the NJCAA Region 18. UVSC became a four-year institution the following year, and Price decided to stay as the school transitioned to NCAA Division I basketball. He improved his scoring average to 20.2 points per game as a junior (2003-04), leading the Wolverines to the Division I Provisional National Championship. The Wolverines finished the season with a 23-5 record. Price scored a career-high 37 points in a game twice during the season.

His senior season (2004-05) was spectacular. Price averaged 24.3 points per game, ranking third in the nation in that category. CBSsportsline.com ranked him as the top college point guard in the country. For his efforts, he was named Division I Independent Player of the Year. He finished his senior year with a terrific performance, scoring a season-high 36 points (27 in the second half) in a 71-52 victory over Northern Colorado.

Professional career

Price was not drafted into the NBA, but he was invited to work out with some of the top teams in the league, including the Utah Jazz and Detroit Pistons. In August 2005, he signed a guaranteed two-year contract with the Sacramento Kings. He played sporadically in two seasons with the Kings, backing up Mike Bibby and Jason Hart (prior to Hart being waived and picked up by the Clippers) averaging 2.9 points in 87 games. He only started one game during his time in Sacramento (a loss to the Phoenix Suns). He scored a career-high 16 points in a game against the Jazz in November 2006, including a ferocious one-handed slam over Carlos Boozer that was named the NBA’s Haier Play of the Day.

In July 2007, Price signed a free agent contract with the Jazz. He started the season as third-string point guard, behind Deron Williams and Jason Hart (Hart for the second time). Price eventually replaced Hart as the main backup to Williams. He played in 61 games in 2007-08, averaging 3.7 points per game. He made highlight reels again after a block he had on Luke Walton in game 4 of the second round of the 2008 NBA Playoffs against the LA Lakers. Walton appeared to have a breakaway layup or dunk when Price unexpectedly caught up with him at the last moment and blocked him soundly, despite their difference in height. This was after receiving 4 stitches and a large bandage above his right eye following a flagrant foul from Ronny Turiaf earlier in the game.

NBA career statistics

Regular season

-
align="left" | 2005–06
align="left" | Sacramento
29 || 0 || 5.2 || .362 || .222 || 1.000 || .5 || .4 || .2 || .0 || 2.1
-
align="left" | 2006–07
align="left" | Sacramento
58 || 1 || 9.7 || .390 || .323 || .673 || 1.2 || .8 || .5 || .1 || 3.3
-
align="left" | 2007–08
align="left" | Utah
61 || 3 || 9.6 || .431 || .347 || .684 || .8 || 1.3 || .5 || .1 || 3.7
-
align="left" | Career
align="left" |
148 || 4 || 8.8 || .406 || .317 || .714 || .9 || .9 || .4 || .0 || 3.2
###@@@KEYEND@@@###

Playoffs

-
align="left" | 2005–06
align="left" | Sacramento
4 || 0 || 2.3 || .000 || .000 || .000 || .0 || .3 || .0 || .0 || .0
-
align="left" | 2007–08
align="left" | Utah
12 || 0 || 5.7 || .323 || .214 || .769 || .3 || .9 || .5 || .2 || 2.8
-
align="left" | Career
align="left" |
16 || 0 || 4.8 || .294 || .214 || .769 || .3 || .8 || .4 || .1 || 2.1
###@@@KEYEND@@@###

Notes

Price is the first player to enter the NBA directly from Utah Valley State College. Travis Hansen is the only other former UVSC player to enter the NBA; Hansen finished his collegiate career at BYU and was drafted by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of the 2003 NBA Draft .Video of Price's dunk over Carlos Boozer is widely seen on the YouTube website.

External links

* [http://www.nba.com/playerfile/ronnie_price/index.html NBA.com player profile]
* [http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/players/profile?statsId=3990 ESPN.com player profile]