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Blake Ahearn

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Blake Ahearn
Ahearn in 2007
Personal information
Born (1984-05-27) May 27, 1984 (age 40)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High schoolDe Smet Jesuit
(Creve Coeur, Missouri)
CollegeMissouri State (2003–2007)
NBA draft2007: undrafted
Playing career2007–2015
PositionPoint guard
Number6, 18, 2
Coaching career2015–present
Career history
As player:
2007–2008Dakota Wizards
2008Miami Heat
2008San Antonio Spurs
2008→Austin Toros
2008–2009Dakota Wizards
2009Estudiantes Madrid
2010Bakersfield Jam
2010–2011Erie BayHawks
2010Teramo Basket
2011–2012Reno Bighorns
2012Utah Jazz
2012–2013Dongguan Leopards
2013–2014Budivelnyk Kyiv
2015Capitanes de Arecibo
2015Santa Cruz Warriors
As coach:
2015–2016Clayton HS
2016–2017De Smet Jesuit HS
2017–2020Austin Spurs
2020–2024Memphis Grizzlies (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
As player:

As coach:

Stats at NBA.com Edit this at Wikidata
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Men's Basketball
Representing  United States
Pan American Games
Bronze medal – third place 2011 Guadalajara National team

Daniel Blake Ahearn (born May 27, 1984) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who was an assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for Missouri State.

High school career

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Ahearn attended De Smet Jesuit High School in St. Louis, Missouri.[1] He played three years of varsity. He averaged 17.7 points per game as a junior and 18.5 as a senior. He was an All-Metro Selection his junior and senior years and an All-State selection his junior year. In his junior year, he broke his hand in the divisional semifinal game. He was unable to play for the duration of his junior year. His team was state runner-up his junior year losing to Missouri powerhouse Vashon High School in the state championship game.[2]

College career

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Ahearn played collegiately for the Missouri State Bears from 2003 to 2007. He was poised to finish his career with four straight NCAA free-throw titles but failed, and finished with an accuracy of 92.5% during his senior year. He finished his college career as a 94.6% free throw shooter, 435 for 460, all-time best percentage.[3] He also holds a single-season record at 97.5%. He made 60 consecutive free-throws twice in his career (December 20, 2003, through February 14, 2004, and December 19, 2004, to February 26, 2005) which are school and Missouri Valley Conference records. He missed his final attempt against the San Diego State Aztecs in the NIT on March 24, 2007, his final college game. He holds the record for career three-pointers at Missouri State with 276 and was selected the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Freshman of the Year (2004), also being a two-time all-MVC first teamer (2006 and 2007).[3] He came within one game each season of making the NCAA tournament but failed to reach any. His team lost in double overtime to Northern Iowa in the MVC Tournament finals his freshman year and to Creighton in the MVC finals his sophomore year. His team was rated 21st in the RPI his junior year and 33rd his senior year, which included a win over #7 in the nation Wisconsin.

Professional career

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2007–08 season

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NBA D-League

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In the 2007–2008 season, Ahearn played with the NBA Development League's Dakota Wizards. He worked his way to the starting lineup, averaging 19 points, with a 96% free-throw percentage, shooting 49% from the field and 44% from 3-point range in 41 games.

NBA

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On March 21, 2008, Ahearn was signed to a 10-day contract by the NBA's Miami Heat, whose roster had been depleted by injuries.[4] On March 27, Ahearn scored a team-high 15 points in a loss to the Detroit Pistons.[5]

On April 10, Ahearn was named the Rookie of the Year of the D-League and All-NBA Development League Second Team.[6]

2008–09 season

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Despite posting a solid NBA preseason during which he averaged 8 points per game, Ahearn was cut by the Minnesota Timberwolves on October 23, 2008. After being waived by the Timberwolves he joined the Dakota Wizards. On November 16, Ahearn was signed by the San Antonio Spurs becoming the 2008–09 season's first D-League call-up.[3] Ahearn was in camp with the Wizards prior to signing with the Spurs.[3] On November 30, Ahearn was assigned to the Spurs' D-League affiliate Austin Toros.[7]

The Spurs waived Ahearn on December 15, 2008, and he re-joined the Dakota Wizards. He was selected to play in the D-League All-Star Game on February 14, 2009, where he was awarded MVP alongside Courtney Sims.[8]

2009–10 season

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The following season Ahearn signed a contract with Estudiantes Madrid in Spain, until he moved back and played for the Bakersfield Jam and for the Erie BayHawks in the NBA Development League.

2010–11 season

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On August 1, Ahearn signed a contract with the Italian team Teramo Basket but he was waived after a few games.

On December 29, he re-signed with the Erie BayHawks.

2011–12 season

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Blake started the 2011–12 season participating for the United States Basketball Team in the 2011 Pan American Games. The United States won the bronze medal with a win over the Dominican Republic in the Medal Rounds. Blake was second on the team in scoring, averaging 10 points per game, including a team-high 21 points vs Brazil in round robin play.[9]

After the games, Blake signed with the Erie Bayhawks in the NBA Development League. On draft day Blake was traded to the Reno Bighorns.[10]

Blake attended training camp with the Los Angeles Clippers during the first part of the D-League season. He then returned to the Bighorns.

During the 2011–12 season Blake led the NBA-D League in scoring at 23.8 points per game[11] He was selected to play in the D-League All-Star Game and had 21 points and 8 assists during the game.[citation needed] Blake also set the NBA and NBA D-League mark of 110 consecutive free throws during his season in Reno,[12] which still stands as the second-best streak in professional Basketball, only behind John Wooden at 134.[13] Blake set the all-time career points record for the NBA Development league in 2012.[14]

On April 10, the Utah Jazz signed Blake Ahearn to a 10-day contract.[12] On April 20, he was signed for the remainder of the season.[15]

2012–13 season

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In September 2012, Ahearn signed with the Indiana Pacers of the NBA.[16] On October 22, 2012, Ahearn was waived by the Indiana Pacers.[17]

In December 2012, he signed with the Dongguan Leopards of the CBA.[18]

2013–14 season

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On August 12, 2013, Ahearn signed with Budivelnyk Kyiv.[19]

2014–15 season

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On December 18, 2014, Ahearn signed with Capitanes de Arecibo for the 2015 BSN season.[20] However, he left the club in February 2015 after appearing in just three games.

On March 11, 2015, he was acquired by the Santa Cruz Warriors.[21] On April 26, he won the D-League championship with the Warriors.[22]

Coaching career

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In 2015, Ahearn became head boys' coach at Clayton High School in Clayton, Missouri. Following a 7–17 season there he was hired to coach his alma mater, De Smet Jesuit.[23]

On August 1, 2017, Ahearn was named the head coach of the Austin Spurs of the NBA G League.[24]

On June 20, 2020, the Memphis Grizzlies announced that they had hired Ahearn as assistant coach.[25]

Career statistics

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Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
 †  Won an NBA championship  *  Led the league  ‡  NBA record

NBA

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2007–08 Miami 12 0 14.8 .263 .294 .968 1.6 1.6 .5 .0 5.8
2008–09 San Antonio 3 0 6.3 .333 .500 1.000 .3 .7 .3 .0 2.7
2011–12 Utah 4 0 7.5 .286 .222 .000 .5 .3 .0 .0 2.5
Career 19 0 11.9 .273 .298 .970 1.2 1.2 .4 .0 4.6

Playoffs

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2012 Utah 3 0 2.7 .667 1.000 .000 .0 .7 .0 .0 1.7
Career 3 0 2.7 .667 1.000 .000 .0 .7 .0 .0 1.7

NBA D-League

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Regular season

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Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2007–08 Dakota 41 15 29.4 .486 .439 .960* 2.0 3.5 .7 .0 19.0
2008–09 Austin 6 6 34.3 .444 .531 .914* 2.3 6.0 .8 .0 18.8
2008–09 Dakota 41 41 38.7 .445 .420 .957* 2.4 5.0 .7 .0 22.7
2009–10 Bakersfield 17 10 32.8 .367 .277 .932* 2.1 4.1 1.2 .1 14.3
2009–10 Erie 13 13 45.1 .433 .440 .961* 4.5 6.7 1.2 .3 25.7
2010–11 Erie 31 25 33.7 .406 .354 .962* 2.7 5.8 1.1 .2 16.9
2011–12 Reno 37 37 37.5 .469 .409 .962* 3.5 5.1 1.1 .1 23.8
2014–15† Santa Cruz 9 0 21.2 .397 .375 .944 1.9 2.7 .7 .0 9.6
Career 195 147 34.7 .444 .404 .956‡ 2.5 4.8 .9 .1 19.9

Domestic leagues statistics

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Season Team League GP MPG FG% 3PT FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2009–10 CB Estudiantes Liga ACB 13 25.1 .294 .414 .983 1.1 .8 .7 .1 14.2
2010–11 Teramo Basket Lega A 6 24.5 .286 .345 1.000 1.7 1.3 .5 .0 9.3
2012–13 Dongguan Leopards CBA 17 28.6 .468 .333 .905 3.1 3.4 .9 .0 23.0
2013–14 BC Budivelnyk SuperLeague 20 24.8 .449 .383 .853 1.7 3.2 .7 .2 11.6

International statistics

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Season Team League GP MPG FG% 3PT FG% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 BC Budivelnyk Euroleague 9 20.8 .378 .361 .905 1.6 1.7 .0 .1 9.6
EuroCup 10 23.7 .525 .457 .978 1.5 2.6 .6 .0 15.0
2014–15 Capitanes de Arecibo Americas League 3 25.0 .125 .316 .750 2.0 2.3 1.0 .0 8.7

Personal life

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Ahearn and his wife had their first child in 2012.[26]

References

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  1. ^ Brase, Justin (December 9, 2003). "Ahearn strives for big goals". The Standard. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
  2. ^ https://www.desmet.org/s/109/desmet.aspx?sid=109&gid=1&pgid=364&cid=1859&ecid=1859&crid=0&calpgid=408&calcid=4528 Alum Blake Ahearn Signs With Miami Heat [permanent dead link‍]
  3. ^ a b c d Spurs Sign Blake Ahearn
  4. ^ Butler logs first 20-point game since return as Wiz crush hapless Heat
  5. ^ Pistons rally past Heat and clinch division title
  6. ^ Ahearn Named NBDL Rookie of the Year Archived September 15, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ San Antonio’s Blake Ahearn Assigned To Austin Toros Archived 2008-12-26 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "All-Star History: NBA D-League All-Star Game". NBA.com. Retrieved February 8, 2017.
  9. ^ "2011 Pan-Am Basketball: Blake Ahearn Leads USA to Victory over Brazil". October 27, 2011.
  10. ^ "Erie BayHawks trade Ahearn, McCullough to Reno | GoErie.com/Erie Times-News". www.goerie.com. Archived from the original on July 25, 2014. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  11. ^ "Utah Jazz to Sign Blake Ahearn". April 9, 2012.
  12. ^ a b "Jazz to Sign Blake Ahearn to a 10-Day Contract". NBA.com.
  13. ^ "In Memory of John Wooden". stevelaube.com. October 7, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
  14. ^ "Ahearn Becomes NBA Development League's All-Time Leading Scorer". NBA.com. January 21, 2012. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
  15. ^ "Jazz Signs Blake Ahearn for the Remainder of the Season". NBA.com.
  16. ^ Pacers Sign Three Free Agents
  17. ^ "Pacers Exercise Option on George, Release Three Players". NBA.com.
  18. ^ Blake Ahearn jugará junto con Haislip en los DongGuan Leopards de China Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine (in Spanish)
  19. ^ "BUDIVELNIK KIEV lands scorer Ahearn". Euroleague.net. Retrieved August 12, 2013.
  20. ^ Blake Ahearn signs with Capitanes de Arecibo
  21. ^ Santa Cruz Warriors Acquire Blake Ahearn
  22. ^ "Title Wave: Santa Cruz Wins NBA D-League Championship". NBA.com. April 26, 2015. Archived from the original on April 29, 2015. Retrieved April 26, 2015.
  23. ^ Thornton, Larry (July 14, 2014). "Former Spartan Blake Ahearn hired as De Smet's new coach". ksdk.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  24. ^ "Blake Ahearn Named Head Coach of the Austin Spurs". NBA.com. August 1, 2017. Archived from the original on August 2, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  25. ^ "Grizzlies Add Assistant Coach". NBA.com. June 20, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
  26. ^ Luhm, Steve (April 11, 2012). "Oh, baby! New dad Blake Ahearn arrives to help short-handed Utah Jazz". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved November 29, 2023.
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