π Markieff Morris Wins NBA Title
LAWRENCE, Kan. β Former Kansas forward Markieff Morris became the 13th Jayhawk to win an NBA title when the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Miami Heat in the 2020 NBA Finals, 4-2, winning the title on Sunday.
Morris joined the Lakers in a trade from the Detroit Pistons on Feb. 23, 2020, before making an immediate impact, playing 44 games for Detroit and eight with the Lakers averaging 10.1 points for the season in 52 contests prior to the pandemic. Including the return of play in the NBA bubble, Morris has played in 14 games with the Lakers, averaging 5.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in the regular season. In the 2020 playoffs he has played in 19 games and averaged 6.4 points and 3.2 rebounds.
A Philadelphia native, Morris was the No. 13 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft and is in his ninth season in the league. He has played 637 games in that span. Morris played three seasons at Kansas from 2009-11 and was an All-Big 12 Second Team honoree in 2011.
With the addition of Morris, there have been 13 Jayhawks who have won 18 NBA titles during their professional careers. Before Morris, Sasha Kaun was the most recent winning the 2016 title with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Four Jayhawks β Clyde Lovellette, Mario Chalmers, Brandon Rush and Kaun β have won both NCAA and NBA titles with the last three playing under Bill Self while at Kansas.
KU legends Wilt Chamberlain (1972), Jo Jo White (1976) and Paul Pierce (2008) were Jayhawks who were also named NBA Finals Most Valuable Players.
KU NBA Champions | |
---|---|
Clyde Lovellette (1950-52 at KU) | 1954 - Minneapolis Lakers 1963, 1964 - Boston Celtics |
Maurice King (1955-57 at KU) | 1960 - Boston Celtics |
Wilt Chamberlain (1957-58 at KU) | 1967 - Philadelphia 76ers *1972 - Los Angeles Lakers |
Jo Jo White (1966-69 at KU) | 1974, 1976* - Boston Celtics |
Bill Bridges (1959-61 at KU) | 1975 - Golden State Warriors |
Wayne Simien (2002-05 at KU) | 2006 - Miami Heat |
Jacque Vaughn (1994-97 at KU) | 2007 - San Antonio Spurs |
Paul Pierce (1996-98 at KU) | 2008* - Boston Celtics |
Scot Pollard (1994-97 at KU) | 2008 - Boston Celtics |
Mario Chalmers (2006-08 at KU) | 2012, 2013 - Miami Heat |
Brandon Rush (2006-08 at KU) | 2015 - Golden State Warriors |
Sasha Kaun (2005-08 at KU) | 2016 - Cleveland Cavaliers |
Markieff Morris (2008-11 at KU) | 2020 - Los Angeles Lakers |