Jón Axel Guðmundsson

Jón Axel Guðmundsson (born October 27, 1996) is an Icelandic professional basketball player for Fraport Skyliners of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL). He played college basketball for the Davidson Wildcats of the Atlantic 10 Conference. He won two national championships with Grindavík in 2012 and 2013, and the Icelandic Basketball Cup in 2014.

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is patronymic, not a family name; this person is referred to by the given name Jón Axel.
Jón Axel Guðmundsson
Fraport Skyliners
PositionPoint guard
LeagueBasketball Bundesliga
Personal information
Born (1996-10-27) October 27, 1996
Grindavík, Iceland
NationalityIcelandic
Listed height195 cm (6 ft 5 in)
Listed weight90.5 kg (200 lb)
Career information
High schoolChurch Farm School
(Exton, Pennsylvania)
CollegeDavidson (2016–2020)
Playing career2011–present
Career history
2011–2016Grindavík
2020–presentSkyliners Frankfurt
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's basketball
Representing  Iceland
Games of the Small States of Europe
2017 San MarinoTeam

Playing career

Grindavík

After coming up through the junior ranks of Grindavík, Jón Axel played his first senior match with the club in 2011. He won the Icelandic championship with the club in 2012 and 2013 and the Icelandic Basketball Cup in 2014.[1]

Church Farm

Jón Axel started the 2014–2015 season with Church Farm School[2], averaging a team best 21 points per game before the christmas break.[3] In January 2015, he decided to leave the school and return to Grindavík.[4]

Return to Grindavík

In 12 regular season games with Grindavík during the 2014–2015 season, Jón Axel averaged 15.6 points and 6.4 assists per game. He had a rough first round series against eventual champions KR, going scoreless in game two and averaging only a 6.7 points in the three game sweep.[5]

During the 2015-2016 season, Jón Axel continued his improvement, averaging a career high 16.8 points and 8.0 rebounds, along with 5.2 assists per game.[6] He scored a career high 35 points against Keflavík on 8 February 2016.[7] In the playoffs, Grindavík faced KR again in the first round. Jón Axel posted a triple double in the first game, with 10 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assist but despite his performance, KR won 85-67.[8] KR blew out Grindavík in the next two games and completed another three game sweep for the second year in a row.[9] For the series, Jón Axel averaged 8.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 5.7 assists.[6]

College

Jón Axel joined Davidson College in 2016.[10] On December 26, 2016, he was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week.[11] On November 13, 2017, he was named the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Week.[12][13]

On March 11, 2018, Jón Axel won the Atlantic 10 Conference championship with Davidson[14] and helped the team advance to the 2018 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament.[15] He averaged 13.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game as a sophomore.[16]

Coming into his junior season. Jón Axel was named to the Preseason Third Team All-Atlantic 10.[17] On 17 November, 2018, Jón Axel scored 33 points in Davidson's 57-53 victory over Wichita State in the opening round of the Charleston Classic.[18][19] On 26 January 2019, Jón Axel scored 27 points, including two free throws with 5 seconds left,[20] in Davidson's 54-53 victory against Saint Louis.[21] On 22 February 2019, he posted a triple-double, 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists, in a 75-66 victory over Rhode Island. It was the first triple-double for a Davidson player since John Falconi had 17 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists in 1973.[22] On 25 February he was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Week after averaging 23.0 points, 9.0 rebounds and 7.5 assists during the week of 18-24 February.[23][24]

On 12 March 2019, Jón Axel was named the Atlantic 10 Player of the Year as well as being selected to the First-team All-Atlantic 10 after averaging 17.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game for the season.[25]

In April 2019, Jón Axel declared for the 2019 NBA draft.[26] In May 2019, he had workouts with the Sacramento Kings and the Utah Jazz.[27] On 27 May, he announced that he would withdraw from the draft and return to Davidson for the 2019–20 season.[28]

In December 2019, Jón Axel was named to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association watch list for the Oscar Robertson Trophy.[29]

In 2020 he became the first Division I men's player since 1993 to hit career marks of 1,500 points, 700 rebounds, 500 assists, 200 made 3-pointers and 150 steals.[30] At the close of the regular season, he was named to the Third Team All-Atlantic 10.[31]

With the 2019–20 season having been his final season of college eligibility, Jón Axel was automatically eligible for the 2020 NBA draft.[32]

Skyliners Frankfurt

On 15 July 2020, he signed with the Fraport Skyliners of the Basketball Bundesliga (BBL).[33]

National team career

In 2014, Jón Axel was named tournament MVP of U-18 Nordic Championship after averaging 29.3 points per game for the Icelandic U-18 team.[34] He helped Iceland's U20 team finish second in the 2016 FIBA Europe Under-20 Championship Division B. For his effort he was named to the All-Tournament team.[35]

Jón Axel played five games for the Icelandic men's national basketball team during the 2017 Games of the Small States of Europe. He did not fight for a spot on Iceland's EuroBasket 2017 team due to injuries.[36][37]

Personal life

Jón Axel is the son of Stefanía S. Jónsdóttir, a former member of the Icelandic women's national basketball team[38][39], and Guðmundur Bragason, a former professional basketball player and the highest capped player in the Icelandic men's national basketball team history.[37]

Awards, titles and accomplishments

Individual awards

College

National teams
  • U-18 Nordic Championship MVP: 2014
  • FIBA Europe U-20 Championship Division B All-Tournament Team: 2016

Titles

Iceland

College

References
  1. Kristján Jónsson (22 February 2014). "Guðmundur Braga réð syninum heilt". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  2. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (19 December 2014). "Jón Axel að standa sig vel í Bandaríkjunum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  3. Peter DiGiovanni (12 January 2015). "Church Farm School suffers big loss". Daily Local News. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  4. "Jón Axel og Ingvi snúa heim". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). 2 January 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  5. "Úrvalsdeild karla Domino´s deildin (2015 Tímabil) - Jón Axel Guðmundsson". kki.is (in Icelandic). Icelandic Basketball Federation. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  6. "Úrvalsdeild karla Domino´s deildin (2016 Tímabil) - Jón Axel Guðmundsson". kki.is (in Icelandic). Icelandic Basketball Federation. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  7. Sveinn Ólafur Magnússon (8 February 2016). "Umfjöllun og viðtöl: Keflavík - Grindavík 88-101 - Grindvíkingar bitu frá sér". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  8. Kristinn Páll Teitsson (17 March 2016). "Umfjöllun og viðtöl: KR - Grindavík 85-67 - Sannfærandi hjá meisturunum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  9. "KR áfram en Grindavík í sumarfrí". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). 23 March 2016. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  10. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (13 April 2016). "Jón Axel fer í sama skóla og Stephen Curry". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  11. "Jón Axel nýliði vikunnar". Víkurfréttir (in Icelandic). 27 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  12. "Jón Axel heiðraður". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 15 November 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  13. "Gudmundsson and Grady Earn A-10 Weekly Honors". WBTV. 13 November 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  14. Ástrós Ýr Eggertsdóttir (11 March 2018). "Jón Axel í úrslitakeppni bandaríska háskólaboltans". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  15. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (15 March 2018). "Menn eru að taka eftir Jóni Axel í marsfárinu - Einn af 10 bestu Evrópumönnunum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  16. Dionysis, Aravantinos (April 1, 2018). "Jon Gudmundsson: "I want to make it to the NBA"". EuroHoops.net. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  17. "Saint Louis Picked to Win A-10 Men's Basketball". Atlantic 10 Conference. Atlantic10.com. October 18, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  18. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (16 November 2018). "„Jonny Ice" stóð undir nafni í bandaríska háskólaboltanum í nótt". Vísir.is (in Icelandic).
  19. "Gudmundsson scores 33 points as Davidson rallies past Wichita State". The Charlotte Observer. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 17 November 2018.
  20. "Gudmundsson's late foul shots, 27 points lift Davidson to victory". The Charlotte Observer. 26 January 2019. Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  21. Anton Ingi Leifsson (26 January 2019). "Jón Axel skoraði helming stiga Davidson og tryggði þeim sigurinn". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 27 January 2019.
  22. "Gudmundsson's triple-double sparks Davidson to win". The Seattle Times. The Associated Press. 22 February 2019. Retrieved 23 February 2019.
  23. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (25 February 2019). "Jón Axel valinn besti leikmaður vikunnar í Atlantic 10". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  24. "Gundmundsson, Toppin Earn Atlantic 10 Player, Rookie of the Week Honors". atlantic10.com. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  25. Kristinn Páll Teitsson (12 March 2019). "Jón Axel valinn bestur í A-10 deildinni í vetur". Fréttablaðið (in Icelandic). Retrieved 12 March 2019.
  26. David Scott (17 April 2019). "Davidson's Jon Axel Gudmundsson, Kellan Grady to test NBA draft". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  27. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (24 May 2019). "„Good-mund-son" æfir með Utah Jazz í dag". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  28. Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (27 May 2019). "Jón Axel dregur sig út úr nýliðavalinu og snýr aftur til Davidson". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 27 May 2019.
  29. Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (6 December 2019). "Jón Axel tilnefndur til verðlauna sem Jordan, Abdul-Jabbar og Bird hafa fengið". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  30. "Iceland's 'basketball family' chasing dreams at US colleges". Fox News. 12 February 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2020.
  31. "Toppin Named Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, Grant Voted Coach of the Year". Atlantic 10 Conference. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  32. Davíð Eldur (31 March 2020). "Jón Axel í nýliðaval NBA deildarinnar". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 31 March 2020.
  33. "Fraport Skyliners announce Icelandic rookie Jon Axel Gudmundsson". Sportando. 15 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  34. "Jón Axel bestur á NM". Víkurfréttir (in Icelandic). 3 June 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  35. "Kári og Jón Axel báðir valdir í úrvalslið mótsins". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). 24 July 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  36. Óskar Ófeigur Jónsson (19 July 2017). "Jón Axel mun ekki berjast um sæti í Eurobasket-hópnum". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  37. "KKÍ | A landslið". kki.is. Retrieved 2017-04-03.
  38. "A-Landslið kvenna". kki.is (in Icelandic). Icelandic Basketball Federation. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
  39. "Grindvíkingar til umfjöllunar í St. Louis". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 18 April 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
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