Trevor Ariza

Trevor Anthony Ariza (born June 30, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He won an NBA championship with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2009. He played college basketball for one season with the UCLA Bruins before being selected as the 43rd pick of the 2004 NBA draft by the New York Knicks. He also previously played for the Orlando Magic, Houston Rockets, New Orleans Hornets, Washington Wizards, Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings.

Trevor Ariza

Ariza with the Wizards in March 2013
No. 8 – Portland Trail Blazers
Position	Small forward
League	NBA
Personal information
Born	(1985-06-30) June 30, 1985 Miami, Florida
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight	223 lb (101 kg)
Career information
High school	Westchester (Los Angeles, California)
College	UCLA (2003–2004)
NBA draft	2004 / Round: 2 / Pick: 43rd overall
Selected by the New York Knicks
Playing career	2004–present
Career history
2004–2006	New York Knicks
2006–2007	Orlando Magic
2007–2009	Los Angeles Lakers
2009–2010	Houston Rockets
2010–2012	New Orleans Hornets
2012–2014	Washington Wizards
2014–2018	Houston Rockets
2018	Phoenix Suns
2018–2019	Washington Wizards
2019–2020	Sacramento Kings
2020–present	Portland Trail Blazers
Career highlights and awards
NBA champion (2009) Pac-10 All-Freshman Team (2004) Second-team Parade All-American (2003) California Mr. Basketball (2003)
Stats at NBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com

High school and college career

Ariza attended Westchester High School in Los Angeles, where as a junior in 2001–02, he combined with teammates and fellow future NBA players Hassan Adams, Brandon Heath, and Bobby Brown to lead the Comets to the California State championship. Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Ariza was listed as the No. 5 power forward and the No. 18 player in the nation in 2003.[1]

As a freshman at UCLA in 2003–04, Ariza played in 25 games (23 starts) and averaged 11.6 points, 6.5 rebounds and a team-high 1.7 steals. He subsequently earned All-Pac 10 Freshman Team honors. He declared for the NBA Draft following his freshman campaign at UCLA.[2]

Professional career

New York Knicks (2004–2006)

Ariza was selected by the New York Knicks in the second round (43rd overall) of the 2004 NBA draft. He played in 80 games during his rookie campaign with New York and averaged 5.9 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game. At the time, he became the youngest player to ever wear a Knicks uniform (19 years, four months and four days old). His 80 games and 1,382 minutes were the most played by a Knicks rookie since Greg Anthony in 1991–92 (82 games played).[2]

Orlando Magic (2006–2007)

In February 2006, Ariza was traded along with Penny Hardaway to the Orlando Magic in exchange for Steve Francis. After the trade, he played in 21 games and averaged 4.7 points per game. In the 2006–07 season he played in 57 games and started in 7, averaging a career high 8.9 points and 4.4 rebounds per game.

Los Angeles Lakers (2007–2009)

In November 2007, Ariza was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Brian Cook and Maurice Evans.[3] He fractured a bone in his right foot in January 2008, but made his return in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals against the San Antonio Spurs in late May, scoring a basket within his first minute of play. The Lakers went on to defeat the Spurs in 5 games and advance to the 2008 NBA Finals, but lost to the Boston Celtics in 6 games. In the 2008–09 season, he played in all 82 games, starting 20. Ariza was ejected during a game against Portland on March 9, 2009, following a flagrant foul on Rudy Fernández.[4] On March 15, 2009 versus the Dallas Mavericks, Ariza scored a career-high 26 points along with 3 steals, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists.[5] After becoming a starter, he began to show more ability on defense.[6]

2009 Playoffs

In the playoffs, Ariza scored a playoff career-high 21 points in Game 1 of the first round against Utah Jazz.[7] In the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets, Ariza stole an inbound pass from Chauncey Billups in Game 1 to help Lakers beat the Nuggets. In Game 3, the Lakers led by two points with 37.1 seconds remaining when Ariza stole Kenyon Martin's pass to Carmelo Anthony near midcourt to help Lakers take a 2-1 lead.[8] The Lakers eventually won the series 4–2, sending them to the NBA Finals against the Orlando Magic. In Game 4 of the Finals, Ariza, who was 0-for-6 in the first half, scored 13 in the third quarter to help the Lakers win in overtime and finished the game with nine rebounds and three 3-pointers.[9] The Lakers went on to win their 15th NBA title in five games, 4-1. Ariza averaged a career-high 11.3 points and 4.2 rebounds and shot 50% from three-point range in the playoffs.

Houston Rockets (2009–2010)

On July 3, 2009, Ariza reached an agreement with the Houston Rockets worth $33 million over five years.[10] Ariza was signed using the Disabled Player Exception the Rockets were granted for injured center Yao Ming.[11] On October 31, 2009, against the Portland Trail Blazers, Ariza scored a career high 33 points in a 111-107 Rockets win. On December 13, 2009, Ariza was ejected after he attempted to punch DeMar DeRozan of the Toronto Raptors after having the ball stolen by him. He was subsequently suspended for one game.[12] On April 14, 2010, in the Rockets' final game of the season, Ariza recorded his first career triple-double, tallying 26 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists.

New Orleans Hornets (2010–2012)

On August 11, 2010, Ariza was traded to the New Orleans Hornets as part of a four-team, five-player trade, with Darren Collison and James Posey going to the Indiana Pacers, Troy Murphy to the New Jersey Nets, and Courtney Lee to Houston.[13] During the 2011 NBA playoffs, Ariza logged career highs in minutes per game (40.2), points per game (15.5) rebounds (6.5) and assists (3.3). The Hornets lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in 6 games in the first round.

Washington Wizards (2012–2014)

On June 20, 2012, Ariza and Emeka Okafor were traded to the Washington Wizards for Rashard Lewis and a draft pick to the New Orleans Hornets.[14]

On February 12, 2014, Ariza recorded a career-high 10 made three-pointers to score a season-high 32 points, as well as 11 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals, in a 113–112 loss to the Houston Rockets.[15]

On March 1, 2014, Ariza recorded a career-high 40 points, including eight 3-pointers, in a 122–103 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.[16]

On April 27, 2014, Ariza set a playoff career-high 30 points against the Chicago Bulls in Game 4 of their 2014 NBA Playoffs first-round match-up, which the Wizards won 98–89. The team went on to lose to the Indiana Pacers in six games in the conference semifinals.

Second stint with Houston (2014–2018)

On July 15, 2014, Ariza was re-acquired by the Houston Rockets in a three-team sign-and-trade deal that also involved the New Orleans Pelicans, which sent Omer Asik and Omri Casspi to the Pelicans, Melvin Ely to the Wizards, and Ariza, along with Alonzo Gee and Scotty Hopson, to the Rockets.[17] On February 6, 2015, he tied a season-high with 24 points in a 117–111 wina's streak of 172 straight games played.[18] On January 24, 2016, he scored a season-high 29 points and made a season-high six three-pointers in a 115–104 win over the Dallas Mavericks.[19] He topped that mark the following night, scoring 31 points in a 112–111 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.[20] On February 27, he made two three-pointers against the San Antonio Spurs to extend his streak with at least one three-pointer to 29 games, the longest streak by a Rockets player since 39 in a row by Aaron Brooks in the 2009–10 season.[21] The streak ended at 30 after shooting 0-of-8 from three-point range against the New Orleans Pelicans on March 2.[22]

In Game 7 of the 2018 Western Conference Finals, Ariza missed all 9 of his 3-point attempts, and the Rockets set an NBA playoff record for most consecutive 3-point attempts missed with 27.[23][24]

Phoenix Suns (2018)

On July 6, 2018, Ariza signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Phoenix Suns.[25][26] In his debut for the Suns in their season opener on October 17, 2018, Ariza recorded 21 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a 121–100 win over the Dallas Mavericks.[27]

Second stint with Washington (2018–2019)

On December 17, 2018, Ariza was traded to the Washington Wizards for Austin Rivers and Kelly Oubre Jr.[28] On January 13, 2019, he narrowly missed his second career triple-double, recording 23 points, 10 assists and nine rebounds in a 140–138 double-overtime loss to the Toronto Raptors.[29]

Sacramento Kings (2019–2020)

On July 7, 2019, Ariza inked a two-year deal worth $25 million with the Sacramento Kings.[30]

Portland Trail Blazers (2020–present)

On January 20, 2020, Ariza was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers along with Wenyen Gabriel and Caleb Swanigan in exchange for Kent Bazemore, Anthony Tolliver. [31]

On June 22, 2020, Ariza announced he would not be returning to the NBA season's restart in Orlando. Instead, he is committing to a one-month visitation window with his young son, sources told ESPN.[32]

Personal life

On March 18, 1996, Ariza's youngest brother, Tajh Ariza, died after falling out of a hotel room window in Caracas, Venezuela. His first son is named after his late brother.[33]

Ariza's stepfather, Kenny McClary, played at the University of Florida in the mid to late 1980s, and professionally with the Sydney Kings in Australia.

Ariza is of Turks & Caicos Islands and Dominican descent through his grandfather Osvaldo Ariza (a Turks and Caicos Islander of Dominican descent), and his parents, Lolita Ariza and Trevor Saunders[34] of Grand Turk.[35] Ariza once considered changing his citizenship to play for the Dominican Republic national basketball team.[36] However, he later accepted an invitation to the Team USA training camp.

NBA career statistics

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

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2004–05	New York	80	12	17.3	.442	.231	.695	3.0	1.1	.9	.2	5.9
2005–06	New York	36	10	19.7	.418	.333	.545	3.8	1.3	1.2	.3	4.6
2005–06	Orlando	21	0	13.8	.400	.000	.700	3.9	.7	.7	.1	4.7
2006–07	Orlando	57	7	22.4	.539	.000	.620	4.4	1.1	1.0	.3	8.9
2007–08	Orlando	11	0	10.5	.452	.000	.533	2.2	.7	.5	.3	3.3
2007–08	L.A. Lakers	24	3	18.0	.524	.333	.683	3.5	1.5	1.1	.3	6.5
2008–09†	L.A. Lakers	82	20	24.4	.460	.319	.710	4.3	1.8	1.7	.3	8.9
2009–10	Houston	72	71	36.5	.394	.334	.649	5.6	3.8	1.8	.6	14.9
2010–11	New Orleans	75	75	34.7	.398	.303	.701	5.4	2.2	1.6	.4	11.0
2011–12	New Orleans	41	41	32.9	.417	.333	.775	5.2	3.3	1.7	.6	10.8
2012–13	Washington	56	15	26.3	.417	.364	.821	4.8	2.0	1.3	.4	9.5
2013–14	Washington	77	77	35.4	.456	.407	.772	6.2	2.5	1.6	.3	14.4
2014–15	Houston	82	82	35.7	.402	.350	.853	5.6	2.5	1.9	.3	12.8
2015–16	Houston	81	81	35.3	.416	.371	.783	4.5	2.3	2.0	.3	12.7
2016–17	Houston	80	80	34.7	.409	.344	.738	5.7	2.2	1.8	.3	11.7
2017–18	Houston	67	67	33.9	.412	.368	.854	4.4	1.6	1.5	.2	11.7
2018–19	Phoenix	26	26	34.0	.379	.360	.837	5.6	3.3	1.5	.3	9.9
2018–19	Washington	43	43	34.1	.409	.322	.777	5.3	3.8	1.2	.3	14.1
2019–20	Sacramento	32	0	24.7	.388	.352	.778	4.6	1.6	1.1	.2	6.0
2019–20	Portland	21	21	33.4	.491	.400	.872	4.8	2.0	1.6	.4	11.0
Career		1064	731	29.7	.423	.352	.732	4.8	2.2	1.5	.3	10.5

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
2007	Orlando	4	0	11.8	.313	.000	.250	2.3	1.3	.2	0	2.8
2008	L.A. Lakers	8	0	5.6	.583	.250	.500	1.4	.1	.1	.1	2.1
2009†	L.A. Lakers	23	23	31.4	.497	.476	.563	4.2	2.3	1.6	.4	11.3
2011	New Orleans	6	6	40.2	.412	.333	.727	6.5	3.3	1.3	.5	15.5
2014	Washington	11	11	37.0	.481	.446	.778	8.9	1.7	1.5	.4	13.6
2015	Houston	17	17	38.5	.426	.375	.905	6.4	2.6	1.8	.1	13.2
2016	Houston	5	5	36.2	.255	.143	.750	4.2	.8	2.6	.2	6.6
2017	Houston	11	11	37.5	.423	.377	.929	5.1	2.1	1.3	.2	10.7
2018	Houston	17	17	34.2	.360	.286	.742	3.8	1.3	1.1	.1	8.8
Career		102	90	32.3	.426	.367	.722	5.0	1.9	1.4	.2	10.3

See also

• List of National Basketball Association career steals leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career 3-point scoring leaders

References

1. Trevor Ariza – Rivals.com
2. Trevor Ariza stats, details, videos, and news
3. Magic acquire Cook, Evans from L.A. Lakers Retrieved November 20, 2007
4. Lakers crash and burn in Portland Retrieved March 9, 2009
5. http://www.nba.com/games/20090315/DALLAL/gameinfo.html?ls=gt1hp0020800991
6. Frank Isola (June 7, 2009). "Former Knick Trevor Ariza is far from 'delusional' in his role with Lakers" Daily News (New York) Retrieved on 2009-06-19.
7. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/boxscore?gameId=290419013
8. J.A. Adande (May 24, 2009)."Nuggets hit by inbound train again" ESPN Retrieved on June 15, 2009.
9. Jeff Zillgitt (June 12, 2009)."Fisher, Ariza dazzle Magic in pivotal Game 4" USA Today Retrieved on June 15, 2009.
10. Lakers get Artest; Ariza agrees with Rockets
11. Rockets Receive Disabled Player Exception For Yao
12. ESPN news services (December 15, 2009). "NBA suspends Ariza for one game". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 25, 2016.
13. "Pacers get Collison from Hornets in 4-team trade". NBA.com. August 11, 2010. Archived from the original on May 30, 2011. Retrieved August 11, 2010.
14. Hornets trade Trevor Ariza, Emeka Okafor to Wizards for Rashard Lewis, 2nd-round pick
15. Notebook: Rockets 113, Wizards 112
16. Jasner, Andy (March 1, 2014). "Notebook: Wizards 122, Sixers 103". NBA.com. Retrieved March 2, 2014.
17. "Rockets Land Ariza & Valuable First Round Pick". NBA.com. July 15, 2014. Retrieved July 15, 2014.
18. Harden leads Rockets to lopsided 126-97 win over Lakers
19. Harden's triple-double leads Rockets over Mavericks 115-104
20. Harden and Ariza lead Rockets to 112-111 win over Pelicans
21. Leonard leads Spurs to 50th win, 104-94 over Rockets
22. Trevor Ariza 2015-16 Game Log
23. Warriors vs. Rockets - Box Score - May 29, 2018 - ESPN
24. MacMahon, Tim (May 29, 2018). "Eric Gordon: Rockets would be playing on Thursday with a healthy Chris Paul". ESPN.com.
25. "Suns Sign Trevor Ariza, 14-year veteran and NBA Champion". NBA.com. July 6, 2018. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
26. "Suns agree to one-year, $15 million deal with swingman Trevor Ariza". ESPN.com. July 1, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2018.
27. "Mavericks vs. Suns – Box Score". ESPN.com. October 17, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
28. "Wizards acquire Trevor Ariza". NBA.com. December 17, 2018. Retrieved December 17, 2018.
29. "Ibaka's 3-pointer helps Raptors survive Wizards in double OT". ESPN.com. January 13, 2019. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
30. https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2819492-trevor-ariza-kings-reportedly-agree-on-2-year-25m-contract-in-free-agency
31. "Trail Blazers Acquire Trevor Ariza, Wenyen Gabriel, and Caleb Swanigan from Sacramento". NBA.com. January 20, 2020. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
32. https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/29349415/sources-blazers-trevor-ariza-opting-participation-nba-orlando-restart
33. UCLA's Ariza moves from tragedy to prospect Retrieved June 9, 2006
34. "NBA Player Ariza visits relatives in TCI". Turks and Caicos Weekly News. 30 (26). July 2016. p. 45 – via Turks and Caicos Weekly News.
35. "NBA star Trevor Ariza fouls against TCI".
36. http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=4060004

External links

• Career statistics and player information from NBA.com, or Basketball-Reference.com
• Trevor Ariza is easy to miss. He shouldn't be.