Wesley Joel Matthews Jr.
Early life
Matthews was born in San Antonio, Texas to
Wes Matthews, a former NBA point guard and two-time NBA champion with the 1987 and 1988 Los Angeles Lakers, and Pam Moore, an All-American runner and basketball player. Matthews starred on the James Madison Memorial High School basketball and soccer teams.
He was named Wisconsin Mr. Basketball in 2005.
College career
Matthews chose to attend Marquette University despite being pressured to play for the University of WisconsinβMadison like his father.
Wesley was the biggest of the "three amigos", the three guards in the starting lineup for Marquette. This trio, Dominic James, Jerel McNeal, and Matthews, started nearly every game together from their first year onwards. With the lack of height in the 2008β09 season at Marquette, Matthews learned to play against bigger opponents. He grabbed 13 rebounds in a Marquette 48-point win over Division II opponent Lewis Flyers on December 28, 2005.
In a game against the Tennessee Volunteers on December 16, 2008, Matthews scored a career-high
Professional basketball career
Utah Jazz (2009β2010)
After completing four years at Marquette, Matthews entered the 2009 NBA draft, but went undrafted. He joined the Utah Jazz for the Orlando Summer League and the Sacramento Kings for the Las Vegas Summer League. In September 2009, he signed a one-year deal with the Jazz. In February 2010, after the team's trade of
Ronnie Brewer, head coach
Jerry Sloan made Matthews the team's starting shooting guard. The following month, on March 14, Matthews scored a then-career-high 29 points, including six made three-point shots, in a 119β111 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.
On June 29, 2010, the Jazz extended Matthews the league-specified qualifying offer, thereby making him a restricted free agent and giving the Jazz the opportunity to match any other free agent offer.
Portland Trail Blazers (2010β2015)
On July 10, 2010, the Trail Blazers signed Matthews to a five-year, $34 million offer sheet.
On July 21, 2010, following the Jazz's decision not to match the Trail Blazers' offer sheet, Matthews officially signed the five-year, $34 million contract.
In his first season with Portland, Matthews averaged 15.9 points per game, and his three-point shot improved from 38 percent to 41 percent. After Brandon Roy began missing time due to knee problems, Matthews gained a spot in the Blazers' starting lineup.
The durable Matthews played in 250 consecutive NBA games before being forced to sit out of a game on December 10, 2012, due to an injury to his left hip.[Joe Freeman, "Wesley Matthews' Iron Man Streak Will End Tonight When Blazers Host Toronto", The Oregonian, December 10, 2012.] Matthews' ability and willingness to play through minor injuries and pain earned him the nickname "Iron Man", an appellation used by Trail Blazers fans, television and radio commentators, and arena public address announcers alike.[Dane Carbaugh, "Most Known Unknown: Wesley Matthews and the Portland Trail Blazers", The Sporting News, October 30, 2014.]
On November 23, 2013, in a game against the Golden State Warriors, Matthews was involved in an altercation and was ejected along with teammate, Mo Williams. He scored 23 points in 25 minutes of action before leaving the game. On November 25 it was announced that he was fined $20,000.
On January 17, 2015, Matthews became the Trail Blazers all-time career leader in three-point field goals made, surpassing Terry Porter's franchise record of 773.
Dallas Mavericks (2015β2019)
On July 9, 2015, Matthews signed a four-year, $70 million deal with the
Dallas Mavericks.
On December 6, 2015, he scored 28 of his season-high 36 points in the second half of the Mavericks' 116β104 win over the Washington Wizards. He hit 10 three-pointers in the game, with eight of them coming in the second half.
On November 30, 2016, Matthews scored a season-high 26 points in a 94β87 loss to the San Antonio Spurs.
On November 18, 2017, Matthews scored a season-high 22 points in a 111β79 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
In January 2019, Matthews became the sixth player in Mavericks history to make 600 3-pointers,
New York Knicks (2019)
On January 31, 2019, Matthews was traded to the New York Knicks in a multiplayer trade.
On February 7, Matthews was waived by the Knicks after appearing in just two games for the team.
Indiana Pacers (2019)
On February 10, 2019, Matthews signed with the
Indiana Pacers.
On February 22, Matthews made 6 three-pointers and finished with 24 points, to lead the Pacers in a comeback win over the New Orleans Pelicans.
Milwaukee Bucks (2019β2020)
On July 12, 2019, Matthews signed with the
Milwaukee Bucks.
On November 25, 2019, Matthews scored 19 points and grabbed 4 rebounds while starting in place of injured All-Star Khris Middleton in a game against the Utah Jazz.
Los Angeles Lakers (2020β2021)
On November 22, 2020, Matthews signed with the Los Angeles Lakers.
He appeared in 58 games for the Lakers, averaging only 4.8 points and a career-worst 33% 3-point shot percentage.
Return to Milwaukee (2021β2023)
On December 3, 2021, Matthews was signed by the
Milwaukee Bucks.
During Milwaukee's Christmas Day game, Matthews scored just 9 points, but gave the Bucks the lead by making a 3-point shot with 30 seconds left to help complete a 19-point come back, in a 117β113 win over the
Boston Celtics.
Matthews was inserted into the starting lineup by
Mike Budenholzer towards the end of the regular season to provide a defensive presence alongside All-Defensive guard
Jrue Holiday.
On July 6, 2022, Matthews re-signed with the Bucks.
Atlanta Hawks (2023β2024)
On July 22, 2023, Matthews signed with the
Atlanta Hawks.
Career statistics
NBA
Regular season
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Utah
| style="background:#cfecec;"|
82* || 48 || 24.7 ||
.483|| .382 || .829 || 2.3 || 1.5 || .8 || .2 || 9.4
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Portland
|
82 || 69 || 33.6 || .449 ||
.407 || .844 || 3.1 || 2.0 || 1.2 || .1 || 15.9
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Portland
| style="background:#cfecec;"| 66* || 53 || 33.8 || .412 || .383 || .860 || 3.4 || 1.7 ||
1.5 || .2 || 13.7
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Portland
| 69 || 69 ||
34.8 || .436 || .398 || .797 || 2.8 || 2.5 || 1.3 || .3 || 14.8
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Portland
|
82 || style="background:#cfecec;"|
82* || 34.0 || .441 || .393 || .837 || 3.5 || 2.4 || 1.3 || .3 ||
16.4
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Portland
| 60 || 60 || 33.7 || .448 || .389 || .752 ||
3.7 || 2.3 || 1.3 || .2 || 15.9
|-
| align="left" |
| align="left" | Dallas
| 78 || 78 || 33.9 || .388 || .360 ||
.863 || 3.1 || 1.9 || 1.0 || .2 || 12.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Dallas
| 73 || 73 || 34.2 || .393 || .363 || .816 || 3.5 ||
2.9 || 1.1 || .2 || 13.5
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Dallas
| 63 || 63 || 33.8 || .406 || .381 || .822 || 3.1 || 2.7 || 1.2 || .3 || 12.7
|-
| style="text-align:left;" rowspan=3|
| style="text-align:left;"| Dallas
| 44 || 44 || 29.8 || .414 || .380 || .791 || 2.3 || 2.3 || .8 || .3 || 13.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| New York
| 2 || 1 || 26.9 || .211 || .200 || .800 || 1.5 || 2.5 || .5 || .5 || 7.0
|-
| style="text-align:left;"| Indiana
| 23 || 23 || 31.5 || .386 || .369 || .854 || 2.8 || 2.4 || .9 || .2 || 10.9
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Milwaukee
| 67 || 67 || 24.4 || .396 || .364 || .765 || 2.5 || 1.4 || .6 || .1 || 7.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers
| 58 || 10 || 19.5 || .353 || .335 || .854 || 1.6 || .9 || .7 || .3 || 4.8
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Milwaukee
| 49 || 14 || 20.5 || .395 || .338 || .786 || 1.9 || .7 || .5 || .2 || 5.1
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Milwaukee
| 52 || 0 || 15.8 || .363 || .315 || .857 || 2.2 || .7 || .4 || .3 || 3.4
|-
| style="text-align:left;"|
| style="text-align:left;"| Atlanta
| 36 || 3 || 11.5 || .351 || .348 || .750 || 1.5 || .6 || .4 || .3 || 3.1
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" | Career
| 986 || 757 || 29.0 || .419 || .375 || .823 || 2.8 || 1.9 || .9 || .2 || 11.4
Playoffs
|-
| align="left" | 2010
| align="left" | Utah
| 10 || 10 || 37.1 || .386 || .357 || .813 ||
4.4 || 1.7 ||
1.8 ||
.5 || 13.2
|-
| align="left" | 2011
| align="left" | Portland
| 6 || 6 || 33.7 ||
.474 || .381 || .842 || 1.2 || 1.0 || .7 || .2 || 13.0
|-
| align="left" | 2014
| align="left" | Portland
| 11 || 11 ||
38.7 || .412 || .324 || .813 || 3.8 || 1.3 || 1.3 ||
.5 ||
14.5
|-
| align="left" | 2016
| align="left" | Dallas
| 5 || 5 || 34.6 || .333 || .286 || .789 || 3.6 || 1.2 || 1.2 || .0 || 13.0
|-
| align="left" | 2019
| align="left" | Indiana
| 4 || 4 || 29.8 || .300 || .333 ||
1.000 || 2.5 ||
2.0 || .8 || .3 || 7.0
|-
| align="left" | 2020
| align="left" | Milwaukee
| 10 || 10 || 24.6 || .421 || .395 || .700 || 1.8 || .9 || .9 || .4 || 7.2
|-
| align="left" | 2021
| align="left" | L.A. Lakers
| 6 || 1 || 18.3 || .303 || .280 ||
1.000 || 1.7 || .3 || .3 || .0 || 5.5
|-
| align="left" | 2022
| align="left" | Milwaukee
|
12 ||
12 || 28.7 || .391 || .400 || .667 || 3.1 || 1.2 || .8 || .3 || 6.2
|-
| align="left" | 2023
| align="left" | Milwaukee
| 2 || 0 || 20.6 || .444 ||
.571 || || 1.5 || .5 || 1.0 ||
.5 || 6.0
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" | Career
| 66 || 59 || 30.8 || .391 || .352 || .808 || 2.9 || 1.2 || 1.0 || .3 || 9.9
College
|-
| align="left" | 2005β06
| align="left" | Marquette
| 23 || 13 || 24.9 || .399 ||
.438 || .788 || 4.0 || 2.2 || 1.3 || .2 || 9.0
|-
| align="left" | 2006β07
| align="left" | Marquette
| 34 || 34 || 31.2 || .438 || .288 || .770 || 5.3 || 2.2 ||
1.4 || .1 || 12.6
|-
| align="left" | 2007β08
| align="left" | Marquette
|
35 ||
35 || 28.9 || .434 || .313 || .790 || 4.4 || 1.7 || 1.0 || .3 || 11.3
|-
| align="left" | 2008β09
| align="left" | Marquette
|
35 ||
35 ||
34.0 ||
.475 || .368 ||
.829 ||
5.7 ||
2.5 || 1.2 ||
.5 ||
18.3
|- class="sortbottom"
| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2" | Career
| 127 || 117 || 30.2 || .444 || .341 || .799 || 4.9 || 2.1 || 1.2 || .3 || 13.2
See also
-
List of National Basketball Association career 3-point scoring leaders
External links
