Payton Willis

Payton Terrell Willis (born January 31, 1998) is an American basketball player for Pistoia Basket 2000 of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA). He played college basketball for the Vanderbilt Commodores, the Minnesota Golden Gophers of the Big Ten Conference, and the College of Charleston Cougars.

Payton Willis
Payton Willis (left) in maroon Minnesota jersey, on defense
Pistoia Basket 2000
PositionGuard
LeagueLBA
Personal information
Born (1998-01-31) January 31, 1998
Fayetteville, Arkansas
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight200 lb (91 kg)
Career information
High schoolFayetteville
(Fayetteville, Arkansas)
College
Playing career2022–present
Career history
2022–2023Hapoel Gilboa Galil
2023–presentPistoia 2000

Early life

He is the son of Curtis Willis and Christy Duggar, and his hometown is Fayetteville, Arkansas.[1][2][3][4] He is 6 feet 4 inches (193 cm) tall, and weighs 200 pounds (91 kg).[4]

Willis attended Fayetteville High School ('16).[4][5] In his sophomore season, he was named all-conference and all-state.[3] In his junior season, he averaged 15.9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 44.7% from three-point range.[3] He was again named all-conference and all-state.[3]

College career

In college Willis played basketball for the Vanderbilt Commodores, the Minnesota Golden Gophers of the Big Ten Conference, and the College of Charleston Cougars.[4]

He played for Vanderbilt in 2016–18.[4] Willis averaged 5.1 points per game.[4] He sat out 2018–19 in accordance with NCAA transfer rules.[2][4]

Willis played for Minnesota in 2019–20.[4][6][7] He averaged 11.8 points per game.[4] The COVID-19 pandemic ended the team's season early.[2]

He played for Charleston as a graduate transfer in 2020–21, where Willis was a hospitality and tourism management major, and was Preseason All-Colonial Athletic Association Honorable Mention.[8][3][4] He started every game and averaged 15.9 points per game, 3.1 assists per game (9th in the Colonial Athletic Association), and 1.4 steals per game (5th), shot 40% from 3-point range, and was team co-captain.[9][4][8][10][11]

Willis played for Minnesota ('22) again in 2021–22, as he was allowed to play a fifth season - along with other athletes - given that the pandemic had shortened his earlier seasons, and shifted from shooting guard to point guard.[5][2][4][12] He was team captain and averaged 17.5 points per game and 4.3 assists per game (8th in the Big Ten), while leading the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (.428; the sixth best in team history).[12][2][4] In 2022 he was Asheville Championship MVP, All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (Coaches), and All-Big Ten Honorable Mention (Media).[13][3]

Professional career

In July 2022 he played in the Golden State Warriors Summer League.[14][2]

Willis plays in 2022 for Hapoel Gilboa Galil in the Israeli Basketball Premier League, Israel's highest level basketball league, having signed a contract with the team in July 2022.[2][13][15][16][17]

On July 14, 2023, he signed with Pistoia Basket 2000 of the Lega Basket Serie A (LBA).[18]

References
  1. "Payton Willis". Vanderbilt University Athletics. May 4, 2019.
  2. Isbell, Rogan (July 29, 2022). "Payton Willis signs with Hapoel Gilboa Galil; The Israeli League team signed Willis after he played in the NBA Summer League with the Golden State Warriors". The Minnesota Daily.
  3. "Payton Willis - Men's Basketball". University of Minnesota Athletics.
  4. "Payton Willis," sports-reference.
  5. "Payton Willis Player Profile, Hapoel Gilboa Galil". Eurobasket.
  6. "Minnesota Basketball Player Previews: Payton Willis". The Daily Gopher. October 29, 2021.
  7. Wiese, Charlie (April 9, 2020). "Gophers men's basketball loses starting guard Payton Willis, gains Western Michigan transfer". KSTP Eyewitness News.
  8. "Payton Willis - Men's Basketball". College of Charleston Athletics.
  9. Jeff Wald (October 28, 2021). "Eric Curry, Payton Willis back for one final ride with Gophers basketball". FOX 9.
  10. "Guard Payton Willis transfers to Minnesota for 2nd time". AP News. May 13, 2021.
  11. "Payton Willis excelling back in Minnesota". Bally Sports. February 10, 2022.
  12. Marcus Fuller (March 11, 2022). "No regrets for Gophers seniors Eric Curry and Payton Willis after returning to help rebuild". Star Tribune.
  13. "Payton Willis Player Profile, Minnesota". RealGM.
  14. "Gophers grad Payton Willis signs with Golden State". TwinCities Pioneer Press. June 25, 2022.
  15. "חיזוק זר ראשון: פייטון וויליס חתם בגלבוע/גליל". Walla. July 18, 2022.
  16. אור שקדי (July 18, 2022). "חיזוק זר ראשון: פייטון וויליס חתם בגלבוע/גליל - וואלה! ספורט". וואלה!.
  17. יעקב מאיר (July 18, 2021). "גלבוע גליל: זר ראשון לרמי הדר, פייטון וויליס חתם בקבוצה | ישראל היום". Israel HaYom.
  18. "Payton Willis è un giocatore del Pistoia Basket". pistoiabasket2000.com (in Italian). July 14, 2023. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
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