Taurean Prince is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Atlanta Hawks. He was the twelfth overall selection selected by Utah Jazz in the first round of the National Basketball Association’s 2016 draft. He has played for the Atlanta Hawks since his debut on October 27, 2016.
His position on the team is that of the little striker. Most would say that the game against the Memphis Grizzlies on March 11, 2018, was his best game in the two years since Prince entered the NBA. With 38 points and seven assists, he scored a career-high of 38 points; frankly, this is the best statistic of his two years in the NBA. He played so well that at the end of the Hawks’ last 16 games he was the team’s second-best scorer behind Dennis Schroder.
Who is Taurean Prince of NBA
Taurean Prince was born in San Marcos, Texas, the son of Anthony and Tamiko Prince. He has two younger siblings, Catina and Derrick. He attended Earl Warren High School in San Antonio, Texas, and received his college education at Baylor University. His parents divorced when he was young, which made him grow up much faster than other children his age. Especially when he decided to leave the small two-room apartment where he lived with his mother and younger sister and move in with his father when he was 12 years old.
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He had to go through quite a lot; from living in different houses (after his father lost their home) to seeking shelter at the Salvation Army, to living with his friend, Bowdy Thompson, after his father was sent to prison for two years. Some would say that these hardships have made him the man and basketball player he is today and that they have influenced the way he plays and trains.
In high school, Prince played three seasons of basketball under head coach Jim Weaver. In his senior year, he led the team to the country’s semi-finals. He originally planned to play for the LIU-Brooklyn Blackbirds in college but moved to Baylor due to a change of coach within the previous program.
He played college basketball for the Baylor Bears. In his first season, he played twenty-four games, all of which took place outside the bench. He also finished the year with 3.7 points and 2.2 rebounds in 6.4 minutes per game. In the spring before his second season, Prince was on the honor roll of the Big 12 conference commissioners.
He won the sixth man prize in the Big 12 and received the All-Conference Honorable Men’s Award after scoring 6.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per game and performing in all 38 Baylor games. In his fourth season, he was recognized by Fran Fraschilla as a strong candidate for the 2015-16 Big 12 Player of the Year award.
Although Prince made his debut on October 27, 2016, he officially became part of the NBA on June 23, 2016, after being selected by Utah Jazz. On July 7, his rights to the Atlanta Hawks were traded in a three-team deal that also involved the Indian Pacers. On July 15, 2016, he signed the contract with the Hawks on the rookie scale.
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March 11th is considered a special day for the Bull Prince; as special as a birthday or anniversary, as both 2017 and 2018 were the days when he reached his seasonal peak. On March 11, 2017, he had 17 points in a 107-90 win over the Memphis Grizzlys. Later that year, on April 6, he scored a career-high of 20 points with a 123-116 win over the Boston Celtics. With 11 points, Prince was the Hawks’ first rookie to reach double digits in five consecutive games in his first four playoff games since Pete Maravich in 1971.
After that, Prince simply continued to excel. In December 2017, he scored the highest points of his career and enabled his team to beat his opponents. Starting with the game on December 12, he scored 24 points in a 123-114 defeat to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Three days later, he was five points behind in a 3-point loss and 17 points in a 96-94 defeat by the Memphis Grizzlys.
The next year also started well for him. On February 2, 2018, he set a new career highlight with 31 points in a 119-110 defeat by the Boston Celtics. On March 11, 2018, he then set a new career highlight (again) with 38 points in a 129-122 defeat against the Chicago Bulls. Six days later, he had another 38-point win in a 122-177 defeat by the Milwaukee Bucks.
Taurean Prince’s 5 Fast Facts
1. Taurean Prince was born on 22 March 1994 in San Marcos, Texas.
2. Prince is 2.03 m (6 ft 8 inches) tall and weighs 100 kg (220 lb).
3. Prince’s salary in 2018 was $2 million. His contract provides for salaries of $3 million in 2019 and 2020 and $5 million in 2021.
4. Prince owes it to his coach John Collins for helping him reach the heights he has reached today in the NBA.
5. At the age of 12 he became homeless and lived on the streets. Since then, however, his fate has changed drastically.
