Once Conley got back up to speed, he looked much like his normal self again. That said, both of those facts had a lot to do with the hamstring injury that knocked him out for most of December and half of January. The veteran also came off the bench for the Jazz six times - something he hadn't done at all in more than a decade. He saw his minutes decline to their lowest mark (29.0 per game) since his rookie year. Conley declared for the 2007 NBA Draft and was selected fourth overall.Ĭonley's arrival in Utah didn't quite go as expected in 2019-20. He was named to the NCAA All-Tournament team and the All-Region team. He enjoyed additional postseason success by helping Ohio State to the 2007 NCAA Tournament final before losing to Florida. Conley also helped the Buckeyes take home the Big Ten Tournament championship and was pegged for the All-Big Ten Tournament first team along the way. The Indianapolis native helped lead the Buckeyes to the Big Ten regular-season title, and he led the conference in both assists (238) and steals (87). You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram Conley was named to both the All-Big Ten first team, as well as the conference's All-Freshman squad, in his first and only season at Ohio State. Conley is also an avid bowler and hosts an annual Bowl-N-Bash to benefit the Special Olympics and Memphis Police Sports Federation.
Conley helped lead them to success, dishing out a program-record 238 assists. That season, the Buckeyes won 35 games, advancing to the National Championship game. They won their final 45 games at Lawrence North, and the pair moved on to Ohio State, where they each spent one year. They joined forces at Lawrence North high school in Indianapolis, winning a whopping 103 games and three state championships, losing just seven times.
Conley Jr.'s youth basketball career was spent alongside fellow 2007 NBA Draftee Greg Oden, as the pair met in middle school playing AAU ball. He won nine NCAA individual titles at the University of Arkansas and was inducted into the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame in 2004. won the gold medal in the triple jump at the 1992 Olympic Games and took silver in the Games of 1984. Mike Conley Jr., son of Rene and Mike Conley Sr., was born in Fayetteville, Arkansas in 1987. The Jazz post one of the most unselfish - yet consistent - offenses in the NBA, and when healthy, Conley will be one of their biggest contributors. 4 overall pick, as he has missed 20-plus games in both of his seasons with Utah. Injuries remain the primary issue for the 2007 No. Jordan Clarkson was incredible last season and will likely garner major minutes as the backup, but his role is well defined and doesn't have a real shot at impacting Conley's bottom line. Playing second fiddle to Donovan Mitchell, Conley finished 58th in fantasy scoring on a per-game basis - higher than only his 2015-16 season with the Grizzlies. While the point guard was efficient, he still wasn't as prolific as his time Memphis. The 33-year-old shot 44.4 percent from the field and a career-high 41.2 percent from three. In his second season in Utah, he averaged 16.2 points, 6.0 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 29.4 minutes per game. After missing most of the playoffs with a hamstring injury, Conley inked a three-year, $72.5 million deal to return to the Jazz.