Michael Lamont James (born June 23, 1975 in
Amityville, New York) is an American professional
basketball player currently with the New Orleans
Hornets of the NBA.
James had a college career at Duquesne University
that saw him finish ranked third all-time in steals
(201), fifth in assists (348) and 10th in points
(1,411) at the school and included being named to
the all Atlantic 10 Conference 1st team in his
senior year. However, he was not drafted. He began
his NBA career when he signed as a free agent with
the Miami Heat during the 2001–02 season. He has
since played for the Boston Celtics, the Detroit
Pistons, the Milwaukee Bucks, Houston Rockets and
the Toronto Raptors averaging 11.9 points per game
for his career. As the starting point guard for the
Raptors during the 2005–06 season, he averaged
career highs of 20.3 points, 5.8 assists and 3.3
rebounds per game and shot 47% from the field
including 44.2% from 3-point range which ranked
among the league leaders. James is the first
undrafted player in the history of the NBA to
average at least 20 points a game in a season.
