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| Derrick Favors | |
|---|---|
| Name | Derrick Favors |
| Position | Power forward / Center |
| Weight lb | 270 |
| League | NBA |
| Birth date | 15 July 1991 |
| Birth place | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| High school | Hargrave Military Academy (Chatham), South Grand Prairie High School (Grand Prairie) |
| College | Georgia Tech |
| Draft year | 2010 |
| Draft team | New Jersey Nets |
| Career start | 2010 |
| Teams | New Jersey Nets / Brooklyn Nets (2010–2011); Utah Jazz (2011–2020); New Orleans Pelicans (2020–2021); Oklahoma City Thunder (2021); New York Knicks (2021–2023) |
Derrick Favors Derrick Favors is an American professional basketball player who has played as a frontcourt presence in the National Basketball Association since 2010. Known for interior scoring, rebounding, and rim protection, he spent the bulk of his career with the Utah Jazz after being selected third overall in the 2010 NBA draft. Favors' career intersects with prominent figures and franchises across NBA history and multiple developmental institutions.
Born in New Orleans, Favors relocated amid the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to Plano, Texas and later attended South Grand Prairie High School in Grand Prairie, Texas. During his prep years he also enrolled at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Virginia, joining a national prep program noted for producing prospects who matriculated to Duke, University of Kentucky, University of Kansas and University of North Carolina. As a high school All-American he competed in elite events such as the McDonald's All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic, sharing rosters and rivalries with peers who later became NBA All-Stars and NBA draft lottery selections. Recruiting services compared him to classic post players from programs like Duke Blue Devils, UConn, Kentucky and Kansas.
Favors attended Georgia Tech for the 2009–10 NCAA Division I men's basketball season with the Yellow Jackets under coach Paul Hewitt. In collegiate competition he faced Atlantic Coast Conference opponents including Duke, North Carolina, Florida State and Wake Forest. His freshman season showcased interior scoring and defensive potential, drawing attention from NBA scouts and front offices such as the Brooklyn Nets and the Atlanta Hawks. After one season he declared for the 2010 NBA draft, joining a class that featured selections like John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Evan Turner and Paul George.
Selected third overall by the New Jersey Nets in the 2010 NBA draft, Favors' rights were traded to the Brooklyn Nets and then moved to the Utah Jazz via a draft-night deal involving the Atlanta Hawks and New Jersey Nets. Early in his NBA tenure he played alongside veterans and rising talents such as Deron Williams, Al Jefferson, Gordon Hayward, Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell. With the Jazz, he became a reliable starter, producing double-digit scoring and rebounding totals while contributing to playoff runs against teams like the Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and Houston Rockets. In 2020 he was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans, returning to his birth city to pair with players including Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram. Later stints included the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New York Knicks, where he provided veteran depth behind rotations featuring Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson and Julius Randle. Across seasons he faced All-Star opponents such as LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Favors participated in USA Basketball developmental programs and training camps that intersected with future Olympians and World Cup competitors like Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker and Anthony Davis. While not a regular on senior national-team rosters during major tournaments, he engaged with national-team coaches and staff connected to USA Basketball high-performance initiatives and youth competitions that produced athletes for FIBA Basketball World Cup and Olympic Games selections.
A prototypical interior player at 6 ft 9 in and roughly 270 lb, Favors combined low-post scoring with offensive rebounding and shot-blocking, traits reminiscent of frontcourt figures from NBA history such as Tim Duncan, Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Mourning and Patrick Ewing. Scouts praised his pick-and-roll scoring, roll-man finishing, and ability to set screens for guards from teams like the Utah Jazz and the Brooklyn Nets. Defensively he offered rim deterrence and switching versatility, complementing rim protectors like Rudy Gobert in Jazz frontcourts. His skill set fit modern spacing strategies employed by coaches from systems influenced by tacticians such as Jerry Sloan, Quin Snyder and Mike Malone.
Favors has family ties to New Orleans and roots in Texas communities such as Plano and Grand Prairie. Off the court he has engaged with community outreach programs, youth basketball camps and charitable efforts similar to initiatives run by NBA players associated with organizations like NBA Cares and local foundations in Salt Lake City and New Orleans. He has interacted with basketball development networks that include collegiate programs such as Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and prep institutions like Hargrave Military Academy.
Category:African-American basketball players Category:Basketball players from New Orleans Category:Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets men's basketball players Category:Utah Jazz players Category:New Orleans Pelicans players