Blake Francis
Free agent | |
---|---|
Position | Point guard |
Personal information | |
Born | January 3, 1998 |
Nationality | American |
Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
Listed weight | 175 lb (79 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | |
College | |
NBA draft | 2021 / Undrafted |
Playing career | 2021–present |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Blake Francis (born January 3, 1998) is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Wagner Seahawks and the Richmond Spiders.
High school career[]
After spending his freshman year at Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Virginia, Francis transferred to Westfield High School in Chantilly, Virginia.[1] As a senior, he averaged 20.1 points per game and led Westfield to the Virginia 6A state championship, scoring 23 points against Oscar F. Smith High School in the title game.[2][3] He was a Second Team All-State selection.[4] Francis left as Westfield's all-time leading scorer, with 1,390 career points. He planned to attend prep school because he had no NCAA Division I scholarship offers. He accepted an offer from Wagner when a scholarship suddenly became available on the team because two-sport athlete Greg Senat had switched his scholarship from basketball to football.[5][6]
College career[]
As a freshman at Wagner, Francis averaged 7.2 points per game in a reserve role.[5] Due to the departures of important players after the season, he was given more opportunities as a sophomore.[7] On February 8, 2018, Francis scored a career-high 29 points in a 96–76 win over Bryant.[8] In his sophomore season, he averaged 17.3 points per game and made a program-record 102 three-pointers.[7] Francis was named to the Second Team All-Northeast Conference. He transferred to Richmond and sat out his next year per National Collegiate Athletic Association rules.[9] He was drawn to Richmond because his friend Cedrick Lindsay had played there and some of his former Amateur Athletic Union teammates were on the roster.[7]
During his redshirt year, he recovered from foot surgery.[4] On December 3, 2019, Francis matched his career-high of 29 points, shooting 6-of-9 from three-point range, in an 80–63 victory over Hampton.[10] On January 11, 2020, he suffered a sternal fracture when diving for a loose ball during a 75–58 loss against Saint Louis and was expected to miss four to six weeks.[11] He returned to action against Fordham on February 8 and finished with 18 points.[12] As a junior, Francis led the team in scoring with 17.7 points per game while also averaging 2.2 rebounds and 2 assists per game. He earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors.[13] He led Richmond to a program-record 14 conference wins. Francis declared for the 2020 NBA draft before withdrawing his name and opting to return to Richmond.[14]
After the 2020–21 season, Francis declined to take an additional year of eligibility granted to all players, instead opting for the 2021 NBA draft.[15]
Professional career[]
Francis was drafted second round (15th pick overall) by the Raptors 905 in the 2021 NBA G League Draft.[16] However, he did not make the team’s final roster.
Career statistics[]
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College[]
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016–17 | Wagner | 28 | 3 | 20.5 | .424 | .422 | .750 | 1.4 | 1.1 | .6 | .0 | 7.2 |
2017–18 | Wagner | 32 | 22 | 32.7 | .430 | .402 | .806 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.6 | .0 | 17.3 |
2018–19 | Richmond | |||||||||||
2019–20 | Richmond | 25 | 25 | 32.7 | .417 | .363 | .805 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 1.1 | .0 | 17.7 |
2020–21 | Richmond | 20 | 20 | 33.4 | .424 | .360 | .750 | 2.3 | 2.2 | 1.4 | .0 | 16.1 |
Career | 105 | 70 | 29.6 | .424 | .386 | .787 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.2 | .0 | 14.5 |
Personal life[]
Francis' older brother, Branden, played college football for Liberty. He is a cousin of former NFL player Marques Hagans and basketball player Tyler Thornton.[6]
References[]
- ^ Parker, Brandon (February 18, 2014). "Westfield's Blake Francis emerges as standout on young team". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ O'Connor, John (April 11, 2018). "Transfer guard Blake Francis has connections that helped him hook up with Spiders". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "Blake Francis". University of Richmond Athletics. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ a b O'Connor, John (October 31, 2019). "Blake Francis has already been a Division I star, at Wagner. His new goal: help the Spiders win". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ a b Kussoy, Howie (December 15, 2017). "Wagner sophomore star won't go overlooked again". New York Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ a b "Blake Francis". Wagner College Athletics. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ a b c O'Connor, John (July 30, 2020). "Spider Blake Francis' decision to transfer from Wagner looks better every day". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "First-Place Seahawks Soar Past Bryant 96–76 For Seventh Straight Win, Improving To 13–0 At Home". Wagner College Athletics. February 8, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "All-NEC Performer Blake Francis Will Transfer To Richmond". University of Richmond Athletics. April 10, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "Francis scores 29 to carry Richmond over Hampton 80–63". ESPN. Associated Press. December 3, 2019. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "Richmond leading scorer Blake Francis out 4–6 weeks". ESPN. January 16, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ O'Connor, John (February 13, 2020). "Blake Francis' handspring at La Salle was fine sign for UR as it preps for rematch vs. VCU". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Hajduczka, Krystian (April 7, 2020). "Three Richmond men's basketball players declare for the 2020 NBA Draft". The Collegian. Retrieved October 8, 2020.
- ^ "Francis, Gilyard, Golden Officially Withdraw From NBA Draft". University of Richmond Athletics. June 3, 2020. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "Richmond's Blake Francis declares for 2021 NBA Draft". Augusta Free Press. April 13, 2020. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
- ^ "2021 NBA G League Draft Board". NBA G League. Retrieved 2021-10-23.
External links[]
- 1998 births
- Living people
- American men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Virginia
- People from Herndon, Virginia
- Point guards
- Richmond Spiders men's basketball players
- Wagner Seahawks men's basketball players