GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS NEWS RELEASE
AUGSBURG'S DEVEAN GEORGE PAGE

OAKLAND, Calif. -- For the second time in a month, Augsburg College alumnus and decade-long NBA veteran Devean George '99 has been involved in a trade, this time from the Toronto Raptors to the Golden State Warriors, it was announced on Thursday.

Earlier this month, George was traded from the Dallas Mavericks to the Toronto Raptors as part of a four-team, eight-player deal. Golden State will be George's fourth NBA team as he enters his 11th season in the league in 2009-10.

“We're looking forward to adding a veteran with Devean's experience to our squad,” said Golden State General Manager Larry Riley in a news release on the Warriors' website. “He is obviously a proven winner and has been on several very successful teams during his career, which is something we feel is important when you look at the youth on our roster. He is a versatile player and someone who we feel can contribute both on and off the court.”

George was traded from the Raptors to the Warriors for guard Marco Belinelli. The Warriors also received cash considerations as part of the trade.

In George's 10 NBA seasons (585 regular-season games, 104 starts), he has averaged 5.6 points, 3.2 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.7 steals in 18.7 minutes played per-game. In 86 playoff games (27 starts) over eight seasons, he averaged 5.0 points and 2.7 rebounds in 17.2 minutes played per-game.

George spent his first seven seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers (1999-2006), as a part of world championship teams his first three years. George signed as a free agent with Dallas in 2006 and spent the last three seasons with the Mavericks.

George has been hampered by injuries over the last several campaigns, as he was limited to just 43 games this past season with the Mavericks, ending his season prematurely in March with knee surgery. He averaged 3.4 points and 1.8 rebounds per-game in 2008-09.

In 1999, the Minneapolis native (Benilde-St. Margaret HS) became the first NCAA Division III player ever selected in the first round of the NBA Draft, when the Los Angeles Lakers made him the 23rd overall selection. He became one of only seven players in NBA history to be a member of championship squads in each of his first three seasons in the league, as his Lakers squads won three straight titles (2000-02).

In his career at Augsburg, George led the Auggies to two MIAC regular-season championships and berths in the NCAA Division III national playoffs (1997-98 and 1998-99), earning conference MVP honors both times. He earned multiple Division III All-American honors his senior season. He was named a second-team All-American by D3hoops.com his junior season and a first-team All-American his senior year.

He finished his college career with 2,258 career points and 868 career rebounds, both second in school history. While playing in just 96 career games, he fell only 13 points short of Augsburg's scoring record, held by Brian Ammann (1981-85), of 2,271 in 106 games (21.4 per game). George finished his career with a 23.5 points-per-game average, best in school history. Dan Anderson (1961-65) holds the school's career rebounding record with 1,211 (11.5 per game). George finished his career with a 9.0 rebounds-per-game average.

George's college jersey number, 40, was retired by Augsburg in 2003. He wore No. 3 while with the Lakers, but returned to his old college number when he joined the Mavericks.

George is one of only eight players who played Division III basketball to see playing time in the NBA, and he remains the only player who played Division III basketball to ever play in the NBA Finals [Jack Sikma (Illinois Wesleyan '77, Seattle in the finals 1978-79) and Terry Porter (Wisconsin-Stevens Point '85, Portland in the finals 1990-92) played at what are now NCAA Division III schools, but those schools were members of the NAIA during those players' careers.].

George was the third Augsburg player to ever be drafted by an NBA team (Augsburg was an NAIA school prior to 1985), and the second to play professionally at the sport's highest level. Anderson was drafted in the 12th round by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1965. He later played in the ABA with the New Jersey Americans (later New Jersey Nets) from 1967-70. Greg Boone '81, who played for the Auggies from 1979-81, was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers as a 10th-round pick in 1981, but never played in the NBA.