# Joey Baker

Joseph William Baker (born September 13, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils and the Michigan Wolverines. Baker was a four-star recruit in high school and the number 3 player in North Carolina according to ESPN.

## High school career

Baker attended Trinity Christian School in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

### Recruiting

Baker was a four-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2019 class, before reclassifying to the 2018 class. He was ranked No.41 overall recruit in the class of 2018.
College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Joey Baker SF | Fayetteville, NC | Trinity Christian School (NC) | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Oct 29, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 89 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 48 247Sports: 33 ESPN: 41 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Duke 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 29, 2017. "2018 Duke Blue Devils Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved October 29, 2017. "18 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 29, 2017. ||||||

## College career
### Duke (2018–2022)
#### Freshman season (2018-19)

On October 29, 2017, Baker committed to playing college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils over offers from Kansas, Tennessee and UCLA. Baker would join a recruiting class that featured future NBA players RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish, and Zion Williamson, as well as Tre Jones for the 2018–19 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team. During his freshman year, Baker was set to redshirt for the entire season, until Coach K put him into the game against Syracuse to fill in for the injured Williamson on February 23, 2019.

#### Sophomore season (2019-20)

On December 19, 2019, Baker put up a career high in points scored with 22 against the Wofford Terriers.

#### Junior season (2020-21)

As a junior, Baker appeared in 23 games only averaging 2.9 points and 1.2 rebounds per game.

#### Senior season (2021-22)

On October 11, 2021, Mike Krzyzewski named Baker team captain alongside Wendell Moore Jr. for the 2021–22 season. As a senior, Baker averaged 4.5 points and 1.2 rebound per game. On May 8, 2022, Baker completed his undergraduate degree in Political Science and graduated from Duke University.

### Michigan (2022–2023)

On June 18, 2022, Baker transferred to the University of Michigan as a graduate transfer for his final year of college basketball eligibility. During the offseason Baker had offseason hip surgery. Baker didn't celebrate Senior night with the 2021-22 Duke Blue Devils, because he anticipated playing his fifth year there, but he did celebrate it with the 2022–23 Michigan Wolverines on February 26 against Wisconsin. In the opening round of the 2023 National Invitation Tournament, against Toledo on March 14, 2023, Baker posted season-highs in points (21), field goals made (eight), and three-pointers made (five) on 8–11 shooting. Following the game, he announced that he was pursuing a retroactive redshirt from his freshman season for the 2018-19 Duke Blue Devils. Baker later decided to hire an agent and pursue professional opportunities.

## Professional career
### Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys (2023–2024)

After going undrafted in the 2023 NBA draft, Baker signed his first professional contract with Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys of the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) on September 14, 2023.

### Grand Rapids Gold (2024–present)

On March 4, 2024, Baker joined the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League.

## Career statistics
### College

| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
| 2018–19 | Duke | 4 | 0 | 4.5 | .250 | .500 | .000 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.8 |
| 2019–20 | Duke | 28 | 3 | 12.1 | .410 | .394 | .917 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 5.0 |
| 2020–21 | Duke | 23 | 1 | 11.5 | .310 | .314 | .750 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 2.9 |
| 2021–22 | Duke | 34 | 0 | 11.9 | .432 | .405 | .778 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 4.5 |
| 2022–23 | Michigan | 34 | 5 | 16.4 | .393 | .391 | .686 | 2.2 | 0.4 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 5.7 |
| Career | Career | 123 | 9 | 12.9 | .393 | .383 | .756 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 4.5 |

## Personal life

His father, Michael Baker, served in the United States Army. His mother, Jennifer Baker, is a Special Education teacher.