Juwan Staten Returns to Best Virginia

Former WVU guard Juwan Staten resumes role with Best Virginia

The Final Fourcast announced on Tuesday Juwan Staten will return to the West Virginia University men's basketball team Best Virginia for the upcoming TBT event this summer at the Charleston Coliseum in Charleston, WV.

Staten makes the fifth member of the 2022 edition of Best Virginia, joining forwards, Kevin Jones and John Flowers and guards Jaysean Paige and Jamel Morris. 

🚨 TEAM NEWS 🚨

JUWAN STATEN is back for YEAR 3 with BEST VIRGINIA!

"He is a coach on the floor," Head Coach James Long said. "He competes every play. He makes his teammates better. All of those things are vitally important in trying to win the TBT." pic.twitter.com/SG7sYJuyxn

— Best Virginia · Final Fourcast Podcast (@finalfourcast) May 24, 2022

Staten returned to the roster last season after spending a year as a graduate assistant under WVU head coach Bob Huggins.

The former West Virginia guard signed with the Maine Celtics, the G-League affiliate for the Boston Celtics, in January where he made two appearances. 

The Dayton, Ohio native began his collegiate career for his hometown Dayton Flyers before transferring to West Virginia following his freshman season. He became a key figure in the program's transition into the Big 12 Conference and one of the great guards in Mountaineer basketball history.

As a junior, Staten averaged a career-best 18.4 points per game, including registering a career-high 35 points in a win over Kansas State and helped the Mountaineers get back into the postseason with an NIT birth, building momentum into the next season where he guided the Mountaineers to the NCAA tournament and into the Sweet 16. He also notched the first win over Kansas during his senior campaign with some last-second heroics, driving the length of the floor, spinning around and the defender, and laying in the game-winner. 

Staten was named to the All-Big 12 Conference First Team in 2014 and 2015, finishing his career with 1,260 points and 432 assists (sixth all-time), and was named to the 2015 Lute Olson All-America Team. He is one of six players in school history to have 1,000 points, 400 assists, 100 steals and 350 rebounds in a career. He averaged 13.4 points (18.1 in 2013-14), 4.6 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game for his career.

After going undrafted in the 2015 NBA Draft, Staten signed with the Sacramento Kings summer league team in 2015, making one appearance before being sidelined with knee soreness. He signed with the Golden State Warriors prior to the 2015 season, then played within the NBA developmental league (currently known as the G-League) for the Warriors and the Sixers. He then went overseas to Belgium, Finland, France, Estonia and Hungary.

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