Corey Benjamin
American basketball player (born 1978)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Corey Dwight Benjamin[1] (born February 24, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player who played in the NBA from 1998 to 2003. He graduated from Fontana High School[2] in Fontana, California, then played college basketball for Oregon State University, and was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the first round (28th overall) of the 1998 NBA draft.
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 24, 1978 Compton, California, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Fontana (Fontana, California) |
| College | Oregon State (1996–1998) |
| NBA draft | 1998: 1st round, 28th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Chicago Bulls |
| Playing career | 1998–2008 |
| Position | Guard |
| Number | 25 |
| Career history | |
| 1998–2001 | Chicago Bulls |
| 2001 | Sutor Montegranaro |
| 2002 | Liaoning Flying Leopards |
| 2002 | Southern California Surf |
| 2003 | Atlanta Hawks |
| 2002–2003 | North Charleston Lowgators |
| 2003–2004 | Chalonnais |
| 2004–2005 | Xinjiang Flying Tigers |
| 2005–2006 | Guaros de Lara |
| 2006 | Conquistadores de Guaynabo |
| 2006–2007 | Benfica |
| 2007–2008 | Daegu Orions |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career statistics | |
| Points | 835 (5.5 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 259 (1.7 rpg) |
| Assists | 143 (0.9 apg) |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
NBA career
Benjamin stayed with the Bulls for three seasons, and during the 2002–03 campaign, he signed a pair of 10-day contracts to play for the Atlanta Hawks. Between his stints with Chicago and Atlanta, he played for Sutor Montegranaro in Italy, and the Southern California Surf in the American Basketball Association. He also suited up for the North Charleston Lowgators in the NBDL (now known as the NBA G League).
Benjamin is also known for an incident where he mentioned to teammate Randy Brown that he could beat Michael Jordan in a one-on-one game. Jordan had just retired, but he showed up at a Bulls practice to completely embarrass Benjamin in an 11–3 rout.[3][4]
International career
Benjamin spent the final five years of his career playing abroad, first heading to France's Ligue Nationale de Basketball with Chalonnais for the 2003–04 season, followed by a stint in China for the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association in 2004–05.
Heading to Latin America for the 2005–06 campaign, Benjamin next joined the Guaros de Lara in Venezuela's Liga Profesional de Baloncesto, followed by a spell in Puerto Rico's Baloncesto Superior Nacional with the Conquistadores de Guaynabo.
Benjamin then returned to Europe to play for Benfica in Portugal during the 2006–07 season.[5][6] He wrapped up his overseas career with a second stint in Asia the following winter, going to South Korea to compete in the Korean Basketball League with the Daegu Orions.
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 |
NBA
College
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-97 | Oregon State | 23 | 17 | 26.1 | .432 | .315 | .653 | 4.0 | 1.3 | 1.1 | 0.5 | 14.9 |
| 1997–98 | Oregon State | 25 | 22 | 26.9 | .539 | .293 | .713 | 5.0 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 19.8 |
| Career | 48 | 39 | 26.5 | .491 | .305 | .688 | 4.5 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 17.5 | |
Personal life
While a member of the Oregon State Beavers, Benjamin played on the same team as his older brother, Sonny.[7]
In 2000 Benjamin was arrested and charged with one count of domestic battery.[8] He was arrested again in 2016.[9]
In 2021, Benjamin apologised after a video of his daughter punching another player during a basketball game went viral. [10]