Julian Champagnie

Champagnie was born in Staten Island, New York and grew up in Brooklyn, New York and attended Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, where he played alongside his twin brother, Justin. He averaged 15 points as a junior, earning Third Team All-Catholic High School Athletic Association (CHSAA) AA honors. As a senior, Champagnie averaged 17.2 points and was named to the First Team All-CHSAA AA.^[1] He committed to playing college basketball for St. John's over offers from Pittsburgh, Washington State, Cincinnati and Seton Hall.^[2]

On March 4, 2020, Champagnie recorded a freshman season-high 23 points and six rebounds in a 77–55 loss to Butler.^[3] In his next game, three days later, he posted 21 points and 12 rebounds in an 88–86 win over Marquette.^[4] As a freshman, Champagnie averaged 9.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.^[5] He was a two-time Big East Freshman of the Week and an All-Freshman Team selection.^[6]

On November 30, 2020, Champagnie made his sophomore season debut, recording 29 points and 10 rebounds in a 97–93 win over Boston College.^[7] On January 9, 2021, he tallied 33 points and 10 rebounds in a 97–79 loss to seventh-ranked Creighton, the first 30-point double-double by a St. John's player since D'Angelo Harrison in 2015.^[8] As a sophomore, Champagnie averaged 19.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 1.4 steals and one block per game.

Following the season, he declared for the 2021 NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility. However, on July 4, 2021, he announced he was withdrawing from the draft and returning to St. John's for his junior year.^[9] On January 5, 2022, he scored a career-high 34 points in a 89–84 win over DePaul. As a junior, Champagnie averaged 19.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, two steals and 1.1 blocks per game. He was named to the First Team All-Big East as a junior for the second consecutive season.^[10] On April 2, 2022, Champagnie declared for the 2022 NBA draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility. He ultimately went undrafted.^[11]

Champagnie was born in the United States and is of Jamaican descent.^[21] Champagnie's identical twin brother, Justin, plays professional basketball for the Washington Wizards.^[22]

Champagnie is a multi-generational New Yorker, raised in Kensington, Brooklyn. His mother's family is from Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, and his father grew up in the Bronx after immigrating from Jamaica.^[23][24] His father, Ranford, played soccer for St. John's in the mid-1990s and was a member of the 1996 national championship team;^[25] Ranford is a professional soccer coach, and has coached the men's soccer teams of Baruch College and York College.^[24]