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Olivia Sayer, William Daughtry
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope looks to pass the ball against Southern Miss. The Bulldogs lost to the Golden Eagles 62-60. SEAN TAYLOR/STAFF
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope Shines at Georgia and in the NBA
On Monday, June 12, the Denver Nuggets defeated the Miami Heat 94-89 in five games to become the 2023 NBA Finals Champions. As the celebration began, former Georgia basketball player, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, soaked it all in.
The former Greenville High School star signed with Georgia in 2011. Ranked as ESPN’s No. 24 prospect, Caldwell-Pope had already built up an impressive resume before even stepping foot on campus. He earned an invitation to the McDonald’s All-American Game, which annually showcases the top 24 high school basketball players across the country.
Arguably the biggest recruit of the Mark Fox era, Caldwell-Pope lived up to the hype at Georgia. He followed up a strong freshman season by leading Georgia in scoring for 29 of the 32 regular-season games and in rebounding for 16 games as a sophomore. He was also just one of nine NCAA Division 1 players to score at least 10 points in every game he played. At the conclusion of his sophomore season, he was named the 2013 Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.
Following his sensational season, Caldwell-Pope was ready for the next level. In April of 2013, he officially declared for the upcoming NBA Draft. With the eighth pick in the draft, he was selected by the Detroit Pistons. The pick came as a shock, however, due to his size and scoring ability, Detroit took a chance on the standout Georgia player instead.
In his rookie season, Caldwell-Pope played in 80 of 82 regular season games, and started in 41 of them. In 2015, the former Bulldog helped the Pistons earn a playoff bid for the first time in seven years. His 76 games started was good enough for fourth on the team, and he averaged a career-best 14.5 points per game.
Following the 2016 season, Caldwell-Pope signed a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Lakers. That season, he led the team in games started and shot 38.3% from the 3-point line with an average of over five attempts per game.
The Lakers signed Caldwell-Pope to another one-year deal in July 2018. He played in all 82 games that year and scored a season-high 35 points against the Milwaukee Bucks.
After 2018, Caldwell-Pope again re-signed with the Lakers on a two year deal.In 2020, he was a crucial member of the Lakers’ playoff run, starting in all 21 games in that postseason, averaging 10.7 points per game and shooting an impressive 81.5% from the free-throw line on the way to his first NBA Championship.
A few months after the confetti had finished falling, Caldwell-Pope signed a new three-year deal worth 40 million dollars with the Lakers, but was soon traded to the Washington Wizards in July of 2021 for a package centered on guard Russell Westbrook.
Following one season with the Wizards, Caldwell-Pope was traded once again, this time to the Nuggets in July of 2022. Although it may not be ideal to get traded two times in three years, the move helped facilitate another championship run for the former Bulldog.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope Wins Second NBA Title
There were less than 30 seconds left in the game. In front of a rambunctious Denver crowd, Caldwell-Pope did what he had done all postseason: made a play when it mattered most.
Up by a razor-thin margin, 90-89 with 30 seconds left, Miami Heat superstar Jimmy Butler threw an errant pass. Caldwell-Pope made the steal of his life, and sank two free throws after a Kyle Lowry intentional foul to extend Denver’s lead, 92-89.
Denver ended up winning game five 94-89, and the NBA Finals 4-1, for the Nuggets’ first championship in franchise history, and ring number two for Caldwell-Pope. Both championships for Caldwell-Pope came against the Heat. In 2020 with Los Angeles, Caldwell-Pope averaged nearly 13 points, about three rebounds and two assists in the series against Miami.
This year, Caldwell-Pope averaged over seven points, over three rebounds and over an assist per game, but was a valuable role player for a Nuggets team that needed depth and shooting.
The former Bulldog helped closed out the Phoenix Suns in six games to the tune of 21 points, five rebounds and three assists in the series’ final game. He kicked off the sweep of his former Laker squad with 21 points, sinking three treys as he tied his playoff career-high for points in a game.
Caldwell-Pope remains the second former Georgia player to win the NBA title after Shandon Anderson won one with Miami in 2006.
Against his former Laker squad, Caldwell-Pope had perhaps the best series of his career. He put up 14.8 points and three steals per game all while shooting 44.4% from behind the arc.
The championship put an end to some playoff demons that had long plagued this Nuggets team. Denver had been bounced in the second round of the playoffs at the hands of the Suns 4-0 in 2021 and in the first round to the Golden State Warriors 4-1 in 2022. They were also defeated 4-1 by the Lakers— who of course had Caldwell-Pope in tow— in 2020. The narrative heading into this season was that the Nuggets core of two-time MVP, center Nikola Jokic, guard Jamal Murray and forward Michael Porter Jr. could not get over the hump.
Caldwell-Pope’s shooting, championship pedigree and defense was key and a missing piece of the puzzle for the now champion Nuggets.