Joe Ingles

Early life

Born in the Adelaide suburb of Happy Valley, Ingles played junior basketball for the Southern Tigers. Ingles attended both Lake Ginninderra College and the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in Canberra with future Boomers teammate Brad Newley. He played basketball for the AIS in 2005 and 2006. Along with basketball, Ingles also played Australian rules football and cricket in his younger years but gave both sports away to focus on basketball.

Ingles' two basketball goals as a boy were to play for the Adelaide 36ers and Australia. He was highly sought after when he came out of the AIS in 2006, and he subsequently met with the 36ers as a 17-year-old, but a couple of Adelaide blunders set him off interstate. Ingles said of the situation, "The minimum salary at the time was $20–$22,000 and while money wasn't a primary concern for me, they offered me a two-year deal at $12,500 per, plus two season tickets." Ingles had several other contract bids to consider, all offering at least the minimum and many of them providing additional incentives. His decision to not sign with the 36ers came when his contract from the club arrived with his name misspelt. It did not leave a glowing impression on Ingles or his family, so he moved his attention to Melbourne.

South Dragons (2006–2009)

On 17 March 2006, Ingles signed a multi-year deal with the South Dragons of the National Basketball League, becoming the very first player to sign with the club. In the Dragons' debut game, the 18-year-old Ingles made league history by scoring the most points by an Australian on debut – 29, on 11-of-15 shooting from the field. His excellent first season earned him the NBL Rookie of the Year Award. In 34 games in 2006–07, he averaged 15.3 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.

In 2007–08, Ingles played in 30 games for the Dragons, averaging 15.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.

In 2008–09, Ingles helped lead the Dragons to the minor premiership while earning All-NBL Third Team honours. He went on to help the Dragons win their maiden NBL championship with a 3–2 grand final series victory over the Melbourne Tigers. However, two months after winning their first title, the club folded due to financial difficulties. In 38 games for the club in 2008–09, Ingles averaged 13.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game.

In 102 games for the Dragons over three seasons, Ingles averaged 14.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game.

Spain (2009–2013)

In July 2009, Ingles played for the Golden State Warriors during the 2009 NBA Summer League. Later that month, he signed with CB Granada of the Liga ACB.

In July 2010, Ingles re-joined the Warriors for the 2010 NBA Summer League.

On 15 November 2010, just seven games into the 2010–11 season, Ingles transferred from Granada to FC Barcelona, signing a three-year deal with the club. In June 2013, Ingles announced that he would not re-sign with Barcelona for the 2013–14 season.

Maccabi Tel Aviv (2013–2014)

On 24 July 2013, Ingles signed with Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv. Ingles and Maccabi, led by coach David Blatt, went on to win the 2013–14 Euroleague championship.

Utah Jazz (2014–present)

On 29 September 2014, after a strong display with Australia at the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, Ingles signed with the Los Angeles Clippers. However, he was waived by the Clippers on 25 October after appearing in five preseason games. Two days later, he was claimed off waivers by the Utah Jazz, joining Boomers' teammate Dante Exum in the process.

Ingles made his NBA debut for the Jazz on 29 October 2014, appearing in four minutes of action and missing a three-point attempt in a loss to the Houston Rockets. In a game played the following day, he recorded his first two NBA points in a loss to the Dallas Mavericks. Ingles began starting for the Jazz in March 2015, and on March 23, he scored a season-high 18 points in a loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

On 10 July 2015, Ingles re-signed with the Jazz to a multi-year contract. He began seeing decreased minutes during November 2015, averaging 3.7 points in 12.1 minutes over the first 20 games of the 2015–16 season. On 26 December 2015, he scored a season-high 14 points in a loss to the Los Angeles Clippers. He topped that season high on 17 March 2016 with 15 points and career-high six steals in a 103–69 win over the Phoenix Suns.

On 14 November 2016, Ingles scored a career-high 20 points in a 102–96 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. He topped that mark on 8 December 2016, scoring 21 points while hitting a career-high five three-pointers in a 106–99 loss to the Golden State Warriors. In Game 4 of the Jazz's first-round playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers on 23 April 2017, Ingles had a career-high 11 assists in a 105–98 win that tied the series at 2–2. In 2016–17, Ingles recorded the best three-point percentage (.441) by a Jazzman since Kyle Korver set an NBA record (.536) in 2009–10, and became the first Jazz player in franchise history to shoot at least .441 from beyond the arc with at least 270 attempts.

On 25 July 2017, Ingles re-signed with the Jazz to a multi-year contract.

National team career

At the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, Ingles made his Olympic debut for the Australian Boomers. In Australia's final match, a 116–85 loss to the United States, Ingles played the entire last quarter of the game, scoring 11 points on 100% shooting from the field, while also recording two rebounds and one assist.

At the 2010 FIBA World Championship, Ingles averaged 10.3 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists in six games. At the 2012 London Olympics, Ingles again played well, and was the second-highest scorer for the Boomers after Patty Mills. In six games, Ingles finished with averages of 15.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. At the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup, Ingles averaged 11.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists in six games.

International stats

Source: FIBA.com

Career statistics

Note: The EuroLeague is not the only competition in which the player participated for the team during the season. He also played in domestic competition, and regional competition if applicable.

Personal life

Ingles is married to Australian netballer, Renae Ingles. He also holds a British passport. He is a keen supporter of the Hawthorn Football Club in the Australian Football League, and is a good friend of Hawthorn's Jarryd Roughead.