Josh Sharkey (born September 10, 1997) is an American professional basketball player who plays for Balikesir in Turkey in the TBL league. He played college basketball for Samford.

Josh Sharkey
Balikesir
PositionPoint guard
Personal information
Born (1997-09-10) September 10, 1997 (age 27)
NationalityAmerican
Listed height5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Listed weight169 lb (77 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeSamford (2016–2020)
NBA draft2020: undrafted
Playing career2020–present
Career history
2020–2021Tigers Tübingen
2021Legia Warsaw
2021Start Lublin
2022Delaware Blue Coats
2022Birmingham Squadron
Career highlights and awards
  • Second-team All-SoCon (2019)
  • Third-team All-SoCon (2020)
  • SoCon All-Freshman Team (2016)

Early life and high school career

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Sharkey grew up in the Olney neighborhood of Philadelphia. As a freshman, he attended Abington Friends School alongside Tony Carr and Lamar Stevens. Sharkey transferred to Archbishop John Carroll High School as a sophomore, where he was teammates with Derrick Jones Jr. and Ryan Daly. He scored 13 points and had 10 rebounds in the 2015 PIAA Class AAA final loss to Saints John Neumann and Maria Goretti Catholic High School. Sharkey was an All-Delco performer at Archbishop Carroll.[1] During the 2015 Peach Jam Invitational, Sharkey averaged 7.1 points per game.[2] He committed to Samford, the only school to offer him a scholarship, over Penn.[1]

College career

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Sharkey averaged 8.2 points and 4.2 assists per game as a freshman at Samford but struggled with his shooting, hitting 21.7 percent of his three-point attempts. He started two games, but mainly served as a backup to Christen Cunningham.[3] As a sophomore, Sharkey averaged 7.3 points, 2.1 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game.[4] On January 24, 2019, he scored 19 points and had a school-record 16 assists in a 107–106 overtime loss to Wofford.[5] He averaged 16.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game as a junior, earning Second Team All-Southern Conference honors.[6] On January 30, 2020, Sharkey scored a career-high 35 points and had seven assists in a 92–84 loss to Chattanooga.[7] He was named to the midseason watchlist for the Lou Henson Award during his senior season.[8] As a senior, Sharkey averaged 18 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.[9] He was named to the Third Team All-Southern Conference.[10] He finished his Samford career as the leader in assists (758) and steals (285) and was seventh in scoring with 1,592 points.[9]

Professional career

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On September 26, 2020, Sharkey signed his first professional contract with Tigers Tübingen of the ProA.[11] On November 3, he was recognized as ProA player of the week after contributing 28 points and 12 assists in a 103–101 win against Paderborn Baskets.[12]

On June 23, 2021, Sharkey signed with Legia Warsaw of the Polish Basketball League.[13] In four games, he averaged 15 points, 2.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists and two steals per game. On October 1, Sharkey signed with Start Lublin.[14]

Delaware Blue Coats (2022)

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On January 5, 2022, Sharkey was acquired via available player pool by the Delaware Blue Coats of the NBA G League. He was then later waived on January 18, 2022.[15]

Birmingham Squadron (2022)

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On March 30, 2022, Sharkey was acquired via available player pool by the Birmingham Squadron.[16]

Personal life

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Jameer Nelson is a cousin of Sharkey's, as Nelson's father and Sharkey's maternal grandfather were brothers. Nelson trains with Sharkey, and he grew up a big fan of the NBA star.[8] Sharkey's favorite musician is Meek Mill.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b DeGeorge, Matthew (January 30, 2020). "Samford's Sharkey out to make a difference". Delaware County Daily Times. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  2. ^ Miley, Garrett (July 19, 2015). "Josh Sharkey commits to Samford". City of Basketball Love. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Verlin, Josh (November 8, 2017). "Sharkey set for sophomore season down south at Samford". City of Basketball Love. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  4. ^ Hooper, John (April 8, 2018). "After a disappointing season, Samford is dealing with another mass exodus". Mid-Major Madness. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  5. ^ "Men's Basketball Falls In OT Heart-Breaker At Wofford, 107-106". Samford Bulldogs. January 24, 2019. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  6. ^ Mullins, Joey (October 16, 2019). "Samford Basketball Preview". Samford University. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  7. ^ "Ryan scores 28 to lift Chattanooga past Samford 92-84". ESPN. Associated Press. January 30, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  8. ^ a b Hunt, Donald (January 14, 2020). "Josh Sharkey running the offense at Samford". The Philadelphia Tribune. Retrieved October 23, 2020.
  9. ^ a b "Former Samford guard Sharkey signs first pro deal". Southern Conference. September 26, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  10. ^ "All-SoCon men's basketball teams announced" (Press release). Southern Conference. March 4, 2020. Retrieved October 26, 2020.
  11. ^ Schmidt-Scheuber, Miles (September 26, 2020). "Josh Sharkey To Start Professional Career With The Tigers Tuebingen". Eurobasket. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
  12. ^ "Sharkey's double-double lands him ProA Interperformances Player of the Week award". Eurobasket. November 3, 2020. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
  13. ^ "Josh Sharkey zagra w Warszawie". Plk.pl (in Polish). June 23, 2021. Retrieved June 23, 2021.
  14. ^ "Josh Sharkey agreed terms with Start". Eurobasket. October 1, 2021. Retrieved October 1, 2021.
  15. ^ "2021-22 NBA G League transactions". gleague.nba.com. January 5, 2022. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  16. ^ "Squadron Acquire Samford Grad Josh Sharkey". OurSportsCentral.com. March 30, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
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