Nik Stauskas is a Canadian-born professional basketball player who plies his trade with the Portland Trail Blazers. His professional career dates back to 2014 when he was drafted by the Sacramento Kings. The NBA star equally had relatively short stints with the Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets before joining the Blazers in 2018. Before turning pro, Staukas had a well-decorated 2-year college basketball career at the University of Michigan. He plays for the Canadian national team on the international front.
Nik Stauskas’s Bio
The NBA star was born Nikolas Tomas Stauskas on October 7, 1993, in Mississauga, a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. His parents are Ruta and Paul Staukus and is of Lithuanian heritage as three of his four grandparents (paternal and maternal) lived in Lithuania prior to WWII. He equally speaks the Lithuanian language. He was raised alongside one sibling, a brother named Peter. Growing up, Nik Strauskas showed very little interest in ice hockey and street hockey which is very unlikely for an average Canadian kid. He gave a shot at soccer at the age of 6 until an arm injury put a halt to that.
Stauskas eventually started playing basketball at Ausra Sports Club, a Toronto-based sports organization dedicated for children of Lithuanian descent. He began his high school career at Loyola Catholic Secondary School in Ontario, Canada until the 2008-09 season when the school’s basketball team was nearly grounded owing to the unavailability of coaches. Consequently, he was moved to the South Kent School, an all-boys boarding school in the US state of Connecticut for the 2009-10 season. At the end of the school year, he switched once again to St. Mark’s School in Southborough, Massachusetts where he completed his high school education and career.
The youngster’s arrival at St. Mark’s School came with much expectation and he gained the attention of several college recruiters. He led the school to 2 straight New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) Class AA Championships in his junior and senior seasons. The team won the 2012 NEPSAC Championship with Strauskas earning the MVP and NEPSAC All-Class AA team honors.
Nik Stauskas’ commitment to the University of Michigan was well-celebrated and he lived up to expectations during his 2-year stint with the team. He was named the USBWA National Freshman of the Year for the 2012-13 season and as a sophomore, he was named the Big Ten Conference Men’s Basketball Player of the Year and also earned a 2014 NCAA Men’s Basketball consensus All-American selection.
NBA Career
Nik Stauskas entered the 2014 NBA Draft after his sophomore season and was drafted 8th overall by the Sacramento Kings. Though he received much media attention in his rookie season, the talented player had very little action on the court as he came off the bench in all but one of his 73 total appearances. He finished the season with 4.4 points and 1.2 rebounds. He was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers in July 2015 in a multi-player deal.
Stauskas did not have a smooth sail during his first season with the 76ers but managed to up his scoring average to 8.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. He equally showed a marginal improvement in the 2016-17 season that followed. However, his run with the team came to an end in December 2017 when he was traded mid-season to the Brooklyn Nets in a multi-player deal.
He came off the bench in all 35 appearances with the Nets for the remainder of the 2017-18 season. In July 2018, Nik Stauskas signed for the Portland Trail Blazers as a free agent.
Is Nik Stauskas Married? Girlfriend
Niks Stauskas is not married at the moment, however, there is credible evidence that he might just be tying the knot in the near future. In August 2018, the NBA star got engaged to his girlfriend, Alexandra Brynn, a University of Oregon law student. As revealed by Stauskas, the duo started dating officially on August 8, 2017, and one can say that things went pretty fast between them as he popped the big question after just one year.
Height and Other Body Measurements
Nik Stauskas stands at a height of 6 feet 6 inches (198 cm). He keeps his athletic physique at a body weight of 93 kg (205 lbs). The NBA star stands out for his off-the-hook shooting skills coupled with impressive athleticism and he will rely on these even as he continues the quest for his breakout NBA season.
