Brian Fitzpatrick (basketball)

Brian Fitzpatrick
Personal information
Born (1989-11-06) November 6, 1989 (age 35)
Bethpage, New York
NationalityIrish / American
Listed height6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)
Listed weight235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High school
College
NBA draft2014: undrafted
Playing career2014–present
PositionPower forward
Career history
2014Rethymno Aegean
2014Panionios
2015–2016Horsens IC
2016Levanga Hokkaido
2016–2017Prostějov
2018–2019Borås
2019–2020San Martin Corrientes
2021Haukar
2021–2022BC Odesa
2022Olimpia
2022Bashkimi
2022–2023KR
Career highlights and awards

Brian Edward Fitzpatrick (born November 6, 1989) is an Irish-American professional basketball player who plays the power forward position. He has represented the Irish National Team and played college basketball at Bucknell University.

High school career

Fitzpatrick played at Xavier High School before doing a post-graduate year at prep power Northfield Mount Hermon.[1]

College career

In October 2008, he committed to the University of Pennsylvania.[2] During his freshman season, head coach Glen Miller was fired[3] and he transferred to Bucknell University.[4] He redshirted for one season and played three more years for the Bison. Fitzpatrick played a limited reserve role in his first two years behind long time NBA veteran Mike Muscala. However he stepped in a bigger role in his final year of eligibility, when he was named to the academic All-Patriot League team in 2014.[5] His 2014 graduating class, headlined by Patriot League Player of the Year, Cameron Ayers, was the winningest class in program history, with a 94-39 record.[6]

Professional career

In August 2014, Fitzpatrick signed a two-year deal with Rethymno Aegean B.C.[7] However, he was released in October and transferred to Panionios[8] also of the Greek Basket League. In January 2015, he signed for the rest of the season with Horsens IC.[9] He helped them win the double and was named Finals MVP.

In September 2015, he resigned with Horsens IC for another season[10] and helped them repeat as champions of the Danish League.

In August 2016, Fitzpatrick signed with Levanga Hokkaido in the first division of the Japanese B.League.[11] Following an calf strain injury, he was released from his contract in early November.[12] On December 26, he signed with BK Prostějov of the NBL for the rest of the season.[13]

After missing the next season with an ACL tear, he signed with Borås Basket for the 2018–2019 season.[14] He helped Borås Basket to reach the SBL finals, the first in club history.

In July 2019, he signed with San Martin Corrientes of the LNB for the 2019–2020 season.[15]

In January 2021, Fitzpatrick signed with Úrvalsdeild karla club Haukar.[16] In 21 games, he averaged 14.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per game.

In August 2021, Fitzpatrick signed with BC Odesa of the Ukrainian Basketball SuperLeague for the 2021–2022 season.[17] He finished the season with Olimpia of the LUB following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[18] His chaotic escape out of Ukraine was chronicled in the Irish Independent.[19]

In August 2022, Fitzpatrick was announced as a new player for Bashkimi of the Superliga and Balkan League for the 2022-2023 season.[20]

In December 2022, Fitzpatrick signed with Úrvalsdeild karla club KR.[21]

International career

In 2016, Fitzpatrick played on Ireland's national team and their national 3x3 team.[22] He participated in the 2016 FIBA Europe 3x3 Championships qualifier in Escaldes-Engordany, Andorra. He also represented Ireland at the 2016 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries in Ciorescu, Moldova, where he was his team's top scorer and the third-best scorer of the tournament.[23]

In November 2021, he was called up for round 1 for the FIBA Eurobasket 2025 Pre-Qualifiers against Cyprus and Austria.[24]

References

  1. ^ "08 Turns to 09". 25 August 2008.
  2. ^ "Fitzpatrick Comes Full Circle". 15 October 2008.
  3. ^ "Penn fires basketball coach Glen Miller after 0-7 start - USATODAY.com". usatoday30.usatoday.com.
  4. ^ "Transfers in the News". 7 June 2010.
  5. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick Named to Academic All-Patriot League Team". Bucknell University Athletics.
  6. ^ "Cameron Ayers Named Patriot League Player of Year". Bucknell University Athletics.
  7. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick Signs with Greek First-Division Club". Bucknell University Athletics.
  8. ^ "Panionios adds six new players to their roster". 17 October 2014.
  9. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick joins Horsens IC". 9 January 2015.
  10. ^ "Horsens har sidste mand på plads i truppen – Fullcourt.dk". 3 September 2015.
  11. ^ "ニュース".
  12. ^ "ニュース".
  13. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick har fundet ny klub | Fullcourt.dk". 6 January 2017.
  14. ^ "» Hilliards MVP-lagkamrat till Borås Basket".
  15. ^ "Brian Fitzpatrick Joins San Martin".
  16. ^ Davíð Eldur (5 January 2021). "Morris og Fitzpatrick til Hauka". Karfan.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  17. ^ "Odessa inks Brian Fitzpatrick". www.eurobasket.com.
  18. ^ Scarabino, Mateo (18 March 2022). "Doble o nada" [Double or nothing]. BasquetTotal.com (in Spanish).
  19. ^ "Irish-American basketball player drove 400km to flee Ukraine after Russian invasion".
  20. ^ "Qendra Fitzpatrick transferohet te Bashkimi".
  21. ^ Ingvi Þór Sæmundsson (14 December 2022). "Írsk-bandarískur liðsstyrkur til KR". Vísir.is (in Icelandic). Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  22. ^ "Ireland set for European Basketball Championships".
  23. ^ "Ireland accumulated statistics | 2016 FIBA European Championship For Small Countries". archive.fiba.com.
  24. ^ "Hosford named Ireland captain, as Keenan selects final squad for FIBA EuroBasket 2025 Pre-Qualifiers".