Mathias Lessort

Mathias Lessort
Lessort with Unicaja
No. 26 – Panathinaikos
PositionCenter
LeagueGBL
EuroLeague
Personal information
Born (1995-09-29) 29 September 1995 (age 29)
Fort-de-France, Martinique
NationalityFrench
Listed height2.06 m (6 ft 9 in)
Listed weight116 kg (256 lb)
Career information
NBA draft2017: 2nd round, 50th overall pick
Selected by the Philadelphia 76ers
Playing career2014–present
Career history
2014–2016Élan Chalon
2016–2017Nanterre 92
2017–2018Crvena zvezda
2018–2019Málaga
2019–2020Bayern Munich
2020–2021AS Monaco
2021Maccabi Tel Aviv
2021–2023Partizan
2023–presentPanathinaikos
Career highlights and awards
Stats at Basketball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Medals
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2024 Paris Team
FIBA World Cup
Bronze medal – third place 2019 China

Mathias Michel Lessort (born 29 September 1995) is a French professional basketball player for Panathinaikos of the Greek Basketball League (GBL) and the EuroLeague. He stands 206 cm (6’9’’) tall and plays at the center position. A two-time All-EuroLeague First Team selection in 2023 and 2024, Lessort won the EuroLeague title in 2024 with Panathinaikos.

Early years

Born in the French overseas department of Martinique and raised in Le Morne-Vert until the age of 15,[1] Lessort joined the youth ranks of Élan Chalon in 2010 and won the French national championship with Chalon’s cadet team in 2012 and 2013 and with their development team ("Espoirs") in 2013. He also helped Chalon win the 2013 Trophée du Futur.[2]

Professional career

Early years

Lessort was handed his first professional contract by the club in June 2014[3] and made his debut in the French top-flight Pro A during the 2014–15 season. Before turning professional, he had considered enrolling at a university in the United States and had been in touch with Gonzaga and North Carolina State.[4]

He saw action in 23 games as a rookie, chipping in with 2.0 points a game, while pulling down 2.0 rebounds per contest.[5] In 2015–16, he logged his first minutes in a European club competition, the FIBA Europe Cup.[6]

In April 2016, he declared for the NBA draft,[7] but later withdrew.[8] On 1 June 2016 he joined JSF Nanterre of the French Pro A on a three-year deal.[9] In April 2017, Lessort won both the French Basketball Cup and the FIBA Europe Cup championships with Nanterre.[10]

On 11 August 2017 Lessort signed a three-year deal with the Serbian club Crvena zvezda.[11][12] He played there only in the 2017–18 season, before signing with Spanish ACB side Unicaja in July 2018.[13]

Lessort spent the 2019–20 season in Germany with Bayern Munich.

AS Monaco (2020–2021)

On 18 September 2020, Lessort signed with AS Monaco of the French LNB Pro A.[14]

Maccabi Tel Aviv (2021)

On 25 September 2021, Lessort signed a 2-month contract with Maccabi Tel Aviv of the Israeli Premier League in order to replace the injured Ante Žižić.[15] In five games, Lessort averaged 7.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game. He parted ways with the team on 26 November.[16]

Partizan Belgrade (2021–2023)

On 20 December 2021, Lessort signed with KK Partizan of the Basketball League of Serbia, the ABA League and the EuroCup.[17]

On 18 July 2022, he signed a new contract with Partizan.[18] Under coach Željko Obradović. He was one of the most useful players in the Euroleague, he was in the first team of the Euroleague, and he was also one of the main candidates for the MVP title. During the 2022–23 season, Partizan was eliminated from the Real Madrid in tight playoffs series. Over the season, Lessort averaged 12 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. Partizan ended the 2022–23 season by lifting the ABA League championship trophy, after 3–2 score against Crvena zvezda in the Finals series.[19]

Panathinaikos (2023–present)

On 27 June 2023, Lessort signed a two-year contract with Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos. On February 29, 2024, in a 97–86 win against Real Madrid, Lessort set his EuroLeague career-high of 26 points, alongside 7 rebounds and 4 assists. On May 26, 2024, Lessort helped Panathinaikos win its seventh EuroLeague title by scoring 17 points and recording 6 rebounds in a 95–80 win over Real Madrid in the final.

NBA draft rights

Lessort was drafted in the second round as the 50th pick in the 2017 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. In July 2019, his draft rights were traded to the Los Angeles Clippers as part of a four-team trade.[20] On 19 November 2020 his draft rights were traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves.[21] Lessort's draft rights were traded again, to the New York Knicks, on 20 November.[22]

National team career

Lessort played in the 2013 Nike Global Challenge, averaging 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks a game,[23] while receiving International All-Tournament Team honors.[24]

He represented France at the 2014[25] and 2015 U20 European Championships. In 2015, he averaged 4.1 points and 5.1 rebounds en route to a semifinal appearance.[26] As a member of the French men's national team, he captured a bronze medal at the 2019 World Cup[27] and a silver medal at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  PIR  Performance Index Rating
 Bold  Career high

EuroLeague

† Denotes season in which Lessort won the EuroLeague
* Led the league
Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2017–18 Crvena zvezda 30 29 21.1 .549 .000 .632 5.7 .8 .8 .7 8.5 10.7
2019–20 Bayern Munich 22 4 11.3 .528 — .600 2.2 .5 .5 .5 3.8 4.2
2021–22 Maccabi Tel Aviv 5 3 11.7 .737 — .562 3.4 .6 1.0 — 7.4 9.2
2022–23 Partizan 38 23 30.2 .674 .000 .734 7.1* 1.4 .9 .8 12.0 19.1
2023–24† Panathinaikos 41* 29 29.4 .624 .000 .607 6.3 1.4 1.0 .9 13.9 19.6
Career 136 88 24.3 .618 .000 .647 5.6 1.1 .8 .7 10.3 14.6

EuroCup

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG PIR
2018–19 Málaga 19 11 21.9 .701 — .602 5.4 1.1 .9 1.3 11.0 16.6
2020–21 Monaco 23 17 24.6 .583 .000 .672 6.1 1.1 .9 1.2 12.5 17.8
2021–22 Partizan 10 4 23.4 .634 — .683 6.4 1.0 1.0 .5 13.1 19.1
Career 52 32 23.4 .630 .000 .651 5.9 1.1 .9 1.1 12.1 17.6

FIBA Europe Cup

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2015–16 Élan Chalon 18 6 16.1 .623 — .721 5.0 .8 .4 .9 7.2
2016–17 Nanterre 20 18 21.3 .634 .000 .689 6.3 .6 .7 1.3 9.9
Career 38 24 18.8 .630 .000 .705 5.7 .7 .6 1.1 8.6

Domestic leagues

Year Team League GP MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2014–15 France Élan Chalon Pro A 23 5.9 .586 .000 .667 2.3 .1 .3 .2 2.2
2015–16 France Élan Chalon Pro A 34 12.4 .625 1.000 .633 4.4 .7 .4 .8 5.6
2016–17 France Nanterre Pro A 36 22.9 .574 1.000 .593 7.2 .7 .7 1.0 10.2
2017–18 Serbia Crvena zvezda KLS 15 12.0 .563 .500 .657 3.8 .4 .7 .3 4.0
2017–18 Serbia Crvena zvezda ABA 29 18.4 .671 — .608 4.4 .6 .9 .9 8.8
2018–19 Spain Málaga ACB 37 20.0 .566 — .647 5.3 1.0 .9 .5 8.6
2019–20 Germany Bayern Munich BBL 19 15.8 .620 — .565 3.9 .8 .8 1.1 6.5
2020–21 France Monaco LNB Élite 31 21.7 .610 .000 .565 5.6 2.0 1.0 .7 10.8
2021–22 Serbia Partizan ABA 22 22.8 .632 — .664 5.9 1.6 .7 .9 10.1
2022–23 Serbia Partizan ABA 32 21.6 .692 — .704 5.2 1.4 1.1 .6 9.3
2023–24 Greece Panathinaikos HEBA A1 28 21.0 .630 .000 .674 5.1 1.0 1.0 .6 10.8

Personal life

His brother Grégory Lessort is also a professional basketball player.[28]

Orders

References

  1. ^ Milanti, Cesare (2024-05-27). "Mathias Lessort blasts critics: "I've seen this sh-t, I bring the receipt"". Eurohoops. Retrieved 2024-06-02.
  2. ^ "Premier contrat pro pour Mathias Lessort et Axel Bouteille". Élan Chalon. Archived from the original on 2015-09-23. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  3. ^ "Chalon : Premiers contrats pros pour Lessort et Bouteille". France info (in French). Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  4. ^ "Mathias Lessort, basketteur du centre de formation de l'Élan Chalon : " Pour l'équipe de France U-20, ça commence à être d'un niveau au-dessus " - Toute l'actualité de la Martinique sur Internet - FranceAntilles.fr". France-Antilles Martinique. 23 August 2013. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  5. ^ "Mathias Lessort - Chalon/Saône – Joueurs - Pro A – LNB.fr". www.lnb.fr. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  6. ^ "Mathias Lessort | FIBA Europe Cup". www.fibaeurope.com. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  7. ^ "Mathias Lessort (Chalon) se présentera à la Draft NBA". L'Equipe.fr (in French). Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  8. ^ Release, Official. "Thirty-three international early-entry candidates withdraw from Draft". NBA.com. Archived from the original on 2019-03-19. Retrieved 2016-11-17.
  9. ^ "JSF Nanterre - Mathias Lessort, nouvelle recrue de Nanterre 92 !". www.nanterre92.com. Archived from the original on 2017-03-05. Retrieved 2016-06-02.
  10. ^ "Nanterre continue magical week; hold off Elan Chalon in title-decider". FIBA Europe Cup. 2017-04-25. Archived from the original on October 24, 2017. Retrieved 2017-04-26.
  11. ^ "Mathias Lessort is the new Crvena zvezda mts reinforcement". aba-liga.com. August 11, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2017.
  12. ^ "Zvezda adds young rebounding ace Lessort". www.euroleague.net. 11 August 2017. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  13. ^ VincentCouty. "Matthias Lessort arrive en Liga Endesa... Destination Unicaja Malaga !!". Inside Basket Europe (in French). Retrieved 2018-10-09.
  14. ^ Carchia, Emiliano (September 18, 2020). "Mathias Lessort officially joins AS Monaco". Sportando. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  15. ^ Maggi, Alessandro (September 27, 2021). "Maccabi Tel Aviv officially signs Mathias Lessort". Sportando. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  16. ^ "Mathias Lessort left Maccabi Tel Aviv". Eurobasket. November 26, 2021. Retrieved November 26, 2021.
  17. ^ "KOŠARKAŠKA TRANSFER BOMBA! Matijas Lesor POTPISAO ZA PARTIZAN, crno-beli potvrdili veliko pojačanje!". kurir.rs (in Serbian). Retrieved 2021-12-20.
  18. ^ Normasoft. Net, Normasoft. "Lesor ostaje crno-beli". Normacore.com. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
  19. ^ "PARTIZAN MOZZART BET ARE 2022/23 ADMIRALBET ABA LEAGUE CHAMPIONS". aba-liga.com. 22 June 2023. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  20. ^ "HEAT Acquire Butler And Leonard". NBA.com. July 6, 2019. the Clippers received...the draft rights to Mathias Lessort from Philadelphia
  21. ^ "LA Clippers Acquire Draft Rights to Daniel Oturu". nba.com. November 19, 2020. Retrieved November 20, 2020.
  22. ^ "Knicks Acquire Draft Rights to Kentucky's Immanuel Quickley". NBA.com. November 20, 2020. Retrieved November 21, 2020.
  23. ^ "Tournament Individual Leaders" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  24. ^ "Info | Nike Global Challenge". www.nikeglobalchallenge.com. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  25. ^ "Mathias Lessort | U20 European Championship Men (2014) | FIBA Europe". www.fibaeurope.com. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  26. ^ "Mathias Lessort | U20 Europe Championship Men - Division A". u20men.fibaeurope.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-13. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  27. ^ "Basket-ball. Mathias Lessort : " Je ne me projette jamais trop "". www.lejsl.com (in French). Retrieved 2024-05-27.
  28. ^ "Pas d'erreur, c'est Lessort !". www.lnb.fr. Retrieved 2016-04-23.
  29. ^ Décret du 23 septembre 2024 portant promotion et nomination dans l'ordre national du Mérite.