Andrej Jakimovski (born 18 March 2001) is a Macedonian college basketball player for the Colorado Buffaloes of the Big 12 Conference. He previously played for the Washington State Cougars. Listed at 6 feet 8 inches (2.0 m) and 215 pounds (98 kg), he plays the small forward position.
 Jakimovski with Washington State in 2021 | |
| Colorado Buffaloes | |
|---|---|
| Position | Small forward |
| League | Big 12 Conference |
| Personal information | |
| Born | 18 March 2001 Skopje, Macedonia |
| Listed height | 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) |
| Listed weight | 97.5 kg (215 lb) |
| Career information | |
| College |
|
| Playing career | 2019–present |
| Career history | |
| 2019–2020 | Torino |
Early career
edit.jpg)
Jakimovski played for Basket Torino of the Italian Serie A2 Basket during the 2019–20 season. He saw little playing time for Torino. In the Italian NextGen Under-19 competition, he averaged 28 points, 14 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 3 steals per game.[1]
On 21 June 2020, Jakimovski committed to playing college basketball for the Washington State Cougars. He had several offers from European professional teams but decided to come to America to play collegiately.[1] According to Washington State coach Kyle Smith, the Cougars had been recruiting him for over a year.[2] Jakimovski was also recruited by Utah, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Minnesota, Utah State and Davidson.[3] He was regarded as a four-star prospect by 247Sports and is Washington State's fourth-highest rated recruit after Klay Thompson, Mouhamed Gueye, and Michael Harthun.[4]
College career
editAs a freshman, Jakimovski averaged 5.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game. After the season, he announced he was entering the transfer portal.[5] Jakimovski initially committed to Loyola (Maryland), but ultimately opted to return to Washington State.[6] As a sophomore, he averaged 5.4 points, 3.9 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game.[7] Jakimovski averaged 7.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game as a junior.[8]
Jakimovski entered the transfer portal at the end of the 2023–23 season, and committed to Colorado on 21 April 2024.[9]
National team career
editJakimovski made three appearances for the Macedonian junior national teams at the FIBA U16 and U18 European Championships.[1] He led the FIBA U18 European Championship B in scoring with 18.4 points per game to go with 9.4 rebounds per game, leading the team to a fourth-place finish.[3] In February 2020, Jakimovski made his debut for the senior national team during the FIBA European qualifying tournament.[1]
Career statistics
edit| 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 | Bold | Career high |
College
edit| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | Washington State | 25 | 19 | 25.2 | .313 | .320 | .600 | 4.1 | 1.8 | .3 | .2 | 5.5 |
| 2021–22 | Washington State | 37 | 5 | 18.9 | .386 | .383 | .719 | 3.9 | 0.8 | .5 | .1 | 5.4 |
| 2022–23 | Washington State | 23 | 21 | 26.7 | .361 | .345 | .615 | 4.6 | 1.1 | .7 | .3 | 7.7 |
| 2023–24 | Washington State | 35 | 35 | 33.6 | .361 | .332 | .600 | 5.6 | 1.3 | .6 | .4 | 9.7 |
References
edit- ^ a b c d Givony, Jonathan (21 June 2020). "Andrej Jakimovski to play for Washington State basketball after strong European season". ESPN. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ Arthur, Ben (22 June 2020). "Washington State University signs elite European prospect Andrej Jakimovski". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ a b Lawson, Theo (21 June 2020). "Washington State signs elite international prospect Andrej Jakimovski". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ Lawson, Theo (23 June 2020). "Andrej Jakimovski earns 4-star rating, giving Washington State top recruiting class in program history". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
- ^ Bolton, Barry (16 June 2021). "WSU forward Andrej Jakimovski enters transfer portal". 247 Sports. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
- ^ Nusser, Jeff; Powers, Craig (14 August 2021). "Andrej Jakimovski finds his way back home, will return to WSU". Coug Center. SB Nation. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- ^ Hicks, Daylon (6 July 2022). "Andrej Jakimovski showcases skills in FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers". The Daily Evergreen. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
- ^ Woods, Greg (30 September 2023). "How far can WSU men's hoops go this season? That might depend on the newcomers". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
- ^ "Former WSU wing Andrej Jakimovski transferring to Colorado". The Seattle Times. 21 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.