Indiana Pacers Pre-Draft Workouts: Josh Bannan One-on-One Interview (June 6, 2023)
Note: Bannan has elected to withdraw from the 2023 NBA Draft.
Height: 6-10
Weight: 222
Position: F
College: Montana
Age: 22
2022-23 Season Stats
PPG: 15.0
RPG: 8.5
APG: 3.6
BLK: 0.5
STL: 0.7
Player Bio
Courtesy of Montana Athletics
2022-23 (Junior): All-Big Sky Conference first team… Zootown Classic MVP… CoSIDA Academic All-America third team for second year in a row… Academic All-Big Sky Conference for the third year in a row… Big Sky Player of the Week on Nov. 22… Started all 31 games for Montana, averaging 34.1 minutes per game… averaged 15.0 points per game to rank second on Montana and 11th in the Big Sky… led the Grizzlies and ranked third in the conference with 8.5 rebounds per game… also led Montana in assists, ranking fifth in the league with 3.6 per game… ranked eighth in the Big Sky in assist/turnover ratio at 1.4… his 34.1 minutes per game were the eighth most in the Big Sky… ended the season with eight double-doubles, the fourth most in the Big Sky and tied for 87th in the NCAA… ranked 43rd in the NCAA in defensive rebounds per game with 6.4… ranked 75th in the NCAA and fourth in the Big Sky with 265 total rebounds… was an efficient scorer for Montana, making 49.9 percent of his field goals to rank fourth in the league and 98th in the country… he had five games with at least 10 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists, which was tied for the fourth-most in the country… scored his 1,000th career point against Weber State (1/12) to become the 35th Grizzly to ever reach the milestone… finished his Grizzly career with 1,191 points to rank 20th all-time… one of just 14 players in Montana history with 1,000 career points and 600 career rebounds… finished his second consecutive season with at least 250 total rebounds, the first Grizzly to do that since Daren Engellant in 1991-92… In Montana’s win against St. Thomas (11/17), Bannan had 23 points, 17 rebounds, and six assists, one of just eight players with that stat line during the 2022-23 season… scored in double figures in 26 of the 31 games on the season, including a stretch of 10 straight at one point… scored a season-high 27 points in a win at North Dakota State (12/10)… had seven 20-point games… ended season with 10 games with at least 10 rebounds, including a season-high 17 against St. Thomas (11/17)… followed that game up with a 15-rebound, 12-point double-double against Merrimack (11/18)… named the Zootown Classic MVP the following night after averaging 14.3 points and 13.3 rebounds in the three-game stretch… his play during the Zootown Classic also earned him the Big Sky Player of the Week on Nov. 22… had 12 games with at least five assists, and led Montana in the category in 17 games during the season… led the Grizzlies in rebounding in 23 games, and scoring in 10… played a season-high 44 minutes in an overtime loss at Northern Arizona (1/5)… shot 40.4 percent from three-point range on 47 attempts, improving his average for the third straight year… made 77.0 percent of his free throws on 126 attempts… scored the ball efficiently with seven games in double-figures while also shooting better than 60 percent from the field… had at least four assists in 10 straight games during Big Sky play… made 11 free throws against Eastern Washington (12/29), and had three games on the season with at least eight made free throws… co-led the Grizzlies with 23 steals… tied for second on the team with 15 blocks… 13 of his 15 blocks came during Big Sky play… one of only 31 players in the NCAA to average 49 percent from the floor, 40 percent from three and 75 percent from the free throw line (min. 500 minutes)… announced following the season that he would pursue a professional career, and has signed with the Brisbane Bullets of the NBL.
2021-22 (Sophomore): All-Big Sky Conference second team… Zootown Classic MVP… CoSIDA Academic All-America third team… Academic All-Big Sky Conference for the second year in a row… Earned All-Big Sky Conference second-team honors after ranking second in Big Sky play for rebounding (8.2 per game, 60th in NCAA), second for shooting (.520) and seventh for scoring (17.0 per game)… Was the league’s only player to average 17.0 points and 8.0 rebounds per game… Also ranked in the top 15 in Big Sky play for free-throw shooting, blocked shots and minutes played… Led Montana for scoring and rebounding on the season, recording the Grizzlies’ third-highest rebounding average since 2001… Recorded 11 double-doubles, which ranked second in the Big Sky and 36th in the NCAA… Led Montana for scoring a team-best 12 times, scoring in double figures 25 times and reaching 20-plus points on eight occasions… Scored in double figures in 18 of the final 19 games of the season, including the final nine… Led the Grizzlies for rebounding a team-most 24 times… Led the Grizzlies for steals a team-high 11 times… Recorded multiple assists in each of the final seven games of the season (2.6 average)… In the regular-season finale vs. Sacramento State (March 5), scored 20 points and pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds (fourth-most by a Big Sky player in 2021-22), in addition to three assists and two steals... Totaled 23 points in a win over Montana State (Feb. 27), with 14 coming in the first half… He also added seven rebounds, three assists and a career-high three blocked shots… Scored a career-high 26 points vs. Southern Utah (Feb. 7), connecting on nine shot attempts while also adding eight rebounds and two blocked shots… Scored 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting, plus five rebounds, two steals and two assists, at Portland State (Jan. 20), and 21 points and nine boards vs. Eastern Washington (Jan. 29)… Reached 20 points in four consecutive games from Feb. 12-27, averaging 22.3 on .593 shooting… Recorded four consecutive double-doubles from Dec. 30 through Jan. 9, averaging 14.8 points and 10.3 rebounds per game during that span… Totaled a team-high 19 points and 10 rebounds vs. Idaho State (Dec. 30) before a 13-point and 10-rebound performance vs. Weber State (Jan. 1)… Had a career night in a win over Omaha (Nov. 20), scoring a then-career-best 24 points (10-of-14 shooting) in addition to 12 rebounds… Was in double figures for scoring three games in a row from Nov. 20-26… During that span, was named the Zootown Classic MVP (Nov. 26) after nearly averaging a double-double in a pair of Griz wins (15.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.0 steals, 1.5 assists and 0.5 blocks per game)… Scored 15 points vs. Southern Miss, with 13 of them coming in the game’s final 9 minutes as Montana over-came a deficit… Became the eighth player in school history to earn Academic All-America status, being one of 15 players nationally – and the only sophomore – to be recognized by CoSIDA in March… At his current average, is on pace to finish his career ranked in the top four in school history for rebounding and top 10 for scoring.
2020-21 (Freshman): Academic All-Big Sky Conference… Started 23 games for Montana, including the Grizzlies' first 14 and final nine… Led Montana with 166 rebounds (5.9 average) and ranked fourth on the team for scoring (8.6)… Averaged 5.9 rebounds per Big Sky game, which ranked ninth in the league… Is one of just 12 players in Griz history to eclipse 200 points during his true freshman season (242)… Along with freshman teammates Robby Beasley III and Brandon Whitney, the trio set a Montana freshman record with 751 points scored, accounting for 37.9 percent of the team’s scoring (also a school record)… The group also combined to play more than 2,000 minutes, second only to Kansas State, and was the country’s only team in 2020-21 to have three true freshmen average at least 25.0 minutes per game… Was in double figures for scoring 13 times, leading the Griz for scoring on five times… Was in double figures for rebounding five times, including three double-doubles… Was in double figures for scoring in five consecutive games from Feb. 11-25, averaging 15.3 points on .620 shooting during that span… Led Montana with 19 points and 13 rebounds in a win at Idaho State (Feb. 25), scoring 10 of the Grizzlies' first 12 points… Nearly had a double-double the previous game, totaling a career-high 20 points and nine rebounds vs. Eastern Washington (Feb. 20)… Regained his form in a series vs. Weber State (Feb. 11-13), averaging 11.5 points on 10-of-13 shooting, and at one point making nine consecutive shots… Was in a slump prior to that performance, shooting 9-of-31 over his previous seven games (1-of-13 at one point) while averaging just 3.6 points per contest… In the win over Weber State (Feb. 11), he shot 6-of-6 from the floor while recording 13 points, four rebounds, three assists, two steals and being praised for his defense… Scored in double figures in three consecutive games from Dec. 12-18… Had back-to-back double-doubles in December, scoring 12 points and pulling down 12 rebounds in a road win at Washington of the Pac-12 (Dec. 16), before totaling 16 points and 12 boards vs. Dickinson State (Dec. 18)… Scored 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting vs. Yellowstone Christian (Dec. 12)… Made a game-winning shot vs. Northern Colorado (Jan. 4), sinking a mid-range jumper on an in-bounds pass to give Montana the lead with 4.9 seconds to play… Scored 13 points in his collegiate debut at USC (Nov. 28), while playing 35 minutes.
High School: Is a 2020 graduate of UC Senior Secondary College Lake Ginninderra in Canberra… Also attended St. Kevin’s College, in Victoria and played for the Blackburn Vikings… Competed at the Centre of Excellence, which is part of the NBL1, a semi-professional Australian league that is on par with the NBA G-League and features some G-League players… Has also spent time at the NBA Global Academy, which serves as the NBA’s training hub for the top prospects outside of the U.S. and has produced future NBA players, including Andrew Bogut (2005 No. 1 overall pick), Matthew Dellavedova and Patty Mills… At the NBA Global Academy in 2019, totaled 13.6 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game… Nearly averaged a double-double with 13.7 points and 9.9 rebounds per game while helping Team Victoria to a gold medal at the 2019 Australian U20 Championships in Canberra… Also played for the U17 national team, where Bannan finished sixth at the 2018 U17 World Cup in Argentina… Played in the Australian circuit with current Grizzly Hunter Clarke.
Personal: Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia... Parents are Chris and Tracey Bannan... Has a younger sister, Eliza... Is studying economics with a minor in mathematics.