Posted: July 16, 2012
The Phoenix Suns have signed 2012 first-round pick Kendall Marshall to a contract, the club has announced. Phoenix selected Marshall with the 13th overall pick in this year’s draft on June 28.
Marshall, a 6-4, 195-pound pure point guard, was a two-year performer at North Carolina where this season he earned the 2012 Bob Cousy Award as the nation’s top point guard after serving as the floor general for the nation’s second-highest scoring offense (82.0; Iona, 83.3).
An unselfish and accurate passer, Marshall averaged an Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) single-season record 9.8 assists, second-most in the nation, and the eighth-highest average in NCAA history overall.
In doing so, he established an NCAA record for the highest assist average by a sophomore in history and a single-season ACC record for total assists (311).
An Associated Press Third-Team All-American and CBS Sports.com First Team All-America selection, Marshall earned Second-Team All-ACC honors in 2011-12 and was named Third-Team All-ACC as a freshman.
The 20-year-old Marshall finished his collegiate career as the all-time assist average leader (7.96) at North Carolina’s decorated program, and as the owner of the best assist-to-turnover ratio in conference history (3.01). He led the conference in assists in both of his collegiate seasons, and became just the second Tar Heel ever to do so as a freshman.
A capable all-around player, Marshall established career averages of 7.2 points, 8.0 assists, 2.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals in 73 career games. He is a career 44.5 percent shooter overall, including 36.4 percent from three-point range. As a sophomore, he averaged 8.1 points, 9.8 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals while making 46.7 percent of his shots overall.