Matthew Dellavedova
Matthew William Dellavedova is an Australian professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association. He played college basketball for Saint Mary's College and has played on the Australian national team. Dellavedova won an NBA championship with the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016.
Early life
Born and raised in Maryborough, Victoria, Dellavedova is the oldest of three children in his family and is a sixth-generation Italian Australian. His father, Mark, grew up playing Australian rules football and his mother, Leanne, played netball.Dellavedova began playing basketball at the age of four. He attended Maryborough Regional College and played junior basketball for the Maryborough Blazers and played in under-12 and under-14 Bendigo Braves squads. Along with basketball, he played tennis, soccer, and Australian rules football at the junior level. In the latter sport, Dellavedova played the position of wing and kicked a total of 32 goals in 26 games between 1999 and 2001, but gave the game away to focus solely on basketball. Despite giving the game away at a young age, he is an avid supporter of the Collingwood Magpies in the Australian Football League.
Throughout his teenage years, he was selected for several Victorian state representative basketball sides and played alongside future Collingwood captain, Scott Pendlebury. In 2007, he moved to Canberra to attend the Australian Institute of Sport where he spent three years playing in the South East Australian Basketball League. Both of Dellavedova's sisters, Yana and Ingrid, play basketball as well, with Yana playing U.S. college basketball for Long Beach State in 2012–13.
College career
Dellavedova was recruited by Randy Bennett and the Saint Mary's College of California in 2009 and signed with the Gaels before the 2009–10 season. He was ranked by ESPN as one of the top junior players in Australia. Dellavedova immediately contributed for the Gaels and started all 34 games as a freshman. In 2009–10, he averaged 12.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game. That season, the Gaels won 28 games and reached the Sweet Sixteen of the 2010 NCAA men's basketball tournament. The Gaels reached the Sweet Sixteen by upsetting Villanova, 75–68. Dellavedova's crucial late free throws iced the game against the Wildcats.On 16 January 2013, Dellavedova scored 18 points, including a game-winning three-point buzzer-beater, in a 70–69 victory over the BYU Cougars. The forty-foot shot soon became known as the "Dellavedagger." In 2012–13, Dellavedova was an Academic All-America selection and a Senior CLASS Award finalist.
Dellavedova graduated from Saint Mary's in 2013 with a degree in psychology. He finished his college career as Saint Mary's all-time leader in scoring, assists, games played, free throw percentage, and three-point shots.
St. Mary's retired his jersey on 15 February 2014. Dellavedova's #4 was the second retired by the school's men's basketball program, joining Tom Meschery in the rafters of McKeon Pavilion.
Professional career
Cleveland Cavaliers (2013–2016)
2013–14 season
After going undrafted in the 2013 NBA draft, Dellavedova joined the Cleveland Cavaliers for the 2013 NBA Summer League. On 12 September 2013, he signed a two-year, $1.3 million contract with the Cavaliers, with $100,000 guaranteed. On 26 March 2014, he had a season-best game with 21 points and 6 assists in a 97–96 win over the Detroit Pistons.2014–15 season
In July 2014, Dellavedova re-joined the Cavaliers for the 2014 NBA Summer League. On 9 November 2014, he was ruled out for four to six weeks with a sprained left knee that he sustained in the fourth quarter of Cleveland's loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on 4 November. On 8 December 2014, he returned from injury to face the Brooklyn Nets.On 11 February 2015, Dellavedova was selected to participate in the Rising Stars Challenge as part of the 2015 NBA All-Star weekend. On 14 May 2015, Dellavedova scored a team-high 19 points to help the Cavaliers defeat the Chicago Bulls and advance to the Conference Finals for the first time since 2009.
Following the Cavaliers' Game 3 win over the Atlanta Hawks in Eastern Conference Finals, Dellavedova's aggressive play became a major talking point with some describing him as a "dirty" player. Despite this criticism, teammate LeBron James and NBA great Charles Barkley both defended Dellavedova's style of play.
In Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors, in the absence of the injured Kyrie Irving, Dellavedova held Stephen Curry to 0-of-8 shooting and four turnovers while guarding him. The Cavaliers won Game 2 in double-overtime, 95–93, for their first victory of an NBA Finals game in franchise history. In Game 3, Dellavedova scored a playoff career-high 20 points as the Cavaliers defeated the Warriors to take a 2–1 series lead. After the game, Dellavedova was so dehydrated that he needed an IV, and he was quickly taken to the Cleveland Clinic for medical attention. The Cavaliers went on to lose the last three games of the series, however, as Dellavedova shot just 19% from the field in those three games.
2015–16 season
On 27 July 2015, Dellavedova re-signed with the Cavaliers. On 19 November 2015, he recorded 7 points and a career-high 13 assists in a 115–100 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Four days later, he had a season-best game starting in place of injured guards Kyrie Irving and Mo Williams. In just under 24 minutes of action, he recorded 15 points and 9 assists in a 117–103 win over the Orlando Magic. On 20 December, he scored a season-high 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting in a 108–86 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. On 18 February, he returned to the line-up after missing five straight games with a strained hamstring.Dellavedova went on to help the Cavaliers defeat the Toronto Raptors on 27 May in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The 4–2 series win advanced the Cavaliers to their second straight NBA Finals. In a Finals rematch with the Warriors, the Cavaliers became the first team in NBA history to win the championship after being down 3–1 in the series.
Milwaukee Bucks (2016–2018)
On 7 July 2016, Dellavedova was acquired by the Milwaukee Bucks in a sign-and-trade deal with the Cavaliers, in which Cleveland received a $4.8 million trade exception and the rights to Albert Miralles, while Milwaukee also received cash considerations. Dellavedova's contract gave him $38 million over four years.Dellavedova made his debut for the Bucks in their season opener on 26 October 2016, scoring 11 points in 29 minutes as a starter in a 107–96 loss to the Charlotte Hornets. On 3 December 2016, he scored 12 of his season-high 18 points in the fourth quarter of the Bucks' 112–103 win over the Brooklyn Nets. After starting all 30 games to begin the season, he missed five straight games in late December and early January with a strained right hamstring.
Dellavedova missed 15 consecutive games with left knee tendinitis during November and December of the 2017–18 season. On 1 January 2018, Dellavedova had a season-high 10 assists in a 131–127 overtime loss to the Toronto Raptors. A right ankle sprain suffered on 4 February against the Nets saw Dellavedova miss 29 straight games, returning to action in the Bucks' regular-season finale against the Philadelphia 76ers on 11 April. He went on to play in six of the Bucks' seven playoff games.
Return to Cleveland (2018–present)
On 7 December 2018, Dellavedova was acquired by the Cleveland Cavaliers in a three-team trade that also involved the Bucks and the Washington Wizards. In his return game for the Cavaliers in Milwaukee three days later, Dellavedova received an ovation when he entered the game and finished with 11 points in 16 minutes in a 108–92 loss to the Bucks. On 8 March 2020 in a game against the Denver Nuggets, Dellavedova had a career high 14 assists in a 104-102 win.Career statistics
NBA
Regular season
Playoffs
College
Player profile
Dellavedova is well known for his high levels of effort while playing. Multiple players, coaches, and commentators have praised his toughness and competitiveness, particularly on defense. On account of his aggressiveness, some have cast Dellavedova as reckless or dirty. However, multiple current and former players have spoken in defense of Dellavedova, including LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Charles Barkley, and Antonio Davis. Dellavedova's offensive strengths includes his three-point shot, his floater, and his passing ability.International career
Dellavedova competed for the Australian junior national team at the 2009 FIBA Under-19 World Championship. He was the team's third leading scorer – averaging 10.1 points per game – for the fourth-place Australians. He was named in the Australian senior national team, the Boomers, to compete for the first time at the 2009 FIBA Oceania Championship. At age 19, he was the youngest Australian player at the competition. He went on to compete for the Boomers at the 2012 London Olympics, the 2014 World Cup in Spain, the 2016 Rio Olympics, and the 2019 World Cup in China.Personal life
Dellavedova married his long-time girlfriend, Anna Schroeder, on 1 July 2017, after proposing to her on 10 September 2016. Dellavedova met Schroeder at Saint Mary's, where she played volleyball and was an honor roll student. They started dating after his senior year. On 5 July 2019, the couple announced they were expecting their first child, a boy. On 6 November, he announced the birth of his son, Anders Ralph Dellavedova.He has a second cousin, also named Matthew Dellavedova, who is a tennis player in Australia. Dellavedova is good friends with his former Cavaliers teammate, Joe Harris.