Andrej Jakimovski

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Andrej Jakimovski
Jakimovski with Washington State in 2021
Colorado Buffaloes
PositionSmall forward
LeagueBig 12 Conference
Personal information
Born (2001-03-18) 18 March 2001 (age 23)
Skopje, Macedonia
Listed height2.02 m (6 ft 8 in)
Listed weight97.5 kg (215 lb)
Career information
College
Playing career2019–present
Career history
2019–2020Torino

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.

Early career[edit]

Jakimovski with Torino in 2019

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[edit]

As 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[edit]

Jakimovski 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]

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  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

References[edit]

  1. ^ 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.
  2. ^ Arthur, Ben (22 June 2020). "Washington State University signs elite European prospect Andrej Jakimovski". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  3. ^ a b Lawson, Theo (21 June 2020). "Washington State signs elite international prospect Andrej Jakimovski". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ Bolton, Barry (16 June 2021). "WSU forward Andrej Jakimovski enters transfer portal". 247 Sports. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  6. ^ 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.
  7. ^ Hicks, Daylon (6 July 2022). "Andrej Jakimovski showcases skills in FIBA Basketball World Cup Qualifiers". The Daily Evergreen. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  8. ^ 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.
  9. ^ "Former WSU wing Andrej Jakimovski transferring to Colorado". The Seattle Times. 21 April 2024. Retrieved 1 May 2024.

External links[edit]