Garrett Bartholomew Temple (born May 8, 1986) is an American professional basketball player for the Toronto Raptors of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the LSU Tigers.
High school career
Temple attended LSU Laboratory School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. As a senior, he averaged 13.9 points, 7.4 rebounds and 5.5 assists in leading University High to the 2004 Class 2A state championship.
At University High, Temple also competed in track and field, where he was a long jump and triple jump specialist.
College career
After redshirting the 2004–05 season at Louisiana State University to work on his game, Temple earned a reputation as a defensive stopper as a freshman in 2005–06. In 36 games (35 starts), he averaged 5.1 points, 2.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals in 33.3 minutes per game.
In his sophomore season, he finished the year with 138 assists and 83 turnovers, a 1.7 assist/turnover ratio, which was 10th best in the SEC. In May 2007, he was part of the Reach USA Tour of China, an all-star team of players that went 6–2 against two Chinese league teams. In 32 games (all starts), he averaged 8.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.6 steals per game.
In his junior season, he played a team-high 1,066 minutes and ranked 11th in the league in assist average. In 31 games, he averaged 6.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
In his senior season, he became LSU's all-time leader in minutes played (4,432), breaking a record set by Howard Carter in 1983. He earned All-SEC Defensive team honors, as well as being named to the coaches' All-SEC second team. In 35 games, he averaged 7.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.7 steals per game.
Professional career
Rio Grande Valley Vipers (2009–2010) After going undrafted in the 2009 NBA draft, Temple joined the Houston Rockets for the 2009 NBA Summer League. In September 2009, he signed with the Rockets. However, he was later waived by the Rockets on October 21, 2009. In November 2009, he was acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers as an affiliate player.
Houston Rockets (2010) On February 8, 2010, Temple signed a 10-day contract with the Rockets. On February 20, 2010, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Rockets.
Sacramento Kings (2010) On March 3, 2010, Temple signed a 10-day contract with the Sacramento Kings.
San Antonio Spurs (2010) On March 13, 2010, Temple signed a 10-day contract with the San Antonio Spurs. On March 23, 2010, he signed with the Spurs for the rest of the season.
In July 2010, Temple joined the San Antonio Spurs for the 2010 NBA Summer League. On November 11, 2010, he was waived by the Spurs.
Return to the Vipers (2010) On November 30, 2010, Temple was re-acquired by the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.
Erie BayHawks (2010–2011) On December 30, 2010, Temple was traded to the Erie BayHawks in exchange for Jeff Adrien.
Milwaukee Bucks (2011) On January 25, 2011, Temple signed a 10-day contract with the Milwaukee Bucks. On February 5, 2011, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Bucks.
Return to the BayHawks (2011) On February 17, 2011, Temple returned to the BayHawks.
Charlotte Bobcats (2011) On March 7, 2011, Temple signed a 10-day contract with the Charlotte Bobcats. On March 17, 2011, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Bobcats. On March 28, 2011, he signed with the Bobcats for the rest of the season.
Casale Monferrato (2011–2012) On July 27, 2011, Temple signed a one-year deal with Novipiù Casale Monferrato of Italy. In 28 games, he averaged 9.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.5 steals per game as Casale finished last on the ladder in 2011–12 with an 8–24 record.
Reno Bighorns (2012) In July 2012, Temple joined the Oklahoma City Thunder for the Orlando Summer League and the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Las Vegas Summer League.
On September 13, 2012, Temple signed with the Miami Heat. He was later waived by the Heat on October 27, 2012. On November 1, 2012, he was re-acquired by the Erie BayHawks. Four days later, he was traded to the Reno Bighorns.
Washington Wizards (2012–2016) On December 25, 2012, Temple signed with the Washington Wizards.
On July 10, 2013, Temple re-signed with the Wizards. On July 18, 2014, he again re-signed with the Wizards to a two-year, $2 million deal. On November 1, 2014, he scored a then-career-high 18 points in a 108–97 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.