Paul Millsap · Biography

The first title of Paul Millsap’s career came in 2004, when he led NCAA Division I in rebounding as a freshman at Louisiana Tech. Born on February 10, 1985, in Monroe, Louisiana, the 6-foot-7 power forward played 16 NBA seasons for the Utah Jazz, Atlanta Hawks, Denver Nuggets, Brooklyn Nets and Philadelphia 76ers. He was a four-time All-Star, every one of them with the Hawks, from 2014 to 2017.

Grambling and Louisiana Tech

Millsap played high school basketball at Grambling High School in northern Louisiana. In 2003 he was named Louisiana Mr. Basketball and earned fourth-team Parade All-American honors. Basketball ran in the family: his brother Elijah later played for the Utah Jazz, and his eldest brother, John, played at UTSA. He enrolled at Louisiana Tech in 2003 and stayed three seasons. He led Division I in rebounding in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and remains the only player to do so in three straight seasons. He was the Western Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year in 2004 and a first-team All-WAC pick in 2005 and 2006. Across 92 games he averaged 18.6 points, 12.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks. He declared for the draft in April 2006. Louisiana Tech retired his No. 24 and inducted him into its Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011.

Utah Jazz (2006-2013)

Utah took him with the 47th pick of the 2006 draft, in the second round. As a rookie he made the NBA All-Rookie Second Team and played in the 2007 Western Conference Finals, which the Jazz lost to the San Antonio Spurs. For several years he came off the bench behind Carlos Boozer. In July 2009, as a restricted free agent, he signed an offer sheet with the Portland Trail Blazers, and Utah matched it on July 17. He became the starting power forward in 2010-11. On November 9, 2010, he scored a career-high 46 points in a 116-114 overtime win over the Miami Heat.

Atlanta Hawks and four All-Star selections (2013-2017)

Millsap signed a two-year deal with the Atlanta Hawks on July 10, 2013, and his best years followed. On March 18, 2014, he posted his first triple-double, 19 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists, in an overtime win over Toronto. He was an All-Star reserve in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017. In 2015 the Hawks reached the Eastern Conference Finals, where Cleveland swept them 4-0. He re-signed for three years that July. In 2016 he made the NBA All-Defensive Second Team. In that year’s playoffs he scored 45 points against Boston on April 24, his playoff career high, and Atlanta beat the Celtics in six games before falling to Cleveland again. On January 29, 2017, he had 37 points and 19 rebounds in a quadruple-overtime win over the New York Knicks.

Denver Nuggets (2017-2021)

On July 13, 2017, Millsap signed a three-year deal with the Denver Nuggets. He started at power forward for a young team built around Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. In December 2018 he was named Western Conference Player of the Week. In 2020 Denver reached the Western Conference Finals and lost to the Los Angeles Lakers. He re-signed with the Nuggets for one more season on December 3, 2020.

Nets, 76ers and retirement (2021-2024)

He joined the Brooklyn Nets on September 10, 2021. On February 10, 2022, his 37th birthday, he was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers with James Harden for Ben Simmons, Seth Curry, Andre Drummond and two first-round picks. His final NBA game came on May 2, 2022, a 106-92 loss in Miami in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. He did not play again and announced his retirement on December 3, 2024.

Style and numbers

Undersized for a power forward, Millsap made up for it with strength, sound rebounding position and quick hands on defense. In Atlanta he added a reliable outside shot. He finished his career with 1,085 games, 14,536 points (13.4 per game), 7,673 rebounds (7.1) and 2,378 assists (2.2). He retired as one of eight players in NBA history with at least 500 three-pointers, 1,000 blocks and 1,000 steals, a list he closed out with his retirement in December 2024.