Former Kimball High School Star/McDonald's All-American Transfers to North Texas

Former Kimball High School Star/McDonald's All-American Transfers to North Texas
Source: meangreensports.com

DENTON --  North Texas head men’s basketball coach Tony Benford has announced the signing of former SMU standout and McDonald’s All-American guard Keith Frazier. Frazier becomes the first McDonalds All-American to play at North Texas. Frazier will have to sit out two semesters before becoming eligible for Dec. 2016. 

Frazier played for Coach Royce Johnson at Dallas Kimball High School and as a senior, the McDonald's All-American helped Dallas Kimball to the 4A State Final as he averaged 23.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and 6.3 assists while hitting 43 percent of his 3-pointers. The All-State guard, rated as high as No. 18 nationally, was also named Dallas Morning News Area Player of the Year. As a junior, Frazier averaged 21.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game in leading Kimball to the Class 4A State Championship.

“Keith (Frazier) is a great kid and I’ve known him since the eighth grade,” head coach Tony Benford said. “We have had a long relationship similar to mine with J-Mychal Reese. Those two were teammates in AAU so that helped. Keith was looking for a new start and I told him you have a chance to write your own story here.” 

The 6-foot-5 guard averaged 11.9 points in 10 games as a junior this season before leaving SMU for personal reasons. In two and a half seasons, Frazier has scored 493 total points in college and is known for his high percentage three point shot along with being an above average defender. 

“We are getting a really good player who has been coached by some of the best coaches in the world in Larry Brown, his high school coach Royce Johnson and at AAU in Erven Davis,” Benford added. “We feel very fortunate to have him at North Texas and believe he will have an immediate impact on our program.” 

During his sophomore season, Frazier played in 17 games, started 16 and averaged 10.5 points with four rebounds. He earned the AAC Weekly Honor Roll award in Dec. 2014. Frazier scored a career-high 20 points, five rebounds against UCSB. He also shot 33.3 percent from the three point line (23 of 69). 

In his first season (2013-14) at SMU, Frazier played in 36 games, averaged 5.4 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists in 14.8 minutes per game. He scored 11 points, including nine from beyond the arc in his collegiate debut against TCU. 

"We like guards who can dribble, shoot and pass,” Benford said. “One thing I really like about him is that he can really defend and adds some toughness to this team. I think he will be one of the best players in our league next year. You look at the nucleus coming back and you add Keith to that group we have a chance to be really good next year.”