# John Tonje
**John Tonje** (born 2001) is an American professional basketball player who is a guard for the [Portland Trail Blazers](https://www.edgepedia.org/portland-trail-blazers) of the NBA. He played college basketball for Colorado State, Missouri, and Wisconsin, broke through as a sixth-year senior at Wisconsin with a 19.6-point season that earned second-team [All-America](https://www.edgepedia.org/all-america) honors, and was selected 53rd overall by the [Utah Jazz](https://www.edgepedia.org/utah-jazz) in the 2025 NBA draft.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje/bio) • [2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) • [3](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/men/2025.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Born | 2001; listed at 6'4" (1.93 m) and 218 lb (99 kg) by NBA.com[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje/bio) |
| College | Colorado State, Missouri, and Wisconsin; 167 career games, 10.8 points and 3.4 rebounds per game[2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) |
| 2024-25 Wisconsin season | 19.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists per game on .465 FG, .388 3P, and .909 FT in 37 games[3](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/men/2025.html) |
| Honors | Unanimous first-team All-Big Ten; second-team AP All-American; 2024-25 consensus second-team All-American[4](https://uwbadgers.com/news/2025/3/11/mens-basketball-tonje-earns-unanimous-first-team-all-big-ten-honors) • [5](https://apnews.com/article/881a4bca44508d878dc22b4ede7ad5d6) • [2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) |
| NBA draft | 53rd overall pick (2nd round, 23rd pick), Utah Jazz, 2025[2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) |
| Pro career | Six games with the Boston Celtics as a rookie; G League 2025-26 with Salt Lake City at 17.9 points per game; two-way contract with Portland, July 2026[6](https://www.nba.com/blazers/news/portland-trail-blazers-sign-john-tonje-to-two-way-contract) • [7](https://gleague.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje) |
| Background | From Omaha, Nebraska; Omaha Central High School; father Jean "Bertin" Tonje is a Cameroon native who played soccer for the Cameroon national team[2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) • [8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195) |
## College career
Tonje is from [Omaha, Nebraska](https://www.edgepedia.org/omaha-nebraska), and attended Omaha Central High School before playing college basketball at Colorado State, Missouri, and Wisconsin.[2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) He joined the Wisconsin Badgers as a sixth-year transfer graduate student after playing at Missouri and Colorado State, entering the 2024-25 season with 130 career games (50 starts) and making him one of the most experienced players on the roster.[8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195) He earned his bachelor's degree from Colorado State in Business/Real Estate and studied Sports Leadership as a graduate student.[8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195)
**Breakout at Wisconsin.** The transfer paid off immediately. In his fourth game of the 2024-25 season, Tonje scored 41 points, including a school-record 21 made free throws, in an upset win over Arizona.[9](https://api-hub.nba.com/draft/2025/prospects/john-tonje) Across 37 games, all starts, he averaged 19.6 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.8 assists while shooting .465 from the field, .388 on three-pointers, and .909 from the free-throw line.[3](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/men/2025.html) He broke Wisconsin records for single-season free throws (231), free throw percentage (90.9%), and single-game free throws (21), and set a school record by scoring 37 points in the NCAA Tournament against BYU.[8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195) He also scored 19 points in a Big Ten Championship semifinal against 7th-ranked Michigan State.[8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195)
The Associated Press placed him on its second-team All-America squad, noting that Tonje, along with JT Toppin and PJ Haggerty, took advantage of a change of scenery through the transfer portal to have a breakout season.[5](https://apnews.com/article/881a4bca44508d878dc22b4ede7ad5d6) He was one of three second-team AP All-Americans who began at programs outside the power conferences, having started at Colorado State.[10](https://apnews.com/article/6ae521ae29d93beb42478bcc44c598de) Wisconsin announced his selection as a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten honoree in March 2025.[4](https://uwbadgers.com/news/2025/3/11/mens-basketball-tonje-earns-unanimous-first-team-all-big-ten-honors)
## Playing style
Scouting reports ahead of the 2025 draft centered on his shooting. He made 40.5% of his catch-and-shoot three-pointers as an upperclassman, per Synergy, and shot 38.8% from three on six attempts per game in his Wisconsin season, leading the Big Ten with 85 made three-pointers.[11](https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/2025-nba-draft-scouting-report-john-tonje-g-wisconsin-173246793.html) • [12](https://edemirnba.substack.com/p/john-tonje-scouting-report) Evaluators described a strong, physical guard who could play through contact and finish drives against NBA-level bodies, while flagging concerns about his ball-handling and playmaking: he had a negative assist-to-turnover ratio in each of his college seasons.[11](https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/2025-nba-draft-scouting-report-john-tonje-g-wisconsin-173246793.html) • [13](https://www.si.com/college/wisconsin/basketball/what-utah-jazz-are-getting-in-badgers-guard-john-tonje-scouting-report) His free-throw production was a defining trait; he averaged roughly seven free-throw attempts per game in his final college season and converted at a 90.9% rate.[3](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/men/2025.html)
## Professional career
The Utah Jazz selected Tonje with the 53rd overall pick in the 2025 [NBA draft](https://www.edgepedia.org/nba-draft).[2](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html) In the 2025-26 season he played for the [Salt Lake City Stars](https://www.edgepedia.org/salt-lake-city-stars) of the [NBA G League](https://www.edgepedia.org/nba-g-league), averaging 17.9 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 14 games while shooting 50.9% from the field, 41.0% from three, and 92.3% from the free-throw line.[7](https://gleague.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje)
At the February 2026 NBA trade deadline, the [Boston Celtics](https://www.edgepedia.org/boston-celtics) acquired Tonje from the Jazz in exchange for forward Chris Boucher, a future second-round pick, and cash considerations.[14](https://apnews.com/article/d4122fece6c1115cfdb8733d51e70bb1) He appeared in six games for the Celtics as a rookie, and on April 12, 2026 he scored a career-high 13 points in 30 minutes of a 113-108 win over the [Orlando Magic](https://www.edgepedia.org/orlando-magic).[6](https://www.nba.com/blazers/news/portland-trail-blazers-sign-john-tonje-to-two-way-contract) • [1](https://www.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje/bio) After the Celtics declined to tender him a qualifying offer, he became a free agent, and on July 24, 2026 the Portland Trail Blazers signed him to a two-way contract.[1](https://www.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje/bio) • [6](https://www.nba.com/blazers/news/portland-trail-blazers-sign-john-tonje-to-two-way-contract)
## Personal life
His father, Jean "Bertin" Tonje, is a native of Cameroon and played soccer for the Cameroon national team.[8](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195)
## References
1. [John Tonje player bio, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje/bio)
2. [John Tonje College Stats, Sports-Reference](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/john-tonje-1.html)
3. [2024-25 Wisconsin Badgers Roster and Stats, Sports-Reference](https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/schools/wisconsin/men/2025.html)
4. [Tonje earns unanimous first-team All-Big Ten honors, Wisconsin Badgers](https://uwbadgers.com/news/2025/3/11/mens-basketball-tonje-earns-unanimous-first-team-all-big-ten-honors)
5. [Johni Broome of Auburn, Cooper Flagg of Duke unanimous picks to lead the AP All-America team, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/881a4bca44508d878dc22b4ede7ad5d6)
6. [Portland Trail Blazers Sign John Tonje to Two-Way Contract, NBA.com](https://www.nba.com/blazers/news/portland-trail-blazers-sign-john-tonje-to-two-way-contract)
7. [John Tonje, NBA G League](https://gleague.nba.com/player/1642910/john-tonje)
8. [John Tonje roster page, Wisconsin Badgers](https://uwbadgers.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/john-tonje/13195)
9. [2025 NBA Draft Prospects: John Tonje, NBA.com](https://api-hub.nba.com/draft/2025/prospects/john-tonje)
10. [Don't write off future Cinderellas just because it's an all-power conference Sweet 16, coaches say, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/6ae521ae29d93beb42478bcc44c598de)
11. [2025 NBA Draft scouting report: John Tonje, G, Wisconsin, Yahoo Sports](https://sports.yahoo.com/nba/article/2025-nba-draft-scouting-report-john-tonje-g-wisconsin-173246793.html)
12. [John Tonje Scouting Report, Ersin's NBA Draft Newsletter](https://edemirnba.substack.com/p/john-tonje-scouting-report)
13. [What Utah Jazz are getting in Wisconsin Badgers guard John Tonje, Sports Illustrated](https://www.si.com/college/wisconsin/basketball/what-utah-jazz-are-getting-in-badgers-guard-john-tonje-scouting-report)
14. [Antetokounmpo remains with Bucks as an extremely hectic NBA trade deadline passes, AP News](https://apnews.com/article/d4122fece6c1115cfdb8733d51e70bb1)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Basketball and court team sports › Basketball players and coaches (biographies) › Current NBA players › Shooting guards › Young and recently drafted guards*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license