How Many NBA Players Are Jehovah’s Witnesses?
By Ankita Tripathy
30 August, 2023
Sports
Last Updated on: September 4th, 2025
If you have been searching for the answer to how many current or ex NBA players are Jehovah’s Witnesses, then this is the blog that you need to read!
The NBA consists of a varied group of athletes with diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. A portion of the players are Jehovah’s Witnesses, while the majority of the league’s athletes identify as believers or agnostics.
Keep reading this article to learn about how many ex NBA players are Jehovah’s Witnesses and more…
Jehovah’s Witness: What Is That?
Jehovah’s Witnesses are a Christian denomination distinguished by:
1. Bible-Centered Beliefs
Members believe in strict adherence to the teachings of the Bible and focus on reading scriptures in their daily lives.
2. Use of God’s Name
Their religion revolves around the use of the name “Jehovah,” which makes them different from other Christian denominations.
3. Evangelism
Members engage in ministry and are often recognized for door-to-door evangelism, distributing literature such as The Watchtower.
4. Lifestyle Discipline
Avoid political activism, military combat, and virtually all holidays, Jehovah’s Witnesses emphasize moral conduct and integrity.
5. Community Focus
Close family and congregation ties offer a support network for members.
For professional athletes, this religion provides structure, purpose, and moral foundation, especially after emerging from demanding sports careers.
The Attractiveness Of Faith To NBA Players
The NBA lifestyle can be exciting but also overwhelming. Players struggle with:
- Wide Public Scrutiny: Everything one does, says, and behaves is scrutinized.
- Travel and Exhaustion: Constant traveling can strain personal life and personal relationships.
- Financial Temptations: Celebrity culture, wealth, and fame often bring moral and personal challenges.
A good majority of players feel that a religious life—particularly one such as Jehovah’s Witness—gives:
- Emotional Stability: Religion provides a strong internal compass in the face of public scrutiny.
- Support and Community: Congregations are sort of a big family, so they give advice and encouragement.
- Life Outside of Basketball with Meaning: Players retire relatively young and have a life of meaning outside of sport.
- Moral and Personal Discipline: The disciplined way of life encourages good habits, religious development, and family orientation.
How Many NBA Players Are Jehovah’s Witnesses?
Well, there are a total of three NBA players who are Jehovah’s Witnesses. If you want to know who they are, then you have reached the right place.
Take a look at these three names when it comes to people practicing and belonging to this ritual group:
1. Darren Collison – Faith-Based Decisions Made Boldly
The Darren Collison case is one of the most documented examples:
- Career: Collison played in the NBA for more than ten years, including time with the Indiana Pacers, Sacramento Kings, Dallas Mavericks, and Los Angeles Clippers.
- Retirement at 31: In 2019, Collison shocked the basketball world by announcing early retirement. Contrary to the common retirements brought about by age, injury, or decreasing performance, Collison attributed faith as his inspiration, not wanting to give up the time to family and service to one’s religion.
- Life After NBA: He prioritized spending time with his children, involvement with his religious community, and living by Jehovah’s Witness principles.
Collison’s decision demonstrates how religion can become more important than professional ambition, a highly individualized commitment.
2. Danny Granger – Personal Life After the Game
Danny Granger, a former Indiana Pacers forward, is among the players with whom Jehovah’s Witness doctrine is associated:
- NBA Career: Granger played nearly a decade, for which he was lauded for his scoring, leadership, and consistency of performance.
- Faith Influence: Granger is not as openly outspoken in his religion, although it is reported that he has embraced Jehovah’s Witness teachings after retirement.
- Lifestyle: Now, he leads a less flamboyant life, prioritizing family and community ahead of public presence, as per the ideology of the faith of humility and worship in secret.
3. Dewayne Dedmon – Faith from Family Roots
Though Dewayne Dedmon is an active player, his tie to Jehovah’s Witnesses is through his upbringing:
- Early Influence: Dedmon’s mother is a Jehovah’s Witness in practice, and he was raised in the faith.
- Balancing Basketball and Beliefs: Dedmon’s career life occasionally conflicted with rigid religious codes, displaying the attempts to play high-level sport while abiding by faith rules.
Dedmon’s example demonstrates tension among some sportsmen between religious observance and career ambition.
4. Other Not So Well-Known NBA Players
Other retired NBA players may have connections to Jehovah’s Witness beliefs through family or individual practice.
Though they do not vocally discuss their religion, their way of life, personal choices, and post-basketball agendas reflect the influence of this disciplined, communal faith.
Life Lessons And Faith Practices Among Former NBA Players
For retired NBA players, embracing the Jehovah’s Witness religion can result in:
- Domesticity as Priority: The majority choose to focus on marriage, family, and domestic safety.
- Congregational Involvement: Participation in congregations, reading of the Bible, and evangelism.
- Prosperity Avoidance: Simple living and avoidance of wasteful spending.
- Living by Purpose: Choosing things on the basis of faith rather than public approval or monetary gain.
Such a lifestyle is a world away from the often flashy NBA world, showing the extent to which religion can reshape priorities and self-definition.
How The Religion Influences Personal Choices?
The Jehovah’s Witness faith impacts many personal decisions:
1. Retirement Timing
As is the case with Darren Collison, religious views may lead athletes to retire early to dedicate their lives to the spirit.
2. Media Exposure
The majority of former NBA players have low-key profiles, avoiding celebrity status and prioritize spiritual responsibilities.
3. Faith And Volunteering
Players driven by faith will utilize their time on service projects or supporting church-sponsored projects compared to self-centered projects.
Broader Implications For Sports Celebrities
The choice to embrace Jehovah’s Witness beliefs is one more example of a broader pattern: sports celebrities prefer to derive stability, purpose, and moral footing in careers with ephemeral success and tremendous stress.
Their experiences also provide a window into:
- The role of religion in career decisions
- The direction of faith in life after sports
- The interaction of public pressure and personal belief
FAQs
The faith gives discipline, moral teaching, congregation backing, and a mission over money or celebrity.
It depends on individuals. While some, like Dedmon, switch back and forth between professional life and religion, others, like Collison, stop playing early so they can live the rest of their lives in religious life.
Not the most common, but it has influenced several professional sportspeople who hold religion high as decision-making criteria.
The majority of them spend their time on family, ministry, community service, and plain living, all of which are the values of the faith.
To Sum Up!
The lives of ex-NBA players who claim Jehovah’s Witness faith tell us a basic truth: not only is success measured by points scored or championships won, but also by life lived according to personal conviction.
Darren Collison, Danny Granger, Dewayne Dedmon, and many others show how faith can dictate choices in life, from the timing of retirement to where family must come first. Basketball for these men is only a book, but spiritual commitment is the best story.
Their lives also serve to remind fans and young players that meaning, integrity, and family are as important as winning. Amidst the fast-paced life of pro sports, religion is an anchor and compass—pointing players in life on and off the court in balance and direction.
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