Lee Roberts

Lee Roberts (born February 10, 1987) is an American professional basketball player for the East Perth Eagles of the NBL1 West. He played college basketball for the Findlay Oilers between 2005 and 2009, where he won an NCAA Division II national championship as a senior. Since 2011, Roberts has had consistent yearly stints in the State Basketball League (SBL) / NBL1 West in Australia. He also consistently played seasons in South America between 2012 and 2024.

In 2017, Roberts helped the Perth Redbacks win the SBL championship while earning grand final MVP honors. He has also won championships in the Argentinian TNA (2013), Israeli National League (2017), and Uruguayan League (2020).

Early life Roberts was born in Seattle, Washington to army parents. He lived in Seattle for seven years before moving to Alaska, where he spent 2½ years before to moving to Cleveland, Ohio. He attended middle school and high school in the Cleveland area, as he played basketball for Midpark High School in Middleburg Heights. He received recognition playing for Midpark; in 2014, Roberts said "I was actually recruited for high jump, I was waiting for a couple of schools to ask about basketball and then Findlay offered me a full scholarship. I went to visit them and I was sold."

College career Roberts played four years of college basketball for the University of Findlay between 2005 and 2009. The Oilers lost only 12 games in his four years at Findley, Individually, Roberts earned GLIAC All-Tournament Team honors in 2008 and GLIAC South Division All-Defensive Team honors in 2009. As a senior in 2008–09, he appeared in all 36 games and averaged 10.4 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.

College statistics

Professional career Coming out of college, Roberts signed with an agent from Germany, who set him up with a team in France. However, he was considered too short by his coach, and after two weeks he was cut. He subsequently moved to Germany to live with his agent. There he tried out for numerous teams, but money was always the issue. He landed at Bayern Munich, but after a month, he was cut after sustaining an injury.

In July 2010, Roberts signed with Team FOG Næstved of the Danish Basketligaen. In 30 games during the 2010–11 season, he averaged 18.4 points, 13.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.

In September 2011, Roberts signed with the Shinshu Brave Warriors of the Japanese BJ League. In 52 games during the 2011–12 season, he averaged 16.9 points, 10.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.2 steals per game. In 15 games, he averaged 23.2 points, 17.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game. He helped Estudiantes win the 2012–13 championship, which saw them be promoted to the top league for the 2013–14 season. Roberts had 16 points in the deciding Game 5. In 44 games, he averaged 16.7 points, 10.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game. In 10 games, he averaged 10.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. In 15 games, he averaged 24.8 points, 14.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks per game. In 55 games, he averaged 17.6 points, 10.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He ended up leaving the team in April 2016, citing personal problems. In 52 games, he averaged 18.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. A month later, he helped Nes Ziona claim the Leumit Cup title after overcoming Maccabi Rehovot in the final. Nes Ziona finished the regular season in fourth position with a 16–10 record and advanced through to the National League Finals, where they swept Hapoel Be'er Sheva 3–0 in the best-of-five series. In 35 games during the 2016–17 season, he averaged 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.2 blocks per game. He helped the Redbacks reach the SBL Grand Final, where he recorded 28 points and 17 rebounds in a 103–70 victory over the Joondalup Wolves to win the championship. He was subsequently named grand final MVP. In 19 games for the Redbacks in 2017, he averaged 22.1 points, 10.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

On August 12, 2017, Roberts signed with Acea Virtus Roma of the Italian Serie A2 for the 2017–18 season. In 31 games, he averaged 18.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game. In the first game of the quarter-finals, Roberts recorded 30 points and 14 rebounds in a 114–109 win over the Stirling Senators. In 16 games, he averaged 15.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.

In July 2018, Roberts signed with San Martín Corrientes of the LigaA, returning to Argentina for a fifth season. In 39 games, he averaged 13.6 points, 9.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game. In the Redbacks' season finale on July 26, Roberts scored a season-high 30 points in a 106–80 win over the Cockburn Cougars. In seven games, he averaged 25 points, 9.29 rebounds and 1.43 assists per game.

In August 2019, Roberts signed with Atlético Aguada of the Liga Uruguaya de Basketball (LUB). The 2019–20 LUB season was halted in March 2020. Roberts had played 24 games up until this point. In November 2020, the 2019–20 LUB season playoffs began, but were paused later that month before resuming in February 2021. In 36 total games for Aguada between October 2019 and February 2021, Roberts averaged 16.2 points, 10.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game. In 13 games, he averaged 16.9 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. In nine games, he averaged 19.44 points, 12.11 rebounds, 1.66 assists and 1.55 steals per game.

For the 2021–22 LUB season, Roberts joined Club Atlético Peñarol. In 38 games, he averaged 16.2 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. In 10 games, he averaged 17.6 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

Roberts returned to Club Atlético Peñarol for the 2022–23 LUB season. In 30 games, he averaged 15.1 points and 8.2 rebounds per game.

Roberts re-joined the Eagles for the 2023 NBL1 West season. In 15 games, he averaged 13.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Roberts re-joined the Eagles for the 2025 NBL1 West season as an unrestricted local player. He took on the captaincy role in 2025.

In December 2025, Roberts re-signed with the Eagles for the 2026 NBL1 West season. He continued as team captain. At 39 years old, he took a step back and ultimately averaged less than 12 points or 20 minutes a game for the first time in his professional career.

Personal life As of May 2024, Roberts was married to Taylor Roberts , a fellow basketball player with the East Perth Eagles women's team. He has two daughters, with one being born in Uruguay. He speaks Spanish.