Derrick JaVaughn Byars (born April 25, 1984) is an American professional basketball player and entrepreneur. Collegiately, he played for Virginia, and later for Vanderbilt. He was drafted 42nd overall in the 2007 NBA draft.
High school career
Byars attended Ridgeway High School in Memphis, where he played for head coach Wesley Henning and won two Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) Class AA State Championships.
As a sophomore (1999–2000), Byars was an honorable-mention All-State selection and led the Roadrunners to the Class AA State Championship. He averaged 16.4 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game.
As a junior, he again earned honorable mention All-State honors and was named Ridgeway's Most Valuable Player and District 15-AA MVP. He averaged 20.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5 assists.
As a senior (2001–02), he averaged 23.2 points, 10 rebounds and 4.5 assists and led Ridgeway to its second TSSAA Class AA State Championship in three years. He was a fourth-team Parade All-America selection, the Gatorade Player of the Year in Tennessee, the TSSAA Class AA Tournament Most Valuable Player and first-team All-State.
As impressive as he was on the court, Byars also excelled in the classroom, finishing high school with a 3.9 GPA.
Collegiate career
Virginia
Byars played for two seasons under then-head coach Pete Gillen at Virginia. He started 16 of Virginia's 31 games his freshman season (2002–03) and averaged 6.5 points per game. In his sophomore season (2003–04), he started 18 of Virginia's 31 games and averaged 7.5 points per game.
Disappointed by his lack of playing time, Byars decided to transfer from Virginia. Vanderbilt emerged as a leading candidate due to Byars' friendships with players on the team and the Commodores' recent run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, but the Commodores had no scholarship positions available. Days before Byars was due to announce his transfer to Mississippi, Vanderbilt reserve guard Adam Payton decided to transfer to William & Mary, freeing up a scholarship for Byars.
He sat out the 2004–05 season as mandated by NCAA rules.
Vanderbilt
In his junior season (2005–06), Byars started all 30 games and finished second on the team in scoring at 12.4 points per game. He started a handful of games at the point guard position and led the team with 3.2 assists per game. He was named SEC Player of the Week (November 28 – December 4) after scoring 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting against Oregon on November 30, 2005. A week later, he scored a season-high 25 points (including five 3-pointers) against Cincinnati on December 10, 2005.
In his senior season (2006–07), Byars was named Southeastern Conference Player of the Year by the league's coaches, who also unanimously selected him to their All-SEC first team. He led Vanderbilt to a 22–12 record (SEC East: 10–6, 2nd) and the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, because Jeff Green's travel was not called, ending the season at least one game early. He led the Commodores in scoring with 17.0 points per game and was ranked among the SEC's top 10 in four other statistical categories. During SEC play, Byars averaged 19.1 points per game, second-best in the SEC. He scored 20 points or more eight different times, including a career-high 32 points against South Carolina on February 14, 2007. He followed that performance with 24 points in Vanderbilt's 83–70 victory over then-No. 1 Florida, which earned him SEC player of the week honors for the second time that season.
Byars graduated from Vanderbilt on May 11, 2007, with a degree in sociology.
Professional career
NBA
Byars was chosen 42nd overall in the 2007 NBA draft in the second round by the Portland Trail Blazers. His rights were then traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. He was waived by the 76ers on October 22, 2007. He was on the New Orleans Hornets and Orlando Magic rosters for the 2008 Summer League. Byars return to the NBA Summer League was successful, as he led the Magic in scoring in their first game against the New Jersey Nets with 15 points on 6 of 13 shooting .
In late September, Byars was signed by the Oklahoma City Thunder where he averaged 4.1 points and 14.8 minutes per game in the preseason.
Byars was invited to the Chicago Bulls' training camp in 2009 but was waived on the opening day of the season, October 28, 2009.
He played for the Bulls in the NBA Summer League in 2010.