Former NDSU Bison forward Grant Nelson could have name called in NBA Draft

FARGO Former North Dakota State forward Grant Nelson is one of the top 65 prospects entering the NBA Draft, according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony.

That would put him right on the cusp to being a rare North Dakota high school player to get drafted.

Givony rated Nelson No.

62 on his final top 100 prospects for the draft, which starts at 7 p.m.

(CT) Wednesday, June 25, with the first round on ESPN.

The second round starts at 7 p.m.

Thursday on ESPN.

Were just really proud of him." said Justin Thomas, Nelson's older brother.

"You kind of go through a lot.

The 6-foot-11, 230-pound Nelson, from Devils Lake, North Dakota, played three seasons at North Dakota State before finishing his college career with two seasons at Alabama.

This year's draft, hosted at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, is slated for 30 picks in the first round and 29 selections in the second round for 59 overall.

The New York Knicks had their second-round pick rescinded based off an investigation into Jalen Brunson's free agency signing with New York in 2022.

Based of Givony's ranking, Nelson is in the mix to be drafted late in the second round.

His range probably starts in the mid-30s and then goes through the end of the draft," said Thomas, who lives in Bismarck.

Theres still so many moves that (NBA) teams are going to make.

Its really hard to say.

...

Now is the first time in his career where we dont have any clue where hes going to be.

Nelson is aiming to become the third North Dakota high school player to play in the NBA, joining Williston's Phil Jackson and Bowbells' Les Jepsen, according to Basketball Reference.

Thomas said Nelson worked out for 12 NBA teams leading into the draft, including Golden State, Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix, Utah, Brooklyn, Denver, Chicago, Milwaukee, Orlando, Cleveland, Memphis and Houston.

Eleven of those teams (excluding Denver) currently have at least one second-round selection.

We know hes a good basketball player so thats not surprising when he goes to these workouts and does really well," Thomas said.

I think theres a strong chance that he gets drafted.

It just kind of depends.

Thomas said Nelson has also received interest from teams that didn't have him in for a workout.

If he doesn't get drafted, it's almost certain Nelson will land with an NBA team as an undrafted free agent.

Hes definitely going to be on an NBA team in some capacity by the weeks end," Thomas said.

Thomas said the plan is for his younger brother and the family to gather in Devils Lake on both Wednesday and Thursday for the draft.

Nelson averaged 11.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.2 blocked shots per game in his final season at Alabama.

In 2023-24, Nelson helped lead the Crimson Tide to the NCAA Division I men's basketball Final Four.

Thomas said teams like his versatility and grit.

Teams love his motor," Thomas said..

This article has been shared from the original article on inforum, here is the link to the original article.