TUCSON, Ariz. – A trio of members of the 2016-17 basketball season have signed with NBA teams. Lauri Markkanen, Kadeem Allen and Kobi Simmons have all inked contracts with organizations after playing in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in July. Markkanen signed with the Chicago Bulls, Allen inked a deal with the Boston Celtics and Simmons joined the Memphis Grizzlies.

Markkanen was the seventh overall pick of the 2017 NBA Draft whom was originally selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves before being traded to the Bulls in the Jimmy Butler trade. The 7-footer was a First Team All-Pac-12 selection and a member of the Pac-12 All-Freshmen team after averaging 15.6 points and 7.2 rebounds per game for the Wildcats. He was a Third Team All-American while finishing in the top five in numerous UA freshmen season records. The Finland native signed his NBA first round pick contract of two years with a team option for two more seasons.

Allen, the 53^rd overall pick, was taken by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the draft. The lone senior on last season's Arizona roster wrapped up 2016-17 as a Pac-12 All-Conference Second Team selection and as a member of the league's All-Defensive team. Known as a defensive specialist, Allen led the Wildcats in steals and spent his time in the Summer League guarding the opposing team's best perimeter player. Allen began last season with a bang with the game-winning lay-up followed by victory-clinching steal in final seconds in season-opening win over No. 12 Michigan State in 2016 Armed Forces Classic in Hawai'i. He signed with Boston with one of the NBA's new two-way contracts.

Simmons played in the Las Vegas Summer League with the Memphis Grizzles and signed his two-way contract with the organization just after arriving in Sin City. The freshman was one of three Wildcats to play in all 37 games a season ago, starting in 19 of them. He opened the season with 18 points in win over No. 12 Michigan State, tying the most by a UA player in a NCAA Debut in a decade. Simmons led the Wildcats in scoring, setting his career high, with 20 points in the team's marquee win at No. 3 UCLA in January. Like Allen, the Atlanta native joined the NBA by signing one of the league's two-way contracts.

The two-way contracts were instituted by the NBA following the 2016-17 season. Organized similar to the MLB's pay structure for Triple A call-ups, NBA teams can have their roster maximum grow from 15 to 17 players using the players who have signed the two-way contracts and are playing for their NBA G League affiliates. Two-way signees can spend up to 45 days with their NBA parent organization while receiving a higher level of compensation.