TUCSON, Ariz. – With the calendar flipped to 2015, take a look at how a dozen Arizona men’s basketball alums are faring in the NBA this season.
In his seventh NBA season, and first with the Milwaukee Bucks, Jerryd Bayless is averaging 7.4 points and 2.7 assists per game. He is shooting 43.0 percent from the floor and 98.3 percent from the free throw line for a Bucks team that is currently 18-18 and in the sixth position in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Chase Budinger is in his third year with the Minnesota Timberwolves, and his sixth season in the league. He has played in 27 games this season, averaging 4.5 rebounds and 2.4 rebounds in 14.1 minutes per night.
Channing Frye is in his first year in Orlando, and his ninth as a pro, after signing with the Magic as a free agent this summer. He has played in 36 games this season with averages of 7.9 points and 4.9 rebounds, while shooting 41.5 percent from long distance.
Joining Frye in Orlando for his first NBA season is Aaron Gordon, who became UA’s latest lottery pick in 2014 when the Magic selected him fourth overall. Gordon sustained a foot injury early in the season, but averaged 5.8 points and 3.0 rebounds in 11 games prior to getting hurt.
Frye and Gordon have helped a young Orlando team position itself just three games out of the final playoff spot in the East.
Jordan Hill, the eighth pick in the 2009 NBA Draft, is in his sixth year in the league and third full season with the Lakers. He is averaging 12.0 points and a team-high 8.0 rebounds for the Lakers, both of which represent career-best marks, while starting all 35 games.
A second-year pro, Solomon Hill was the Pacers’ first-round draft pick in 2013. He has started 35 games this season and owns averages of 10.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per contest for a Pacers squad that is only 1.5 games out of the eighth playoff spot in the East.
Andre Iguodala is in his second year with the Golden State Warriors, which marks his 11th season in the NBA. Iguodala was named to the NBA All-Defensive first team in 2014. This season, he has helped the Warriors to an NBA-best 27-5 record thus far with averages of 7.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game.
Iguodala teams with three former Arizona players on his coaching staff in Golden State, as Steve Kerr is in the midst of a successful first season as the team’s head coach and Bruce Fraser and Luke Walton both serve as Warriors’ assistants.
Richard Jefferson is in his first season with the Dallas Mavericks, marking his 14th year in the NBA. He is averaging 5.4 points and 2.5 rebounds per game off the bench for the Mavs, who currently own the fourth seed in the Western Conference.
Grant Jerrett is in his second year with the Oklahoma City Thunder organization, and is currently rehabbing from injury.
The Rockets’ second-round pick in 2014, Nick Johnson has played in 17 games for a Houston team that is currently fifth in the West. He has averages of 3.2 points and 1.4 rebounds.
Johnson is joined in Houston by another former UA All-American in Jason Terry, who is in his 16th season in the league and first with the Rockets. Terry has played in 32 games, averaging 8.1 points and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 38.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Derrick Williams is in his first full season with the Sacramento Kings, marking his fourth year in the NBA. He has averages of 6.8 points and 2.1 rebounds in 29 games for the Kings.
In the summer of 2013, ESPN ranked Arizona sixth among all college programs in terms of producing top NBA talent over the last two-plus decades.
UA players have been far from content by just hearing their names called on draft night, however. As has been reported by various media outlets, the fraternity of Arizona’s NBA players has surpassed the collective $1 billion mark in career earnings.
Collectively, the Wildcat players who have been drafted since 1988 are an accomplished group, having won 13 NBA championships and made six All-Star appearances. The group boasts a Rookie of the Year (Damon Stoudamire), a Sixth Man of the Year (Jason Terry) and a Most Improved Player (Gilbert Arenas).
For the latest updates on Arizona men’s basketball and an inside look at the program, follow @APlayersProgram on Twitter and @uaplayersprogram on Instagram.
