If you were spending your Saturday looking at online casino ratings, then you probably completely missed out on the NBA G League Draft. There isn’t usually a ton of hype or excitement surrounding the G League Draft, except for those players that are going to get drafted.
There were some interesting names that got called during the 2022 G League Draft, and some terrific storylines developed. The best storyline came late in the first round when Ryan Turell heard his name called.
Turell is the first Orthodox Jew to be drafted in the G League, and he is looking to make even more history by making it to the NBA. There was a chance that Turell was going to hear his name called during the actual NBA Draft, but that would have made this story even more unbelievable.
Turell is trying to become the first Orthodox Jew to play in the NBA, and that’s not something that was on his mind when he began playing college basketball. Turell was a star player at Yeshiva University and not some huge school that is known for putting players into the NBA.
The Motor City Cruise selected Turell with the 27th pick in the NBA G League Draft, and they are hoping to get some instant offense with this selection. The Cruise are an affiliate of the Detroit Pistons, and that franchise has plenty of young talent on the roster.
Turell averaged 27.1 points per game a season ago at Yeshiva, making him the NCAA’s leading scorer regardless of the division. Yeshiva won 50 straight games at one point during Turell’s career, and his name started to pop up on draft boards as we were getting closer to the actual NFL Draft.
Turell actually had the option of returning to school for his final year of eligibility, but he wanted to start his professional career a year earlier.
Big Names at the Top
The NBA G League Draft is a bit different from the NBA Draft as there is a much smaller pool of players to choose from. Not every player that isn’t starting the year on an NBA roster is eligible to be drafted, as teams have two-way contracts with some teams.
The G League gets to pick from those players that have been released by an NBA team, or at least not in the immediate plans for an NBA franchise. There were still some great players available to be drafted, and some big names went pretty early in the draft.
Sam Merrill was the first player taken in the G League Draft as he was selected by the Cleveland Charge. The Charge are affiliated with the Cleveland Cavaliers, and that franchise entered the 2022 season with plenty of optimism.
Joe Wieskamp was the second player selected in the G League Draft as he was chosen by the Wisconsin Herd. Wieskamp is a former standout at the University of Iowa, and he is someone that is expected to go into the NBA at some point.
Here are the rest of the picks from the Top 5 of the G League Draft:
- Aaron Wheeler (Greensboro Swarm)
- Jared Rhoden (College Park Skyhawks)
- Jericole Hellems (Oklahoma City Blue)
Warriors Get Ridiculous Rings
The NBA always does a great job of setting up the schedule so that there are great games on some of the biggest nights of the year. Opening night is one of those occasions, and there were two great matchups on the schedule.
The Golden State Warriors blew out the Los Angeles Lakers in the second game of the night, but it was the pregame ceremony that got all of the attention. Golden State lifted the fourth NBA Championship banner in the last eight years to the rafters prior to the game.
The Warriors also got their championship rings on that night, and the rings were spectacular to look at. Golden State not only highlighted the 2021-22 championship on the rings but also paid homage to the other three championships won by the same core players.
