Lindell Wigginton wasn’t among the record six Canadians to be selected at the NBA Draft Thursday night but his pro dream is still alive after reportedly signing a contract with the Toronto Raptors.
Wigginton of Dartmouth signed with the NBA champion Raptors to play in the NBA summer league, according to ESPN NBA draft analyst Jonathany Givony.
Givony tweeted on Friday that Wigginton and several other undrafted Canadian players had signed to play with various NBA teams in the summer league.
Canada update: Simi Shittu will play summer league with the Memphis Grizzlies. Lindell Wigginton will play summer league with the Toronto Raptors. O'Shae Brissett: summer league with the LA Clippers. Kyle Alexander summer league with Miami Heat. All will keep their options open
— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) June 21, 2019
Wigginton retweeted a post by Hoopshype writer Alex Kennedy, which seems to confirm the move.
— Lindell Wigginton (@Lwigginton5) June 21, 2019
Wigginton, a star guard for the Iowa State Cyclones, was not among the 60 players selected on Thursday night in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The Raptors only had one pick (59th overall) on Thursday night and used it to select Dewan Hernandez of the University of Miami. Hernandez is a six-foot-11 power forward.
The record-breaking Canadian crew was led by Duke star RJ Barrett of Mississauga, who went third overall to the New York Knicks.
Toronto’s Nickeil Alexander-Walker was the 17th pick by the Brooklyn Nets.
Brandon Clarke of Vancouver was taken 21st by the Oklahoma City Thunder and then sent to the Memphis Grizzlies.
Mfiondu Kabengele of Burlington, Ont., was picked at No. 27 by the Brooklyn Nets and then sent to the Los Angeles Clippers.
Ignas Brazdeikis was taken 47th by the Sacramento Kings but was then moved to the Knicks while Wigginton’s Iowa State teammate Marial Shayok of Ottawa chosen 54th by the Philadelphia 76ers.
Wigginton, 21, played two seasons with Iowa State before declaring for the NBA Draft.
Last season, he missed 10 games with a with a sprained left foot and returned to average 13.4 points per game and help the Cyclones win the the Big 12 conference title. He was named the conference’s Sixth Man of the Year.
In his freshman year, he scored 16.7 points per game, fifth in the conference.
The NBA champion Raptors will join the other 29 teams along with the Chinese and Croatian national teams in the MGM Resorts NBA Summer League being held July 5-15 at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
Williamson goes No.1
Zion Williamson tried his best to hold back tears.
But as the 6-foot-7, 285-pound power forward stood next to his mother and reflected on the life-changing moment that happened a few minutes earlier, he cried out of gratitude. The New Orleans Pelicans selected Williamson with the No. 1 overall pick on Thursday night.
“I don’t know what to say,” Williamson told ESPN after hearing the Pelicans call his name at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. “I didn’t think I’d be in this position. My mom sacrificed a lot for me. I wouldn’t be here without her.
“She put her dreams aside for mine.”
The reigning college basketball player of the year dominated in his only season at Duke. He averaged 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game while making 33 starts. He added 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game with an elite combination of size and athleticism.
Williamson provided the Pelicans with star power at the top of a draft class that included five guards selected with the next six picks and three Duke players in the top 10.
The Memphis Grizzlies used the No. 2 selection to take Ja Morant, an electrifying point guard out of Murray State. He averaged a double-double with 24.5 points and 10.0 assists last season while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field.
Duke shooting guard Barrett drew the loudest applause inside of the arena when the New York Knicks took him with the No. 3 selection. Knicks celebrity fan Spike Lee was among those who attended the draft to see Barrett shake hands with NBA commissioner Adam Silver.
Virginia small forward De’Andre Hunter went No. 4 and is expected to join the Atlanta Hawks. The Los Angeles Lakers originally owned the pick but agreed to send it to the Pelicans, who then reportedly shipped it to Atlanta along with Solomon Hill in exchange for multiple draft picks.
The Cleveland Cavaliers capped the top five picks by selecting Vanderbilt point guard Darius Garland.
The Minnesota Timberwolves reportedly traded up to take Texas Tech shooting guard Jarrett Culver at No. 6. The run on backcourt players continued as the Chicago Bulls chose North Carolina point guard Coby White with the seventh pick.
The rest of the top 10 included Texas big man Jaxson Hayes (No. 8, reportedly to the Pelicans), Gonzaga power forward Rui Hachimura (No. 9 to the Washington Wizards) and Duke small forward Cam Reddish (No. 10 to the Hawks).
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