GRAND FORKS — When the University of Kansas showed up in Grand Forks in 2002 — allowing Jayhawk guard and Valley City native Jeff Boschee to play in his home state — it brought a loaded team with six future NBA players.
Nick Collison (910 games), Kirk Hinrich (879 games) and Drew Gooden (790) were mainstays in the NBA with careers spanning 13 or 14 seasons.
Wayne Simien (51 games), Aaron Miles (19 games) and Keith Langford (two games) also had stints in the NBA.
No. 6 Alabama is coming to town this week, allowing Devils Lake native Grant Nelson to play in his home state. The Crimson Tide and Fighting Hawks will play in the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center at 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Alabama, an NCAA Final Four team last season, will bring several NBA prospects.
Here are the top NBA prospects to watch on the Crimson Tide:
Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY Sports
The 6-foot-4, 177-pound freshman point guard from Mobile, Ala., is a consensus first-round pick and the top NBA prospect on the Crimson Tide. Philon is known for his quick crossover and change of direction. Philon is averaging 11.5 points, 3.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game.
Mock drafts
ESPN: 19
NBADraft.net: 15
Sports Illustrated: 25
Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY Sports
The 6-foot-8, 220-pound freshman from Grovetown, Ga., is averaging 7.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game. Reid has started two games and come off the bench in eight for the Crimson Tide. ESPN considers Reid a potential first-rounder. Sports Illustrated lists him as a second-rounder.
Mock drafts
ESPN: 27
Sports Illustrated: 54
Will McLelland / USA TODAY Sports
The 6-foot-11, 230-pound Devils Lake native is considered more of an NBA prospect than Boschee, who went undrafted and briefly played pro in the United States Basketball League, Greece and Iceland. Nelson flirted with entering the NBA Draft the last two offseasons, but ultimately decided on Alabama. He’s a fifth-year senior and considered a potential second-round pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. Nelson spent his first three years of college at NDSU.
Mock drafts
ESPN: 91
NBADraft.net: 59
Will McLelland / USA TODAY Sports
The fifth-year senior from Muscle Shoals, Ala., played two seasons at Ohio University, so UND’s fight song may ring a bell. Ohio also uses ‘Stand Up and Cheer.’ Sears is now in his third year with the Crimson Tide and is their top player. Sears led Alabama in scoring last season, averaging 21.5 points per game. He’s again leading the Crimson Tide this season, averaging 17.5 points per game.
Mock drafts
ESPN: 95
NBADraft.net: 50
ESPN also ranked two other Alabama players on its top 100 draft board. Power forward Jarin Stevenson is ranked No. 71. Center Clifford Omoruyi is at No. 100.
Schlossman has covered college hockey for the Grand Forks Herald since 2005. He has been recognized by the Associated Press Sports Editors as the top beat writer for the Herald’s circulation division four times and the North Dakota sportswriter of the year twice. He resides in Grand Forks. Reach him at bschlossman@gfherald.com.
