Virginia Basketball: NBA Playoffs To Include Five Former Hoos

By: Chris Horne |
Former Virginia star Malcolm Brogdon, Indiana’s starting point guard, is looking to lead the Pacers to a first round playoff series victory over the Miami Heat. ~ Photo Credit: Indiana Pacers official site

The 2020 NBA Playoffs begin on Monday, August 17, following this weekend’s play-in matchup(s) between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Memphis Grizzlies, who are vying for the 8th spot in the Western Conference and the right to face the Los Angeles Lakers. Five former University of Virginia basketball players suit up for teams in this year’s NBA Playoffs.

Malcolm Brogdon, Point Guard

Brogdon, in his first year with Indiana, led the Pacers to the No. 4 seed and a matchup with No. 5 seed Miami. The two teams begin the best-of-seven series on Tuesday at 4 p.m. EST (TNT will televise).

Indiana closed out the regular season – the final eight games plus the playoffs are being held in the NBA “Bubble” in Orlando – by winning six of eight games. Brogdon played in six of those games and averaged 18.2 points (43.5% FG, 40% 3PFG), 6.3 assists, 6 rebounds, and 2.7 turnovers per game. The former Hoo scored 24 points (8-13 shooting, 4-6 from 3), dished out 6 assists, pulled down 5 rebounds, and committed 5 turnovers in a win over the Lakers.

Brogdon, who signed a 4-year, $85 million contract in a sign-and-trade deal with Indiana last offseason, concluded the 2019-20 regular season with averages of 16.5 points, 7.1 assists, 4.9 rebounds, and 2.4 turnovers per game. He made 43.8% of his field goals, including 32.6% from beyond the arc. If he can help the Pacers advance past the Heat, Brogdon could face his former team, the Milwaukee Bucks, in the second round. The Bucks drafted Brogdon with the 36th pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.

Joe Harris (Small Forward) and Justin Anderson (Shooting Guard)

The former Virginia teammates have reunited in Brooklyn. Harris is in the second year of a 2-year contract and is expected to make a lot of money this offseason (the Nets are making re-signing Harris a priority). Meanwhile, Anderson earned a spot for the remainder of the Nets’ season as a substitute player. His stint with the Nets began with a 10-day contract signed this past January.

Harris has shined since the NBA returned to action in Orlando. In six games played, he averaged 20 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game. The points per game and assists per game numbers are increases from his previous performance in the 2019-20 regular season, improving his final regular season stats to 14.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game.

Harris has shot the lights out in the Bubble, making 62% of his field goals including 20-37 (54.1%) from beyond the arc. The No. 7 seed Nets, who went 5-3 to close out the regular season, take on No. 2 seed Toronto in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The series begins on Monday with a 4 p.m. EST matchup that will be televised by ESPN.

Anderson played in seven games in the Bubble, averaging 13 minutes per game. A rough outing on Tuesday (August 11) versus Orlando, in which he went 1-of-15 from the field including 0-of-12 from 3, dragged down his numbers significantly. Anderson wound up averaging 3.6 points and 2.7 rebounds per game, and he added five blocks in 91 minutes of play. Aside from the Orlando performance, he made 47.1% of his field goals and 42.9% of his 3s.

Mike Scott, Power Forward

Scott and the Philadelphia 76ers are the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference and will face the Boston Celtics beginning Monday at 6:30 p.m. EST (ESPN will televise).

After missing the 76ers first three games of bubble action, Scott returned to play the final five and averaged 10 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. The former Cavalier standout shot 61.3% from the field, including 53.8% (7-13) from beyond the arc. A top reserve for the Sixers, Scott averaged 17.8 minutes per game during the regular season, averaging 6 points and 3.6 rebounds per contest.

Philly enters the playoffs with star guard Ben Simmons, who is out for the season after undergoing knee surgery.

Devon Hall, Shooting Guard

Hall, who signed on with Oklahoma City as a substitute player in June, totaled 12 points (4-12 shooting, including 3-6 from 3), 4 assists, 3 steals, 1 rebounds and 1 turnovers as the Thunder dropped a 107-103 decision to the Los Angeles Clippers Friday night. The former Hoo made some highlight worthy plays in defeat.

Hall saw 61 minutes of action spread out over six games in Bubble action. He finished with 15 points (5-25 field goals, 4-12 3s), 10 assists, 6 rebounds, 4 steals, and 4 turnovers. Hall played in 11 games in total for OKC during the regular season, averaging 1.8 points and 1.2 assists per game. He played 30 games for OKC’s G-League team, the Oklahoma City Blue, and played well, averaging 15.5 points (45% FG, 35.7% 3PFG), 5.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists, and 2.1 turnovers per game.

The Thunder earned the No. 5 seed and will take on No. 4 seed Houston beginning Tuesday (August 18) at 6:30 p.m. (TNT will televise).

Phoenix (Point Guard Ty Jerome), Sacramento (Guard Kyle Guy) Eliminated

The rookie campaigns of the former UVA backcourt duo of Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy have come to an end.

After a valiant run in which they won all eight games in the NBA Bubble, Phoenix narrowly missed the playoffs when Portland edged out Brooklyn on Thursday night (August 13).

Jerome, drafted by Phoenix in the first round of last year’s draft, didn’t see much action in the eight games. He played 12 minutes total over three games, totaling 4 points (1-7 FG, 1-3 3PFG, 1-2 FT) with 5 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal.

An ankle injury sidelined the 6’5” Jerome for the first month of the regular season. He wound up playing in 31 games for the Suns, totaling three double-digit scoring performances (15 vs. Houston, 12 vs. Dallas, and 10 vs. the L.A. Clippers). His high assist total for the year was 7 against Orlando.

Jerome averaged 3.3 points (33.6% FG, 28% 3PFG), 1.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and 0.6 turnovers per game. Here are some of highlights …

Drafted in the second round by Sacramento in last year’s draft, Guy, who signed a two-way contract with the Kings, spent most of the 2019-20 campaign playing for Sacramento’s G-League squad, the Stockton Kings. He performed very well for Stockton, finishing third in the G-League in 3-pointers made while making roughly 40% of his 3s. Guy averaged 21.5 points, 4.8 assists, 3.4 rebounds, 2.4 turnovers, and 1.1 steals per game in 37 G-League games. His points per game average was good for third in the G-League at the guard position (former UVA and Iowa State guard Marial Shayok averaged 23 points per game in G-League action and is on the roster for the 76ers).

Guy played in three NBA games, earning nine minutes total including a 6-minute outing against the Lakers in Bubble play. He scored 2 points, pulled down 1 rebound, and dished out an assist against L.A. His first NBA basket (pre coronavirus shutdown), a smooth alley-oop against the Lakers in Bubble play, and G-League highlights are below.

De’Andre Hunter, Small Forward

The Atlanta Hawks did not earn a spot in the NBA Bubble, finishing with a 20-47 record in 2019-20. Hunter, the fourth overall pick by the Hawks in the 2019 NBA Draft, played in 63 games, averaging 32 minutes per game. He averaged 12.3 points (41% FG, 35.5% 3PFG, 76.4% FT), 4.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.6 turnovers per game.

Below are some highlights from Dre’s first year in the league.

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  1. So glad the Nets made it in. Two Hoos on the same won’t be so unusual in a few more years.

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