Nets Take Jarrett Allen in the First Round of the 2017 NBA Draft

By Chris O'Connell in Special, Sports, TXEX on June 23, 2017 at 9:32 am | No Comments

Last November, the Texas men’s basketball team played its first away games at the Barclay’s Center, a pair of losses at the Legends Classic tournament in the home of the NBA’s Brooklyn Nets. Longhorn freshman Jarrett Allen was drafted by the Nets last night with the 22nd pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, making Brooklyn and the Barclay’s Center his permanent home court. Allen is the 16th first round pick in Texas history.

“I’m super excited for Jarrett and his family,” Texas head coach Shaka Smart said, in a statement. “This is a life-changing day. I truly believe he will continue to make explosive growth. He has all the attributes of a player who will get better and better with time. Jarrett also is a high-level, high-character individual and that matters. It mattered here at The University of Texas and it will matter in his professional career. We’re really looking forward to following his progress.”

Allen came to Texas as a national top-20 recruit out of Austin’s St. Stephen’s Episcopal High School and was a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing 2016-17 season for the Longhorns, who finished 11-22 and missed the NCAA Tournament. Allen led the team with 8.4 rebounds per game, 51 blocked shots, and 32.1 minutes per game and averaged 13.4 points per game, good for second on the team. He also tallied 12 double-doubles on the season.

Nets GM Sean Marks was excited about picking up the 6’10” center, who fills a hole at the position after incumbent starter Brook Lopez was shipped off to the Lakers earlier this week for guard D’Angelo Russell.

“This was extremely fortunate to get Jarrett Allen,” Marks said. “He’s an incredible young man, very versatile, and he has not even remotely scratched the surface of what he can do. If you look at how he has improved through his very short time in Texas, it’s exciting for us. It’s exciting. He’s a tremendous young man, fits exactly what we’re doing.”

Joining the excitement was reigning NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant, who tweeted his elation at another former Texas player joining the NBA. The current crop of Longhorns in the NBA includes, aside from Durant and Allen, LaMarcus Aldridge, Isaiah Taylor, Myles Turner, Cory Joseph, Tristan Thompson, Avery Bradley, P.J. Tucker, and D.J. Augustin.