Alabama’s Joshua Primo and Herbert Jones Each Selected in 2021 NBA Draft Thursday Night

Primo selected 12^th overall, Jones goes in early-second round to mark the first time since 1995 that two Alabama players were selected in the same draft

 

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Two Alabama men's basketball players were selected in the 2021 NBA Draft, which was held in Brooklyn, N.Y., at the Barclays Center on Thursday night. Guard Joshua Primo was a first round selection of the San Antonio Spurs at No. 12 overall and guard/forward Herbert Jones went No. 35 to the New Orleans Pelicans

 

It was a night of firsts for the Crimson Tide program. Primo’s selection gave Alabama back-to-back NBA Draft Lottery picks for the first time in program history, while it was also the first time since 1995 that UA had two players selected in the same draft. That year, Antonio McDyess went No. 2 overall to the L.A. Clippers and Jason Caffey was the 20^th overall pick by the Chicago Bulls. The Tide has now had consecutive first round draft picks for the first time in 25 years (1995 and 1996).

 

Alabama In The NBA Draft

• Primo and Jones became the 44^th and 45^th Alabama players to hear their name called on draft night
• The Crimson Tide has had a guard drafted in the NBA Draft Lottery in three of the last four years (Collin Sexton No. 8 overall to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2018, Kira Lewis Jr. No. 13 overall to the New Orleans Pelicans in 2020)
• Primo became the 17^th UA player to be selected in the first round and the eighth who was drafted inside the top 15
• It was the 11^th time Alabama has had two players selected in the same draft in program history

 

Joshua Primo Bio

• Selected No. 12 overall to the San Antonio Spurs
• Became fifth consecutive Alabama rookie to be named to the SEC All-Freshman Team
• Played in 30 contests on the season, missing three games with an MCL sprain, making 19 starts
• Averaged 8.1 points and 3.4 rebounds per game while shooting 43.1 percent from the field and 38.1 percent from beyond the arc
• Ranked third on the team in three-point field goal percentage, second in free throw percentage and fifth in scoring
• Named SEC Freshman of the Week for the week of Jan. 25, earning the accolade after averaging 19.0 points, 5.0 threes made and 3.5 rebounds per game in contests at LSU and vs. Mississippi State, while shooting 73.7 percent (14-of-19) from the floor and 76.9 percent (10-of-13) from beyond the arc
• Finished with 12 games in double figures including eight games of making three or more three-pointers which ranked second-best on the team
• Had season high 22 points including career-best marks of 4-of-8 from beyond the arc and 8-of-8 from the free throw line, to go along with five boards and three assists in the win at Auburn (1/9)
• Matched that with 22 points at LSU (1/19), knocking down a career-best six three-pointers in the victory
• Scored 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 from beyond the arc in the win over Mississippi State (1/23)
• Had 19 points, all coming in the second half, in the win over Georgia (2/15)
• SEC First Year Academic Honor Roll

 

Herbert Jones Bio

• Selected No. 35 overall to the New Orleans Pelicans
• Marked the second consecutive year the Pelicans have drafted an Alabama player, taking Kira Lewis Jr. at No. 13 overall in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft
• Named AP All-American (Third Team), SEC Player of the Year, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, First Team All-SEC and All-Defensive Team
• Finished his career with 129 games played (101 starts) while collecting 947 points, 630 rebounds, 285 assists, 167 steals and 98 blocked shots
• Subsequently named to the All-SEC First Team (Coaches, AP and USA Today) and All-SEC All-Defensive Team
• Named as a finalist for the Naismith Award Men’s Defensive Player of the Year
• Earned USBWA and NABC First Team All-District honors and was selected as the USBWA District IV Player of the Year
• Earned a team-leading 17 Hard Hat Awards, which is given to the player with the most Blue Collar Points at the end of each game
• Led the team in Blue Collar Points (667), deflections (110), floor dives (23), and-1s (7-of-10) and dunks (19)
• Finished the year leading the team in rebounding (6.6 rpg), assists (3.3 apg), steals (1.7 spg) and blocks (1.1 bpg) while ranking fourth on the team in scoring average (11.2 ppg)
• Also topped the team in offensive rebounds (2.5 orpg) 
• Led UA with nine games of five or more assists this season, while leading the team in rebounding 17 times, assists 14 games, steals 14 times and blocks on 14 occasions which are all team-best number
• Reached double figures in 19 of 33 games 
• Had a career night vs. Georgia, accounting for a career-best 21 points to go along with five rebounds, four assists and three blocks (2/13)
• Matched that scoring output by going for 21 points, 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals in the SEC semifinal win over Tennessee (3/13)
• Accounted for 20 points, six rebounds and three steals in the NCAA Tournament first round win over Iona (3/20)
• Recorded a career-high four blocks along with 13 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and the game-winning layup in the SEC Championship win over LSU (3/14)

 

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