Seton Hall
Three Pirates bound for NBA chance
Date: June 26, 2018By Dalton Allison
After one of the more successful seasons in recent history, which included an elusive NCAA tournament win. With a talent packed senior class leading the charge, it came as no surprise that three Pirates have earned the opportunity to be a member of an NBA squad.
Although no Seton Hall players were drafted by an NBA team on July 21st, they would find their success after NBA commissioner Adam Silver was done calling names to the stage. Angel Delgado, a name synonymous with double-doubles, quickly signed a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Clippers. This type of contract allows the Clippers to bounce Delgado back and forth between their NBA team and their G League affiliate, the Agua Caliente Clippers of Ohio.
Delgado was drafted because of his production during his time at the Hall. The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar award winner displayed this best when he dropped 24 points and collected 23 rebounds against the team’s loss to Kansas in the NCAA tournament. On the season, Delgado averaged 13.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists.
Later following Delgado to the Clippers was Desi Rodriguez, who received an invitation to the Summer League with the Clippers. Rodriguez was a deadly shooter for the Pirates during his tenure with the team, and his senior season was his best yet. Shooting nearly 50%, Rodriguez averaged 17.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game last season. Despite being known for not always having the best conduct, Desi turned the corner and matured as a player last season. It will be interesting to see if the Clippers run Rodriguez and Delgado on the court together during the Summer League. If that happens to be the case, the chemistry between the two will only help them on their journey to becoming players in the NBA.
The last senior to sign, Khadeen Carrington, joined the Detroit Pistons on an invite to play in the summer league. Carrington made the transition to point guard this season, most likely accounting for his slight dip in production. During his senior season, Carrington averaged 15.6 points and 4.4 assists per game as a senior. Carrington stepped up to score 26 points in the Pirates’ victory over NC State in the NCAA tournament, their first win in the tournament in 14 years.
Whether or not these players will take the court in a regular season NBA game remains to be seen, but they all need to be recognized for the level of success that they have all achieved so far.
Dalton Allison can be reached at dalton.allison@student.shu.edu
