FARGO — North Dakota could have its next NBA player soon.
Sources indicate former North Dakota State star Grant Nelson, from Devils Lake, could soon get the call from the Brooklyn Nets.
There has been speculation in New York that Nelson was going to be a late-season call-up for the Brooklyn Nets, but sources indicate it could happen as soon as Thursday, Feb. 26, or Friday, Feb. 27.
Brooklyn plays at home against San Antonio on Thursday and at Boston on Friday.
The Nets are one of the worst teams in the NBA with a 15-42 record, good for 14th place in the 15-team Eastern Conference.
It matters not. Nelson would join a handful of players from North Dakota who made it to the NBA, the most famous being Phil Jackson of Williston who played for the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets from 1967-1980.
Earlier this month, I asked Nelson about his prospects for getting an NBA contract
this season.
“That’s the goal, but I don’t really think about it too much,” he said. “If I play well and do the things I need to do, those things will take care of themselves. That’s the way I look at it.”
Nelson, who went undrafted after completing his college career at Alabama after spending three seasons with the Bison, has been playing well for the Nets’ G-League affiliate in Long Island since returning from a knee injury that sidelined him until Jan. 9.
It’s not known what type of deal Nelson will get with the Nets should his call-up happen, but it would likely be a 10-day contract. NBA teams can sign players to 10-day contracts, which they usually use as an “emergency call-up,” to add players to their roster quickly. They are considered short-term deals that teams use to fill injury gaps or roster shortages.
NBA teams can sign players to two 10-day contracts, after which they must offer the player a full-year contract to retain them.
It’s unlikely the level of contract matters to Nelson.
Listed at 7-feet by the Long Island Nets, the forward is averaging 12.5 points and 6.7 rebounds in 16 games.
In Long Island’s most recent game Saturday, Feb. 21, Nelson had 10 points and 8 rebounds in a home loss to the Maine Celtics. In the game previous to that, he recorded his professional double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds in 25 minutes.
Nelson’s minutes were restricted when he returned from rehabilitating a long bothersome knee, but he’s worked his way up to 25 and 26 minutes in his past two games.
Nelson played three seasons at NDSU from 2020-2023, gradually increasing his minutes and production from his true freshman season when he averaged 6 points and 4 rebounds in 21 minutes. By his junior year, Nelson was a dominant player in the Summit League by averaging 18 points and 9 rebounds in 29 minutes.
He began to draw NBA attention after a highlight video posted of him on X went viral
and scouts began showing up at Bison games.
Nelson transferred to Alabama for his final two seasons, helping the Crimson Tide to the Final Four in 2023-24. He averaged about 11.5 points per game at Alabama.
Mike McFeely is a columnist for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. He began working for The Forum in the 1980s while he was a student studying journalism at Minnesota State University Moorhead. He’s been with The Forum full time since 1990, minus a six-year hiatus when he hosted a local radio talk-show.