Last summer, former Hawaii basketball player Stefan Jankovic parlayed some NBA Summer League games with the Miami Heat into a fall camp invitation and eventual roster spot in the D-League.
Recently departed Rainbow Warrior Noah Allen hopes to pull off something similar this summer — with the defending NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
Allen, an All-Big West first-team wing who averaged 15.7 points and 5.8 rebounds per game at UH, was one of the 18 names revealed on Golden State’s summer squad on Tuesday.
“I’m just excited and blessed for the opportunity,” Allen messaged the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
In addition, Jankovic will represent the Orlando Magic in summer ball after finishing up last season with the Magic’s D-League affiliate, the Erie BayHawks.
The Warriors’ big names — Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson — and other veterans are absent from the summer roster. But three young players from the 2017 championship team — Damian Jones, Kevon Looney and Patrick McCaw — are present. So is the 38th pick out of the recent draft, Oregon defensive stopper Jordan Bell, as well as several players with D-League experience.
Former UCLA guard Bryce Alford is on the squad. Allen and Alford were Bruins teammates before Allen exited to play immediately as a graduate transfer at UH in 2016-17.
“That’s my guy,” Allen said.
The first of the Warriors’ three preliminary games in Las Vegas is July 8 against the Philadelphia 76ers’ squad. A tournament begins July 12, with teams seeded based on their performance in the first three games.
The Magic play in the Orlando Pro league and open against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday.
