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3 from U.Va. picked in NBA draft

Fred Jeter | 6/28/2019, 6 a.m.
Call them The Three Basketeers. The swashbuckling trio of De’Andre Hunter, Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy led the University of …
De’Andre Hunter of the University of Virginia gets a hug June 20 after being selected by the Los Angeles Lakers as the No. 4 pick in the NBA Draft in New York.

Call them The Three Basketeers.

The swashbuckling trio of De’Andre Hunter, Ty Jerome and Kyle Guy led the University of Virginia to the NCAA Tournament basketball title.

Now, having taken care of business at home, they’re taking their jump shots to the NBA.

Here’s what happened on NBA Draft night June 20 in Brooklyn, N.Y.:

Hunter was selected fourth overall by the Los Angeles Lakers, but is expected to be traded to the Atlanta Hawks in July. The No. 4 slot is worth about $14 million on the NBA rookie salary scale.

The 6-foot-8 forward from Philadelphia becomes U.Va.’s highest draft pick since Ralph Sampson went No. 1 overall in 1983 to the Houston Rockets.

Jerome was chosen 24th overall by the Philadelphia 76ers, but is headed to the Phoenix Suns in a proposed trade. The 24th slot pays about $4.5 million in rookie salary.

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Ty Jerome

Guy, who was the MVP of the NCAA Final Four, was nabbed in Round Two with the 55th pick by the New York Knicks. Guy is headed to the Sacramento Kings in another trade. Only first round selections receive a guaranteed salary.

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Kyle Guy

NBA trades can be agreed upon at any time but can’t become official until July.

Toronto, Canada, keeps popping up in hoops news.

The Toronto Raptors won the NBA title and now a Toronto native, former Virginia Tech guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker, is headed to the NBA as a first round pick — 17th overall — of the New Orleans Pelicans.

In Cajun country, Alexander-Walker will join the NBA’s No. 1 overall pick, Zion Williamson of Duke University.

This is a family tradition for Alexander-Walker. His first cousin, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was the first round pick of the Los Angeles Clippers a year ago.

Alexander-Walker and Gilgeous-Alexander played together for Hamilton Heights Christian Academy in Toronto.

Alexander-Walker is Tech’s first NBA choice since Dell Curry in 1986.

Since leaving Virginia Commonwealth University to coach at the University of Texas, Coach Shaka Smart only gets a “C” for winning (71-61 record), but an “A” for recruiting.

For the third straight year, Coach Smart’s center has been chosen in the first round of the NBA draft after just one season in at the university in Austin.

Jaxson Hayes was the eighth overall pick this year by the Atlanta Hawks and then traded to the New Orleans Pelicans.

In 2017, Mo Bomba was the sixth overall pick by the Orlando Magic. Jarrett Allen was the 22nd overall selection in 2016 by the Brooklyn Nets.

Now you can add Japan to the number of countries represented in the NBA.

With the ninth pick of the draft, Rui Hachimura was chosen by the Washington Wizards. Hachimura becomes the first Japanese player drafted since 7-foot-8 Yusatak Okayama in 1981. Okayama never played in the NBA, however.

Hachimura starred at Gonzaga University, averaging 20 points and seven rebounds. The 6-foot-8 forward is the son of a Japanese mother, Makiko, and Beninese father, Zakari.

To no surprise, the New Orleans Pelicans used the overall No. 1 pick to land Zion Williamson, the former Duke University All-American.

Also from Duke, R.J. Barrett was picked third by the New York Knicks and Cam Reddish was plucked 10th by Atlanta.

Reddish is the son of former VCU player Bobby Reddish.

Having to wait until 59th to pick, the NBA champion Toronto Raptors tapped 6-foot-10 Dewan Hernandez from the University of Miami.

Hernandez sat out this past season at Miami with legal and eligibility issues.

Tacko Fall, the 7-foot-7 center from the University of Central Florida, has inked a free agent contract with the Boston Celtics. Fall was outstanding in the NCAA Tournament, leading UCF to victory over VCU and to an impressive near upset (77-76) of Duke.  

Justin Robinson, Virginia Tech’s all-time assists leader, has signed a free agent pact with the Washington Wizards.

Shaw University’s Amir Hinton has signed a free agent contract with the New York Knicks. The 6-foot-3 guard led the NCAA Division II in scoring last season with an average of 29.4 points.