Associated Press
SPOKANE, Wash. ó Kyle Weaver helped revive the moribund basketball program at Washington State, and now he is the first Cougar in more than a decade to be drafted by the NBA.
Weaver was selected by the Charlotte Bobcats as the 38th overall pick in the second round of the NBA draft Thursday evening.
He’s the first Cougar drafted since Mark Hendrickson was taken as the 31st overall pick in the second round of the 1996 draft by the Philadelphia 76ers. Hendrickson is now a pitcher for the Florida Marlins.
Weaver, a 6-foot-6 guard, said Thursday he was pleased by the selection.
“A lot of things happened in the draft, but I know I ended my college career in Charlotte (in an NCAA tournament loss to North Carolina) and I get to start my pro career there,” Weaver said.
He’ll be joining a team that features another high-profile basketball star from Eastern Washington, Adam Morrison of Gonzaga, who sat out this season with injuries.
Charlotte also drafted point guard D.J. Augustin and forward Alexis Ajinca in the first round.
A native of Beloit, Wis., Weaver started 103 of the 121 games he played. He became the 29th Cougar to score 1,000 points, finishing his career with 1,162 points which ranks 17th in WSU history.
Over his career, he averaged 9.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game.
Weaver ranks on WSU’s all-time list in 11 other categories, including assists (second, 465) and steals (third, 188). He is believed to be the first athlete in Pacific-10 history to have at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds, 450 qssists, 175 steals and 75 blocked shots in a career.
Weaver also recorded the first triple-double in WSU history with 14 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists against Stanford in 2007. But he is best known as a defensive stopper who often shut down the best scorer on the opposing team.