Five veteran players have joined the G League Ignite, the NBAGL’s Select Team, the league announced today in a press release. Those vets are big man Amir Johnson, guard Bobby Brown, guard Reggie Hearn, forward Brandon Ashley, and guard Cody Demps.
The G League Ignite’s roster is made up of those five veterans and several young prospects, including Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga, Isaiah Todd, Daishen Nix, Princepal Singh, and Kai Sotto.
The program’s aim is to provide top prospects with an alternative path to college or international ball during the year before they become draft-eligible. The veteran players are meant to help provide leadership and stability as those prospects prepare for the NBA.
Johnson, 33, is the most notable name among the Ignite’s additions. He has appeared in a total of 870 regular season games since making his debut in 2006, averaging 7.0 PPG and 5.4 RPG in 21.1 minutes per contest for the Pistons, Raptors, Celtics, and Sixers. He didn’t play in the NBA last season after making 51 appearances for Philadelphia in 2018/19.
Brown also has a solid NBA résumé, having made 158 total regular season appearances since 2008 for five NBA teams. The 36-year-old guard also has extensive international experience, spending time in leagues in Germany, Poland, Greece, Italy, China, Turkey, and Montenegro.
Hearn, Ashley, and Demps are G League veterans — of the three, only Hearn has played in an NBA regular season game, logging limited minutes in three contests for Detroit during the 2017/18 season.
It remains to be seen exactly what the NBA G League’s 2020/21 season will look like, but the Ignite – led by head coach Brian Shaw – have already begun training in Walnut Creek, California.
Well this is news to me…glad someone decided to report it.
I mean that’s real news. That’s not like that politics slop.
Wait who is Cory Demps?
The Kings signed him to a 10-day in 2019 but he never played a game
Interesting…thank you Treveon