Bears' James Akinjo Signs NBA Summer League Deal
Former Baylor men's basketball senior James Akinjo may not have heard his name called on Thursday night at the 2022 NBA Draft, but the guard still has a shot of making it to the pros.
Akinjo inked a summer league contract with the Atlanta Hawks on Friday.
Baylor men's basketball was quick to jump on board and congratulate Akinjo on social media.
A 6-1, 190-pound guard out of Oakland, California, Akinjo averaged 13.5 points, 5.8 assists and 2.8 rebounds per contest for Baylor during the 2021-22 season.
Prior to his lone year with coach Scott Drew and the Bears this past season, Akinjo played at both Arizona (2020-21 season) and Georgetown (from 2018-2020).
He made 97 starts in 98 college career contests and was named Third-Team All-American by Sporting News, National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), Associated Press and the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), according to BaylorBears.com.
Other accolades include being named to the first-team All-Big 12 (2022), first-team All-Pac-12 (2021), Big East Freshman of the Year (2019) and Big East All-Freshman Team (2019).
As a student at Salesian College Preparatory, the four-star prospect averaged 20.7 points, 5.2 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game as a senior.
Akinjo's Baylor teammates, Jeremy Sochan (No. 9 overall pick to the San Antonio Spurs) and Kendall Brown (No. 48 overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves before trading his rights to the Indiana Pacers) were both drafted on Thursday night.
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