From FSU to the NBA: RaiQuan Gray makes a statement as the Nets charge into the playoffs
RaiQuan Gray, a former forward for Florida State from 2017-2021, made his NBA debut last night for the Brooklyn Nets in their season finale. He had recently been signed to a two-way contract after spending time with their G-League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, who he has spent the last two seasons with after being selected by Brooklyn as the 59th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
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In his debut, Gray stuffed the stat sheet like he did in his time in Tallahassee: 16 points, 9 rebounds, 7 assists, and a block in 35 minutes of playing time while also hitting 2 of his 5 3-point attempts. He displayed his impressive skillset, which should hopefully latch him onto a two-way contract for all of next season with the Nets, with the league moving to 3 available two-way contracts next season instead of their current 2. He has some Draymond Green/PJ Tucker type abilities to his game if he can find a way to channel them, and there's a place in the NBA for players with his kind of games.
Unfortunately, the Nets will not have him on the main roster for the playoffs as they take on the Philadelphia 76ers in the opening round, but it was a good experience for him nonetheless. For the G-League affiliate, Gray had averaged 14.9 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 3.4 APG, and 1.7 SPG while shooting 57.8% from the floor and 38.2% from 3 on the season; he'd been due for a chance.
We occasionally see teams call on younger players who normally don't play a lot when their seeding is determined; Trent Forrest and Mfiondu Kabengele saw about 18 minutes of action each last night as well for their respective squads after spending all season on two-way deals. We also saw Patrick Williams score 35 points in a similar scenario for the Chicago Bulls last season. It's a great chance for these younger players to show what they have in front of NBA executives while being in the league,
During his final season at FSU in 2020-21, Gray averaged 11.9 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.2 APG, and 1.2 SPG, helping lead the Seminoles to the Sweet 16 alongside Scottie Barnes, MJ Walker, and Balsa Koprivica. He was also a part of the team that won the ACC regular season championship in 2019-20 but never got a chance to compete in the NCAA Tournament due to COVID-19.
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