St. Bonaventure graduate Jalen Adaway opened his professional career this week by suiting up for the Miami Heat in the NBA Summer League.
Adaway played in two of the Heat’s three California Classic games to begin Summer League action, scoring six points in 15 minutes Tuesday vs. Golden State. He went 2-of-3 from the floor and made both free throw attempts, also pulling down four rebounds with two steals.
The NBA Summer League kicks into high gear July 7-17 as all 30 teams participate in Las Vegas. Each team will play five games in Vegas with the top two squads advancing to a championship game July 17.
The Indiana native was selected Atlantic 10 First Team All-Conference and USBWA All-District as a senior after leading the Bonnies in scoring at 15.3 points per game. He added nearly six rebounds in 38 minutes per contest, finishing the year by shooting at over a 47 percent clip.
Adaway was instrumental in Bona’s success during his two seasons with the program, posting 746 points in just 53 games. He was named to the A-10 All-Championship Team as the Bonnies captured the 2021 conference crown and he reached double-figure scoring in 39 of his final 43 games.
During his two seasons, Bona went 39-15 overall including 23-9 in A-10 play. In total, he finished his collegiate career with 1,252 points and 659 rebounds after playing two seasons at Miami (Ohio).
The NBA Summer League has frequently featured former Bonnies in recent years. Last season, Jaylen Adams, ‘18, suited up for the Chicago Bulls before signing to play in Australia, where he was crowned the Australian National Basketball League Most Valuable Player after leading his Sydney Kings to the NBL championship.
The Summer League did not take place in 2020 due to the pandemic, but both Adams (Atlanta Hawks) and Youssou Ndoye, ‘15, (Dallas Mavericks) played for NBA squads in the 2019 edition.
In 2018, Adams (Atlanta) along with Matt Mobley, ‘18, (Utah Jazz) and Demitrius Conger, ‘13, (Boston Celtics) as well as Marcus Posley, ‘16, (Denver Nuggets) all saw time in NBA Summer League games.
MIAMI HEAT
NBA SUMMER LEAGUE
VEGAS SCHEDULE
Date Time (ET) Opponent TV
Saturday, July 9 5:30 p.m. Celtics NBATV
Tuesday, July 12 7:00 p.m. Hawks NBATV
Wednesday, July 13 9:00 p.m. 76ers ESPN2
Friday, July 15 10:00 p.m. Raptors NBATV
5th game TBD
