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Former W&M Hoops stars take on 2024 NBA Summer League

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (courtesy of William & Mary athletics) – The NBA Summer League will have some William & Mary flavor in 2024. Tribe alum Nathan Knight will play for the Chicago Bulls in the NBA 2K25 Summer League 2024 in Las Vegas, Nev. from July 12-22, while 2016 graduate Sean Sheldon will serve as the head coach of the Utah Jazz during the NBA Summer League.  

Sheldon, who finished his second season with the Jazz, recently earned a promotion to the front of the bench as an assistant coach along with leading the team during Summer League. He also served as an assistant coach last summer for the Finnish National Team during the 2023 FIBA World Cup. Sheldon was recently featured on the Utah Jazz website on NBA.com.

Utah opened the 2024 Salt Lake City Summer League with a 97-95 overtime win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday. Sheldon leads the Jazz against Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, July 9, at 9 p.m. ET, before they face the Philadelphia 76ers at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, July 10. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN2.

Knight will play in the NBA Summer League in Vegas for the second time in his career. He  averaged 13 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game in helping the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 4-1 record in 2021.

Knight and the Bulls will play five games at the NBA Summer League, beginning on Saturday, July 13, against the Milwaukee Bucks at 4:30 p.m. on NBA TV. Chicago faces the Golden State Warriors on July 14 (10 p.m.) on ESPN2, before its final two games on NBA TV against the Detroit Pistons on July 16 (6:30 PM) and the Atlanta Hawks on July 19 (6 p.m.). The final game for each team will be decided based on the standings with the championship on July 22.

Sheldon and the Jazz will also compete in the NBA 2K25 Summer League in Las Vegas. They will play the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday, July 13, at 10:30 p.m. on NBA TV, before facing the Sacramento Kings on Monday, July 15, at 10 p.m. on ESPNU. The Jazz plays back-to-back days against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday, July 17, (5 p.m. on ESPN2) and the LA Clippers on Thursday, July 18 (10 p.m. on NBA TV).

Last season, Knight played 30 games for the Motor City Cruise in the NBA G-League. He averaged 12.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and a block per game. Knight signed a pair of NBA two-way contracts with the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics, before finishing the year in the G-League.

Knight spent the first three years of his professional career in the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves. He played in a 108 games over those seasons, averaging 3.7 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. Knight’s teams advanced to the NBA Playoffs all three seasons, including reaching the Eastern Conference finals with the Hawks in 2021.

At W&M, Knight was named the National Mid-Major Player of the Year by a pair of publications during final season in 2020, including taking home the Lou Henson Award from CollegeInsider.com. He averaged 20.7 points and 10.5 rebounds per game during his senior season, while leading the country in player efficiency rating (35.0) and ranking second in double-doubles (23). Knight became just the second player in league history to be named both the CAA Player and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season. In each of his final two seasons, he was selected as one of five finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. Knight finished his career at W&M ranked second in scoring (2141) and blocked shots (221) and third in rebounding (964).

In the classroom, Knight earned his degree from W&M’s prestigious Raymond Mason School of Business in business analytics with a concentration in finance. He was also selected as one of 10 finalists nationally for the Senior CLASS Award, which recognizes excellence in community, classroom, character and competition.

Along with his time with the Jazz, Sheldon spent five seasons with the San Antonio Spurs in various capacities, including head video coordinator, assistant video coordinator, and quality assurance assistant.

After graduating as one of the winningest classes in W&M history, Sheldon played professionally in Switzerland. Over his Tribe career, Sheldon appeared in 111 games, including 60 starts over his final two seasons. He shot 62.2 percent (235-of-378) from the field for his career, finishing with totals of 571 points, 390 rebounds and 150 assists. W&M won 20 games in each of his final three seasons. He averaged a career-high 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 2015-16.

Nathan Knight and the Chicago Bulls Las Vegas Summer League Schedule
July 13 vs. Milwaukee Bucks – 4:30 PM – NBA TV
July 14 vs. Golden State Warriors – 10 PM – ESPN2
July 16 vs. Detroit Pistons – 6:30 PM – NBA TV
July 19 vs. Atlanta Hawks – 6 PM – NBA TV

Sean Sheldon and the Utah Jazz Salt Lake City Summer League Schedule
July 8 vs. Memphis Grizzlies – W, 97-95 in OT
July 9 vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – 9 PM – ESPN2
July 10 vs. Philadelphia 76ers – 9 PM – ESPN2

Sean Sheldon and the Utah Jazz Las Vegas Summer League Schedule
July 13 vs. Dallas Mavericks – 10:30 PM – NBA TV
July 15 vs. Sacramento Kings – 10 PM – ESPNU
July 17 vs. Toronto Raptors – 5 PM – ESPN2
July 18 vs. LA Clippers – 10 PM – NBA TV