Who is Walt Lemon Jr. and what was his journey to reach the NBA? Was he an effective player overseas and will he see the court as a member of the Boston Celtics?
Yesterday, the Boston Celtics announced that they have signed 26-year-old Walt Lemon Jr. to a two-way contract. Lemon is a 6-3 lefty point guard that spent four years at Bradley and went undrafted in the 2014 NBA Draft.
He had a solid college career, averaging 13 points and 3 assists for his career at Bradley. Bradley is certainly not a big name college, which is likely the reason as to why Walt was not noticed by most NBA scouts.
After going undrafted and a few unsuccessful stints in the NBA Summer League, Lemon bounced around from team to team over the next few years. He played overseas for teams in Greece, Hungary, and Germany just to name a few.
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In twelve starts for Egis Kormend of the Hungarian NBIA, Walt averaged 18.5 points per game along with 35% shooting from deep. The NBIA is not one of the more competitive basketball leagues in the world, but his stats are still impressive.
Walt Lemon Jr. spent this past season as a member of the Fort Wayne Mad Ants of the NBA G-League. In 40 games as a member of the Mad Ants, Lemon averaged over 22 points per game along with six assists and shot nearly 50% from the field.
He clearly displayed through his play that he was one of the top point guards in the G-League who deserved a chance to play in the NBA. Walt was picked up by the New Orleans Pelicans for five games last season, but he barely saw the court which led to him being sent back down to the G-League shortly after.
Lemon’s story is an inspiring one and he should be applauded for his hard work and dedication, but it does not seem like he will have an opportunity to play for the Celtics. The team already has so much depth at the guard spot and without injuries it’s hard to imagine him being called up from Maine.
Also a two-way contract restricts the amount that a player can be called up to the pros, which makes it impossible for Walt to become a rotational player. Overall, do not expect Walt Lemon Jr. to play many minutes as a member of the Boston Celtics next season.