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BYU Basketball: Former Cougars in the Pros (Part 1)

BYU basketball hasn't had the same amount of success in turning it's players into NBA stars as it did in the 80s and 90s with Danny Ainge and Shawn Bradley. However, they've still had a number of players go on to have long and successful careers overseas and in the NBA Development League.

By James Pigott
Adam Hunger-USA TODAY Sports

It's always interesting to see how the professional careers of BYU stars pan out, even if those careers aren't in the NBA for very long. Here is part 1 of 2 in this series recapping the 2015-16 professional season for some of the legendary players in BYU basketball history.

Jimmer Fredette (2007-2011): BYU's 2nd all-time leading scorer and 2011 National Player of the Year spent the majority of this season on the New York Knicks D-League affiliate in Westchester, while playing briefly in the NBA on a 10-day contract.  Fredette had an outstanding season in Westchester, leading the team to the playoffs and an 18-win improvement from the 2014-15 season.  It will be interesting to see if his strong season can lead to another NBA contract, or if he eventually decides to take his talents overseas.

GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG TO/G SPG PPG
40 39 35.8 .458 .411 .904 4.4 5.0 2.5 1.8 21.1

Tyler Haws (2009-10, 2012-15): BYU's all-time leading scorer is finishing up his first season playing in Spain after a strong showing on the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA Summer League team in 2015.  While his team Rio Natura Monbus Obradoiro has struggled to a 9-23 record in the ACB League with two games left in the regular season, Haws has played well in a part-time starting role.

GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG TO/G SPG PPG
32 16 19.3 46.6 33.8 82.8 1.3 0.7 1.2 0.8 8.1

Matt Carlino (2010-2014): While he is one of the most polarizing players in BYU history, his talent cannot be denied.  Similar to his college career, Carlino has bounced around on multiple teams in his first pro season.  He started out in the France Pro B League with Boulazac Basket Dordogne, and then came back to the United States to play in the D-League for Rio Grande Valley in January.  His stint in France was successful, but didn't play very much in the D-League due to a massive shooting slump.  We saw plenty of those at BYU.

Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG TO/G SPG PPG
Boulazac Basket Dordogne 10 8 25.7 .409 .436 .700 3.3 2.8 2.0 1.2 12.4
Rio Grande Valley Vipers 27 2 14.2 .297 .310 .733 1.6 1.6 0.6 0.9 3.8

Charles Abouo (2008-12): A fan favorite at BYU for his defense, physicality and athleticism, Abouo is playing professionally in a place you wouldn't immediately think of for basketball: Qatar.  Given the lower level of play, Charles has had the opportunity to take on a larger scoring and rebounding role, and has thrived despite his team's 7-11 record in the Qatari Basketball League.  And given his minutes played per game, it appears that the games in that league are slightly longer than 40 minutes.

GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG TO/G SPG PPG
18 18 40.2 .420 .241 .719 12.2 4.6 4.1 3.7 25.8

Stay tuned for the second part of this series next week, featuring Brandon Davies, Lee Cummard, Jonathan Tavernari, and Trent Plaisted.

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