Nate Wolters

Nate Wolters
No. 21 – Grand Rapids Drive
Position Point guard
League NBA Development League
Personal information
Born May 15, 1991
St. Cloud, Minnesota
Nationality American
Listed height 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight 190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school St. Cloud Tech
(St. Cloud, Minnesota)
College South Dakota State (2009–2013)
NBA draft 2013 / Round: 2 / Pick: 38th overall
Selected by the Washington Wizards
Pro career 2013–present
Career history
2013–2015 Milwaukee Bucks
2015 New Orleans Pelicans
2015–present Grand Rapids Drive (D-League)
Career highlights and awards

Nate Wolters (born May 15, 1991) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA Development League. He played college basketball at South Dakota State University and was an All-American for the Jackrabbits in 2013. He was selected by the Washington Wizards with the 38th overall pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.[1]

College career

Wolters, a 6'4" point guard from Technical Senior High School in St. Cloud, Minnesota, chose South Dakota State over Colorado State and North Dakota State[1] after averaging 24.3 points and 6.4 rebounds per game as a senior.[2] As a freshman, Wolters played in all 30 games for the Jackrabbits, starting 11. For the season he averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game and was named to The Summit League all-newcomer team[2] In his sophomore season, Wolters moved into the starting lineup full-time and became one of the conference's top players. He averaged 19.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 6.1 assists. He led the league in assists and helped the team to a 19–12 record—the program's first winning season as a member of NCAA Division I.[1]

As a junior, Wolters led the team to more new territory. The team finished the 2011–12 season with a 27–7 record, finishing second in the Summit League regular season. The second-seeded Jackrabbits beat Western Illinois 52–50 in overtime to advance to their first Division I NCAA Tournament. Wolters was named tournament Most Valuable Player.[3] In the NCAA Tournament, #14 seed South Dakota State played third-seeded Baylor in a tightly-contested game, ultimately losing 68–60.[4] Individually, Wolters averaged 21.2 points, 5.9 assists (again leading the conference) and 5.1 rebounds per game. He was named first team all-conference and an honorable mention All-American by the Associated Press.[5]

Entering his senior season, Wolters was named preseason Summit League player of the year.[6] He also was named to the preseason watch lists for the Senior CLASS Award[7] and the Naismith College Player of the Year award. He also made the midseason lists for the Wooden Award (final 25 candidates)[8] and the Bob Cousy Award (final 20).[9] On January 18, 2013, Wolters surpassed the 2,000 point mark for his college career in a win against Western Illinois.[10] Wolters led the Jackrabbits to their second NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament in 2013. A No. 13 seed, they played No. 4 seed Michigan, losing 71-56.

College statistics

Year Games played Games started Minutes/game Points/game Rebounds/game Assists/game
2009–10 30 11 24.3 10.1 3.4 2.9
2010–11 31 31 33.2 19.5 4.6 6.1
2011–12 34 34 35.8 21.2 5.1 5.9
2012–13 33 33 38.1 22.3 5.6 5.8

Professional career

Milwaukee Bucks (2013–2015)

Wolters was selected with the 38th overall pick in 2013 NBA draft by the Washington Wizards. He was later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers on draft night. The next day, he was again traded, this time to the Milwaukee Bucks.[11] In July 2013, he joined the Bucks for the 2013 NBA Summer League and went on to sign his rookie scale contract with the franchise on August 1.[12] As the only healthy point guard the Bucks had on opening night of the 2013–14 season, Wolters ended up playing 30 minutes in his NBA debut, recording nine points with four assists. With Luke Ridnour and Brandon Knight out injured, Wolters started seven of Milwaukee's first nine games and averaged 26.2 minutes per game in November. Wolters averaged 8.3 points and 2.7 assists in 17 games after the All-Star break and later started the last 24 games he played in during his rookie season, most of the time alongside Knight as former coach Larry Drew opted to start two point guards. His season ended, however, with 13 games left in the regular season when he suffered a fractured left hand fighting through a screen at Golden State on March 20.[13]

His hand injury did not require surgery and didn't prevent Wolters from missing any time in the offseason as he re-joined the Bucks for the 2014 NBA Summer League.[13] He went on to play sparingly to begin the 2014–15 season under new head coach Jason Kidd and was eventually waived by the Bucks on January 9, 2015 to create roster space to sign veteran big man Kenyon Martin.[14]

New Orleans Pelicans (2015)

On January 14, 2015, Wolters signed a 10-day contract with the New Orleans Pelicans.[15] On January 24, 2015, he signed a second 10-day contract with the Pelicans.[16] Following the conclusion of his second 10-day contract on February 3, the Pelicans decided against signing him for the rest of the season.[17]

Grand Rapids Drive (2015–present)

On March 6, 2015, Wolters was acquired by the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA Development League.[18]

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
2013–14 Milwaukee 58 31 22.6 .437 .290 .656 2.6 3.2 .6 .3 7.2
2014–15 Milwaukee 11 0 12.9 .387 .000 .250 1.5 .9 .5 .0 2.3
2014–15 New Orleans 10 0 10.6 .286 .000 .500 1.8 1.1 .3 .2 1.7
Career 79 31 19.7 .426 .261 .635 2.3 2.6 .5 .2 5.8

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Norlander, Matt (November 20, 2012). "The next cult hero: How Nate Wolters put himself, South Dakota State on the map". CBSSports.com. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Nate Wolters athletic biography". South Dakota State athletics. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  3. ↑ "SDSU Wins First Summit League Men's Crown". The Summit League. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  4. ↑ "Baylor withstands South Dakota State's challenge". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Morrison and Wolters Receive AP All-America Awards". The Summit League. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  6. ↑ "South Dakota State, Wolters Headline Preseason Poll Results". The Summit League. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Men's and women's basketball candidates announced for the 2012-13 Senior CLASS Award". Senior CLASS Award. October 31, 2012. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  8. ↑ "John R. Wooden Award Presented By Wendy's 2012-13 Midseason Top 25". Wooden Award. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Final 20 Candidates Announced for 2013 Bob Cousy Award". Naismith Memorial Basketball HOF. January 10, 2013. Retrieved January 16, 2013.
  10. ↑ "Wolters passes 2,000 point mark as South Dakota State beats Western Illinois". St. Cloud Times. 18 January 2013. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
  11. ↑ "Bucks Acquire Draft Rights to Nate Wolters". NBA.com. June 28, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2013.
  12. ↑ Bucks Sign Second Round Pick Nate Wolters
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Bucks player profile: Nate Wolters
  14. ↑ "Bucks Sign Kenyon Martin to a 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. January 9, 2015. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  15. ↑ "Pelicans Sign Nate Wolters to 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. January 14, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  16. ↑ "Pelicans Sign Nate Wolters to Second 10-Day Contract". NBA.com. January 24, 2015. Retrieved January 24, 2015.
  17. ↑ Eichenhofer, Jim (February 4, 2015). "Monty Williams says Pelicans added Toney Douglas for depth, experience". NBA.com. Retrieved February 5, 2015.
  18. ↑ "Drive Acquires Nate Wolters". OurSportsCentral.com. March 6, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2015.

External links