NEW YORK - Jitaurious "Ty" Gordon didn't have to go far from home to begin his professional basketball career.
Gordon, a former guard for Northwest and more recently, Nicholls, was chosen with the No. 11 pick in Round One of the 2022-23 NBA G-League Draft over the weekend. The virtual event was held on Saturday afternoon and featured three rounds of selections, with some teams opting to pass on making selections in the third round.
Despite going undrafted in the NBA Draft this past summer, Gordon caught the eye of several professional teams and took part in numerous workouts leading up to the draft. The Tunica native and Horn Lake High School product was named Southland Conference Player of the Year last March, after also earning All-Southland First Team honors. Gordon led the conference by averaging 21.6 points per game and was named conference Player of the Week seven times during the 2021-22 season, setting a new league record.
Gordon was only the second Nicholls player to earn conference Player of the Year accolades, joining Reggie Jackson in 1995. Gordon scored 30 points or more in four games with the Colonels, including a career-best 36 points against New Orleans. He also set a program single-season record with 99 made three-pointers, while ranking seventh in the nation with an average of 3.67 three-pointers per game and tying for sixth and seventh in the conference for assists per game (3.2) and steals per game (1.5).
Last season, Gordon helped Nicholls to a 21-10 overall record and the regular season conference title. He initially spent a year playing for Troy University in the Sun Belt Conference prior to joining the Colonels.
While at Northwest, Gordon was a two-time all-conference selection from 2017-19 and averaged 20.6 points per game, while shooting 47.5 percent from the floor. He currently ranks eighth in the Northwest record books for three-point percentage (.349), ninth in three-pointers made/attempted (106-304) and is tied for 10th in scoring average (17.4 points per game).
Gordon isn't the only former MACCC product on the Hustle either, as former Northeast Mississippi CC and Murray State star Shaq Buchanan is also listed on the season-opening roster.
Located in Southaven, the Memphis Hustle are affiliated with the Memphis Grizzlies. The Hustle play all their home contests at the Landers Center in Southaven and the team will open the season on Friday, November 4 against the Lakeland Magic.Â