April 11, 2009
DeMarcus Nelson is heading back to the NBA with help from a former Blue Devil. Quin Snyder, the head coach of the NBA D-League’s Austin Toros and a former Duke player and coach, mentored DeMarcus during a productive recent D-League stint. The Chicago Bulls signed DeMarcus for the rest of the year on Thursday after the California native played 13 games for the Golden State Warriors, nine games for the D-League’s Bakersfield Jam, one game for a pro team in Croatia, and then 11 games with Snyder in Austin.
“I was hopeful that DeMarcus would decide that the D-League could be an opportunity that he could build on and that he would choose to enter the league’s pool,” said Coach Snyder. ”Prior to his decision to do so, Coach K and I talked a number of times about the fit. When we had Pops Mensa Bonsu called up to the Spurs, now signed with the Raptors, we moved to the top of the draft pool, and DeMarcus was the player that we wanted. Dell Demps, GM and Spurs director of pro player personnel, had known DeMarcus since he was young, having grown up in the same neighborhood. It was a no-brainer for Dell and me.”
The decision was a no-brainer for DeMarcus as well. Coach Snyder, yesterday named the D-League’s Coach of the Year, has guided Austin to a 31-18 record this season and a spot in the playoffs despite having a league-best 10 players called up to the NBA. Last season, Coach Snyder’s Toros reached the D-League Finals after winning the Southwest Division with a 30-20 record. Playing in Austin allowed DeMarcus to play for a proven coach and a supportive friend, leading to impressive results.
In his 11 Toros games, DeMarcus averaged 23.0 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 4.2 APG and 1.2 SPG in 41.4 MPG. He shot the ball extremely well, hitting 53.8% from the floor, 45% from downtown and 80.3% from the charity stripe. In his final Toros game, DeMarcus scored 30 points (11-19 FG) and added 10 boards and six assists. He scored at least 25 points in six games for Austin, including a 39-point outburst on March 22nd, and Dime Mag labeled him one of the D-League’s top three players.
Coach Snyder told us, “DeMarcus was great. He is growing as a player which is a credit to the foundation he built at Duke and his own willingness to accept coaching. I tried to be hard on him and I am really excited for him now. A half hour ago, having already been called up to the Bulls, he sent a text to our director of PR to ask how our game was going. That is the kind of person he is.”
In addition to DeMarcus’ great attitude, work ethic and desire to improve, Coach Snyder was excited to coach the 2008 Duke All-American because of their obvious shared passion for the Blue Devils. “We were out of town for the Duke/Texas game and DeMarcus was upset,” said Coach Snyder. “He wanted to visit a sports bar in Austin and take on all comers. I should have known on the Sunday of the ACC tourney finals he would be upset with me for our practice spilling over, making him miss some of the game against FSU. We knew Coach K would have wanted us to practice, and he went to work like he always does. That’s why he is playing in the NBA and I am happy to be his coach.”
