Nickeil Alexander-Walker (born September 2, 1998) is a Canadian professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. Founded in 19 ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

(NBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Virginia Tech Hokies The Virginia Tech Hokies are the athletic teams representing the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) in intercollegiate athletics. The Hokies participate in the NCAA's Division I Atlantic Coast Conference in 22 v ...

. A shooting guard and a point guard, he was drafted 17th overall by the

Brooklyn Nets The Brooklyn Nets are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Nets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. The ...

in the

2019 NBA draft The 2019 NBA draft was held on June 20, 2019. It took place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, i ...

but was traded to the New Orleans Pelicans.

High school career

A native of Toronto, Alexander-Walker played for

Vaughan Secondary School Hodan Nalayeh Secondary School, formerly Vaughan Secondary School, is a public secondary school in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It opened in 1989 by the York Region Board of Education and is currently overseen by the York Region District School Boa ...

, St. Louis Christian Academy, and Hamilton Heights Christian Academy. At Hamilton Heights, he was a teammate of his cousin

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Shaivonte Aician Gilgeous-Alexander ( ; born July 12, 1998), also known by his initials SGA, is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He also played one year of col ...

. The two have a close relationship and shared a room at coach Zach Ferrell's house. He was ranked the No. 74 prospect in the class of 2017 according to

Scout.com Scout Media is an integrated sports publishing company that produces Internet content covering hundreds of professional and college teams across America. The company was founded in 2001 and was acquired by Fox Sports in 2005. In 2013, Fox Sports ...

College career

Alexander-Walker committed to

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

in May 2016, over offers from USC and

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

. As a freshman for the Hokies, Alexander-Walker averaged 10.7 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. In his second game in college, he scored a season-high 29 points in a 132–93 win over

The Citadel The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, commonly known simply as The Citadel, is a public senior military college in Charleston, South Carolina. Established in 1842, it is one of six senior military colleges in the United States. ...

. He helped lead Virginia Tech to a 21–12 record and NCAA Tournament appearance. In the first round loss to

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

, Alexander-Walker scored 15 points. As a sophomore, Alexander-Walker averaged 16.5 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game during the regular season. He helped lead Virginia Tech to a 24–8 season, with a 12–6 record in the ACC and a 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

Professional career

New Orleans Pelicans (2019–2022)

On June 20, 2019, Alexander-Walker was selected with the 17th overall pick by the

in the

. On July 6, 2019, his draft rights were traded to the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The team plays its home games at ...

and then immediately traded again to the New Orleans Pelicans. The next day, the Pelicans announced that they had signed Alexander-Walker. On October 22, 2019, Alexander-Walker made his NBA debut, coming off the bench in a 130–122 overtime loss to the

Toronto Raptors The Toronto Raptors are a Canadian professional basketball team based in Toronto. The Raptors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. They play their home games a ...

. He finished the game with three points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals. On November 16, 2019, Alexander-Walker scored a career-high 27 points, while getting four rebounds and three assists in a 109–94 loss against the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Southeast Division. The club plays its home games at FT ...

. On February 26, 2020, the Pelicans assigned Alexander-Walker to the Erie BayHawks of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

. On February 27, 2020, Alexander-Walker had 23 points, four rebounds, four assists, and two steals in his first G League game, a 125–124 win over the

Long Island Nets The Long Island Nets are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Uniondale, New York, and are affiliated with the Brooklyn Nets. The team plays its home games at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Nassau Count ...

. On January 13, 2021, he started for the Pelicans and scored a career-high 37 points against the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

Utah Jazz (2022–2023)

On February 8, 2022, the

Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers (colloquially known as the Blazers) are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. The Trail Blazers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Con ...

acquired Alexander-Walker,

Josh Hart Josh Hart (born March 6, 1995) is an American professional basketball player for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected in the first round of the 2017 NBA draft by the Utah Jazz with the 30th ...

Tomáš Satoranský Tomáš Satoranský (born 30 October 1991) is a Czech professional basketball player for FC Barcelona of the Spanish Liga ACB and the EuroLeague. Standing at , he primarily plays at the point guard position, but he can also play as a shooting ...

, Didi Louzada, a protected 2022 first-round draft pick, the better of New Orleans' and Portland's 2026 second-round draft picks and New Orleans' 2027 second-round draft pick from the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for

CJ McCollum Christian James McCollum (born September 19, 1991) is an American professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). During his third year in the league in 2015–16, he was named the NBA Mo ...

, Larry Nance Jr. and Tony Snell. A day later, Alexander-Walker was traded again, this time to the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

in a three-team trade.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2023–present)

On February 9, 2023, Alexander-Walker and

Mike Conley Jr. Michael Alex Conley Jr. (born October 11, 1987) is an American professional basketball player for the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted as the fourth pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. Con ...

were traded to the

in a three-team trade with the Los Angeles Lakers.

National team career

Alexander-Walker competed for Canada at the

2016 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship The 2016 FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship for Men was an international basketball competition that was held in Valdivia, Chile from July 19–23, 2016. It was the tenth edition of the championship, and was the FIBA Americas qualifying tournamen ...

, leading the team to the silver medal. He led all scorers in the tournament with 17.4 points per game. He also competed for Canada with the senior national team in the Olympic qualifiers in 2021. On May 24, 2022, Alexander-Walker agreed to a three-year commitment to play with the Canadian senior men's national team.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, 47 , , 1 , , 12.6 , , .368 , , .346 , , .676 , , 1.8 , , 1.9 , , .4 , , .2 , , 5.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, 46 , , 13 , , 21.9 , , .419 , , .347 , , .727 , , 3.1 , , 2.2 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , 11.0 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

, 50 , , 19 , , 26.3 , , .375 , , .311 , , .722 , , 3.3 , , 2.8 , , .8 , , .4 , , 12.8 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 15 , , 2 , , 9.9 , , .333 , , .303 , , .917 , , 1.5 , , 1.1 , , 1.1 , , .3 , , 3.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", , style="text-align:left;",

, 36 , , 3 , , 14.7 , , .488 , , .402 , , .692 , , 1.6 , , 2.1 , , .7 , , .4 , , 6.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 194 , , 38 , , 18.5 , , .398 , , .337 , , .721 , , 2.4 , , 2.2 , , .7 , , .3 , , 8.7

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;",

, 1 , , 0 , , 5.0 , , 1.000 , , , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 5.0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 1 , , 0 , , 5.0 , , 1.000 , , , , 1.000 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , 1.0 , , .0 , , 5.0

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2017–18 , style="text-align:left;",

, 33 , , 33 , , 25.4 , , .449 , , .392 , , .730 , , 3.8 , , 1.5 , , .8 , , .5 , , 10.7 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;",

, 34 , , 34 , , 34.3 , , .474 , , .374 , , .778 , , 4.1 , , 4.0 , , 1.9 , , .5 , , 16.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 67 , , 67 , , 29.9 , , .464 , , .383 , , .763 , , 4.0 , , 2.7 , , 1.4 , , .5 , , 13.5

Personal life

His cousin,

, also plays in the NBA, currently for the

Oklahoma City Thunder The Oklahoma City Thunder are an American professional basketball team based in Oklahoma City. The Thunder compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team plays i ...

. Nickeil's cousin, Thomasi (Shai's younger brother), was a college basketball player for the

Evansville Purple Aces The Evansville Purple Aces are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of the University of Evansville, located in Evansville, Indiana. The Aces athletic program is a member of the Missouri Valley Conference and competes at the NCAA's Divis ...

and

Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College (NEO) is a public community college in Miami, Oklahoma. Established as the Miami School of Mines in 1919, NEO has an enrollment of approximately two thousand students. The Golden Norsemen is the school mascot. ...

. Alexander-Walker is the nephew of sprinter

Charmaine Gilgeous Charmaine Ann Marie Gilgeous (born 17 December 1971) is an Antigua and Barbuda sprinter. She competed in the women's 400 metres at the 1992 Summer Olympics. She is the mother of basketball player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Shaivonte Aician G ...

References

External links

Virginia Tech Hokies bio

USBasket profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alexander-Walker, Nickeil 1998 births Living people Basketball players from Toronto Black Canadian basketball players Brooklyn Nets draft picks Canadian expatriate basketball people in the United States Canadian men's basketball players National Basketball Association players from Canada New Orleans Pelicans players Shooting guards Utah Jazz players Virginia Tech Hokies men's basketball players