Auburn MBB in the Pros: Summer update

The NBA season wrapped up last month. A week later, Jabari Smith and Walker Kessler made history by becoming the first set of Auburn teammates to go in first round of the NBA Draft. Smith went No. 3 overall to the Houston Rockets, and Kessler was drafted No. 22 by the Memphis Grizzlies who traded his rights to the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

Kessler was traded again last week, this time to the Utah Jazz. 

Between Smith, Kessler, Sharife Cooper (2021), JT Thor (2021), Isaac Okoro (2020) and Chuma Okeke (2019), Auburn has now had six players drafted in the last five years – tied with Tennessee for the second most among SEC teams. 

Cooper, Thor, Okoro and Okeke all played in the NBA this past season, along with former Auburn point guard Jared Harper. Here's a look at how each player did. 2021-22 NBA SEASONSharife Cooper, Atlanta Hawks
Cooper spent most of the 2021-22 season playing in the G League for the College Park Skyhawks. The rookie point guard made his NBA debut on Oct. 21, and his first NBA points came against the Milwaukee Bucks on Nov. 14. He played in a total of 13 games and recorded seven points, five rebounds and five assists. In the G League, he finished 10th overall with 7.3 assists per game and was also ranked top 50 with 17.1 points per game. Cooper scored 30 or more point four times, including a 42-point performance on March 30. 

Gotta love that energy 🔥 @SharifeCooper x @Verizon pic.twitter.com/y25BybgVZS

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) May 23, 2022

Jared Harper, New Orleans Pelicans
After a torrid start to the G League, Harper was signed by the New Orleans Pelicans in December. He played in just five games but scored at least seven points in four of the five games. In the regular-season finale, Harper played 20 minutes and nearly posted a double-double with 10 points and nine assists. He scored a career-high 12 points against the Memphis Grizzlies the game before. Harper was one of the stars of the G League this past season, finishing eighth in assists per game (7.5) and 15th in points per game (21.2). 

Chuma Okeke, Orlando Magic
Coming off a strong rookie season last year, Okeke continued to show why the Magic took him in the first round. He played in 70 games this year, making 20 starts, and averaged 8.6 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. He finished the season on a high note, scoring 20 and 17 points respectively in the final two regular-season games. His 20-point effort against the Charlotte Hornets on April 7 was a season high. Okeke posted his first NBA double-double on Dec. 17 with 18 points and 10 rebounds. He also had a career-high six steals in the game and led the Magic with 1.4 steals per game. 

Isaac Okoro, Cleveland Cavaliers
At first glance, Okoro posted similar numbers to his rookie season last year with 8.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. But a deeper dive shows improvement from Okoro in his sophomore campaign. The former top-5 pick improved his field goal percentage (48%) and his 3-point field goal percentage (35%), and his plus/minus went from -9.3 last year to +2.5 this year. He started 61 of the team's 67 games and scored 20 or more points four times, including a season-high 22 points on March 4. His offensive rating (112.4) was third on the team among those who played 20 or more games. 

There's some new ice in the locker room 🥶

Only right that @isaacokoro303 was the first recipient of our new Junkyard Dog chain from @ThatsJared! #LetEmKnow pic.twitter.com/w1N1UYClx5

— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) February 27, 2022

JT Thor, Charlotte Hornets
One of the highlights of the season was Thor's first NBA basket, a one-handed slam where he posterized the defender. The rookie forward played a total of 33 games with the Hornets and averaged 2.0 points on 43.6 percent shooting and 1.3 rebounds in 7.9 minutes of action. His best stretch came in December where he had 20 points and eight rebounds over a three-game span. Thor split time between the NBA and the G League where he posted three double-doubles, including a 34-point, 12-rebound performance on Nov. 5. 

SUMMER LEAGUEThe NBA Summer League begins Thursday in Las Vegas and will feature the likes of Smith (Rockets), Thor (Hornets), Cooper (Hawks) and Harper (Pelicans). Kessler, following the recent trade, will not be participating with the Jazz. 

Be sure to follow all four former Tigers over the next week.