UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Three Penn State men’s basketball alumni will represent the Nittany Lions as the 2025-26 NBA season tips off this week. Yanic Konan Niederhauser (Los Angeles Clippers) and Jalen Pickett ‘23 (Denver Nuggets) are both on NBA rosters, while Andrew Jones ’11, M’15 begins his second season as the head coach of the Toronto Raptors’ G League affiliate, Raptors 905.
Yanic Konan Niederhauser – Los Angeles Clippers
Konan Niederhauser begins his rookie season in the league after becoming the first Nittany Lion in program history to be selected in the first round of the NBA Draft in late June when he was chosen by the Clippers with the 30th overall pick in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft.
He wrapped up the 2024-25 season at Penn State averaging 12.9 points and a team-best 6.3 rebounds per game, in addition to a Big Ten-best mark of 2.31 blocks per game that ranked 12th amongst Division I players tied for seventh in Penn State single-season history. He led the Nittany Lions with a 61.1 field goal percentage, a mark that ranks fifth all-time in Penn State single-season history.
Jalen Pickett ’23 – Denver Nuggets
Pickett enters his third season with the Denver Nuggets after appearing in 76 games throughout his first two seasons. Pickett made 49 appearances in 2024-25, averaging 4.1 points, 2.2 assists and 1.4 rebounds per game. He recorded his first career NBA triple-double in April 2025, with 17 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against the San Antonio Spurs. Pickett was drafted by Denver in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft with the 32nd overall pick.
Pickett's collegiate career culminated in a Consensus All-American season in 2022-23 as he averaged 17.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg and 6.6 apg with a 50.8 FG%, becoming the first Division I men's college basketball player since at least the 1992-93 season to average 17/7/6 or better while shooting at least 50% from the field. Pickett finished his five-year collegiate career with marks of 2,207 points (15.3 ppg), 780 rebounds (5.4 rpg), 841 assists (5.8 apg), 178 steals and 115 blocks. The Rochester, N.Y. native was the only Division I men's basketball player since at least the 1985-86 season to have accumulated career marks of 2,000+ career points, 700+ career rebounds and 800+ career assists. He tallied 1,068 points, 407 rebounds and 378 assists through just 68 games in a Penn State uniform, reaching his 1,000th point at Penn State in just 65 games, while leading Penn State to 2023 NCAA Tournament and Big Ten Tournament Championship game appearances.
Andrew Jones ’11, M’15 – Head Coach – Raptors 905 (Toronto G League affiliate)
Jones enters his second season as the head coach of Raptors 905, the Toronto Raptors’ G League affiliate. He spent the 2023-24 season as an assistant coach with the Toronto Raptors, after previously serving as assistant coach of player development with the Detroit Pistons for two seasons. Other coaching stops include two seasons as a player development coach with the Philadelphia 76ers and five years in the Oklahoma City Thunder organization.
Jones was a four-year starter during his time in Happy Valley, finishing his career as the school's 12th-leading rebounder. The Philadelphia native played a key role in leading Penn State to the 2009 NIT Championship, averaging 10 points and 8.2 rebounds per game in that postseason run, before helping guide the Nittany Lions to the 2011 NCAA Tournament. He later returned to Penn State as a graduate assistant in 2013 and received a master's degree in educational leadership before playing professionally overseas for several years.