By Chris Stevens, Editor
History was made in Thursday night’s NBA draft as Wilmington native and St. Georges Tech all-stater Nah’Shon “Bizzy Bones” Hyland was drafted 26th overall by the Denver Nuggets. The 6-foot-3, 175-lb. guard becomes just the third Delaware native with high school roots since the NBA went to a common draft in 1966 to be drafted in the first round.
Bones joins two more Wilmington natives – Terence Stansbury (Newark High/Temple University, 1984) and newly minted NBA champion Donte DiVincenzo of the Milwaukee Bucks (Salesianum/Villanova University, 2018) as the only first round picks to come from the First State
Hyland will likely have a chance to get plenty of shots with league MVP Nikola Jokic picking his way through double and triple teams to find the open man.
Hyland of course proved he can make open and contested shots at Virginia Commonwealth University, averaging a team-high 19.5 points per game for the Rams in the 2020-21 season. His career at St. Georges ranks among the best in Delaware high school history, averaging 27 points per game in his final two seasons, including a DIAA final four appearance and earning DSBA player of the year honors his senior year.
WOW I’M REALLY A DENVER NUGGET LETS GOOOOOO!!! I CANT WAIT TO GET OUT THERE WOWWW!!!!!! 🙌🏽🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
— Bizzy🌟 (@BizzyBones11) July 30, 2021
Taking a bet on himself, Hyland declared for the draft this past spring after VCU was denied a chance to play in the NCAA tournament because of a COVID outbreak surrounding their opponent. His draft stock rose last month with a stellar performance at the Chicago draft combine, impressing scouts and NBA writers alike with his ability to create his own shot and make plays for others.
There is also the human element to his story. Hyland lost his grandmother and young cousin in a house fire in 2018 that devastated his family and an entire community. The ESPN draft crew was moved significantly as they relayed the story to viewers around the world, increasing the scores of people rooting for a young man who many people already were cheering for to begin with.
Thursday night’s selection was a culmination of a long, hard journey for Bones Hyland. Now he gets down to the business of playing basketball with a whole city and state behind him. After all he’s been through, this will likely be the easy part for him – and a fun, joyous experience for us watching him.
