About six weeks before his first NBA training camp, Jalen Wilson is sitting in the second floor of a YMCA on Atlantic Avenue. He’s there to lead a clinic and make a five-figure donation. It’s a bit of a full-circle moment for Wilson. Growing up, the Nets rookie spent ‘almost every day’ at the YMCA in his hometown of Arlington, Texas. Most of the time, Wilson was on the basketball court.
“I saw my love for basketball just keep growing and growing and growing throughout that entire process,” Wilson said.
So, when Wilson was presented with an opportunity to support the Dodge YMCA on Atlantic Avenue, he said ‘it was an easy yes’ for him.
He partnered with Wilson Sporting Goods to fundraise for the facility; Wilson earned money for every point and assist he recorded in the Las Vegas Summer League as part of the brand’s program.
“It was a great way to give back to a place that I felt help build me up as a kid,” Wilson said.
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound wing averaged 17.6 points and 2.8 assists in Las Vegas. He also pulled down 7.8 rebounds and hit 46 percent of his 3-point attempts.
Those numbers ultimately benefitted the Dodge YMCA in downtown Brooklyn. Wilson, the Big 12 Player of the Year, and Wilson Sporting Goods combined to donate $10,000 to the gym last week.
If things go according to plan, last week’s event will be the first of many ties between Wilson and the borough of Brooklyn.
The Nets drafted Wilson with the No. 51 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft. GM Sean Marks said team personnel were celebrating loudly when they realized they could get Wilson. Once he was drafted, Wilson didn’t waste any time getting to know his new employer.
He’s spent most of the past two months in Brooklyn (and Las Vegas) working out at the team facility and spending time with teammates, coaches and other Nets personnel.
“Coming to a new place, new city, new organization - obviously very different from Kansas - I think it was important for me to get around, get to know everybody,” Wilson said in an interview with SNY. “This is my job now, so I feel like if I’m going to do it, I gotta do it the right way. And that’s meeting everybody, building a relationship with everybody and just being around.”