Guillermo Diaz and C.J. Watson Make D-League History

C.J. Watson Dave Eggen/Getty Images/NBAE

Watson Is 100th Call-Up in NBA D-League History

NEW YORK, Jan 9, 2008 – The Los Angeles Clippers yesterday signed free agent Guillermo Diaz of the Anaheim Arsenal while the Golden State Warriors signed Rio Grande Valley Vipers guard C.J. Watson. Diaz and Watson are the ninth and tenth GATORADE Call-Ups this season, respectively. Watson’s becomes the 100th call-up in the NBA Development League’s seven-year history.

The 100th call-up reinforces the D-League’s importance in the growth of players looking to be noticed by NBA teams. Since the D-League began play in November 2001, 68 players have made the jump to the NBA and every player promoted to the NBA since the beginning of the 2006-07 season has come directly from the D-League including 10 Call-Ups this season.

“The 100th Call-Up is an exciting milestone for the NBA D-League,” said League President Dan Reed. “Every time an NBA team calls up one of our players, it is a referendum on the elite level of basketball talent in our league, as well as our commitment and dedication to help develop these players into strong contributors at the NBA level. More broadly, it's symbolic of the tremendous growth we've seen across the D-League over the last three years.”

D-League alumni such as Rafer Alston (Houston), Kelenna Azubuike (Golden State), Matt Carroll (Charlotte), Mikki Moore (Sacramento) and Martell Webster(Portland) have earned their way into their respective team’s rotation after successful stints in the D-League. With the additions of Diaz and Watson, there are currently 52 D-League alumni on NBA rosters to date.

Guillermo Diaz Dave Eggen/Getty Images/NBAE

There are currently 16 former D-League coaches on NBA coaching staffs including the first-ever NBA Head Coach from the D-League, Sam Vincent of the Charlotte Bobcats (Roanoke Dazzle, Fort Worth Flyers). In addition to the players’ and coaches’ success, every referee hired by the NBA since the 2002 season has previously worked in the D-League.

Diaz was selected by the Clippers in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2006 NBA Draft. He averaged 5.7 points and 1.7 assists in seven contests for the Clippers during the 2007 preseason before being waived on Oct. 25, 2007. The Puerto Rico native averaged 16.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists in 14 games for the Arsenal this season. He played 15 games in the Czech Republic and five games in Greece during the 2006-07 season.

“Guillermo will help us both offensively and defensively,” said Elgin Baylor, Vice President of Basketball Operations for the Clippers. “He plays with a lot of energy, is a good outside shooter and there will be less of an adjustment because he is familiar with our system and our players.”

The 6-2, 185-pound guard played three seasons at the University of Miami averaging 15.9 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists and earned All-ACC Second Team honors after his sophomore and junior seasons.

Watson played four seasons at the University of Tennessee before going undrafted in the 2006 NBA Draft. Watson averaged 26.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists in 16 games for the Vipers, and was named the NBA Development League Player of the Month for December. In his senior season with the Volunteers, he averaged 15.3 points and shot 42.2 percent from three-point range. The 6-2, 180-pound guard played in Italy and Greece last season.