The Fort Wayne Mad Ants, presented by Lutheran Health Network, the NBA G League affiliate of the Indiana Pacers, selected three players in Saturday's 2017 NBA G League Draft. With the 21st pick in the first round, Fort Wayne selected Tra-Deon Hollins from the University of Nebraska-Omaha. In the second round, the Mad Ants tabbed Steve Weingarten with the 47th overall selection. To round out the Mad Ants' selections, Fort Wayne added JD Tisdale Jr. in the third round.
"We got three guys altogether that have the commonalities of how hard they work and how smart they are as players," General Manager Brian Levy said. "They are Mad Ants type of guys and make our team, our training camp and our organization better."
Hollins played two years for the Omaha Mavericks and averaged 12.9 points, 6.3 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 3.7 steals. In two years of playing at the Division I level, Hollins was the NCAA leader in steals per game in both years. The 6-2 guard played one year each at Central Community College and Chipola College.
"He's going to come in and work really hard and push our guys," Levy said. "I think he's a guy that’s going to surprise some people in this league."
Weingarten joins the Mad Ants for his second stint in the G League. The 6-8 forward hailing from La Salle University played two seasons for the Canton Charge from 2013-15. In 62 games, Weingarten averaged 5.1 points and 2.2 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per contest. Mad Ants Head Coach Steve Gansey was Associate Head Coach for Canton during the 2014-15 season.
"I'm really excited about having Steve in camp with us," Gansey said. "He's an older guy and a veteran for us and will play hard for us on both ends."
Tisdale Jr. began his collegiate career at Bowling Green State University. He appeared in 82 games during his three years for the Falcons. Tisdale Jr. transferred to Rogers State (OK) for his senior campaign. He averaged 15.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists in 29 games for the Hillcats in his lone season.
"He's extremely athletic and we're looking for him to play some wing and maybe some point guard for us," Gansey said.
With the additions of Hollins, Weingarten and Tisdale Jr., the 17-member training camp roster for the Mad Ants is finalized. Camp begins on Monday, Oct. 23. The full roster is listed below: