Former FSU Standout Jerrell Sanders Chosen As #1 Overall Pick In 2016 Scorers 1st Showcase Draft

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Big Rapids, Mich. - Former Ferris State University men's basketball standout Jerrell Sanders (Grand Rapids/Creston) continues to make his mark in professional basketball as he was recently chosen as the first overall selection in the 2016 Scorers 1st Showcase Draft.

Sanders, who has played overseas and was drafted in the sixth round two years ago by the Grand Rapids Drive in the franchise's first NBA D-League Draft, was chosen as the top overall selection heading into the 7th annual Scorers 1st Showcase set to be held on the campus of the University of Nevada-Las Vegas on July 13-14. The selections were made by the Scorers 1st Showcase coaching staff.

The Scorers 1st Showcase has become a successful two-day event that features professional coaches from around Europe and the NBA Developmental League (NBA D-League) who provide training, development and lead exposure games (six per day) where players can "showcase" their talents and network with professional scouts, head coaches and general managers from around the world looking to round out their rosters for the 2016-17 season.

The draft system helps determine which playes earn the opportunity to participate in front of numerous professional coaches, GM's and scounts from all over the world. The teams of the Scorers 1st Showcases are coached by current professional coaches from different leagues and markets from all over the world. 

The former Bulldog standout spent this past year playing for Leones in the ACB Nicaragua League along with both FAS-Denver, which claimed a league crown, and A.D. Isidro Metapan in El Salvador where he averaged 16.9 points, seven rebounds and 5.2 assists in a 12-game stint. He has also previously spent time with the semi-pro Grand Rapids Cyclones and Grand Rapids Storm. Following his FSU career, he began is pro hoops career overseas in Germany with the BG Bonn Meckenheim club in one of the country's top leagues before being picked up in the sixth round of the 2014 NBA D-League Draft by the top affiliate of the NBA's Detroit Pistons.

Sanders concluded his Bulldog career in 2011-12 while helping Ferris State to a second consecutive Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division Championship.  He totaled 11.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and five assists per game in his final season with the Bulldogs while ranking third among the team's scoring leaders and second in rebounding in addition to starting all 27 contests.

In his initial season with the Bulldogs during the 2010-11 season, Sanders played a key role during the season's first seven games prior to suffering a season-ending knee injury.  The Bulldogs eventually went on to reach the NCAA Division II Sweet Sixteen while capturing the first of back-to-back GLIAC North Division crowns.

Before the injury, Sanders made a big impression with a successful debut in a near-upset exhibition game against the Big Ten Conference's Indiana Hoosiers followed by a highlight-reel dunk on the road versus Kentucky Wesleyan that landed him on ESPN's Top 10 Plays.

The 6-6 forward initially joined the Ferris State program at the semester break during the 2009-10 campaign.  Prior to his arrival at FSU, Sanders spent two seasons at Columbus State (Ohio) Community College where he led the Cougars to a 29-4 mark and a trip to the national tournament.  He was a two-sport prep standout at Grand Rapids Creston in football and basketball before embarking on his collegiate career.

Sanders also has had several other professional offers over the past few seasons from teams around the globe, including Luxembourg, Brazil and Germany. He was first noticed while earning Most Valuable Player honors at the 16th annual Slammers Basketball Pro-Tryout Tournament held in Bonn, Germany.

Sanders is one of only in a long line of former Bulldog standouts who have had an opportunity to compete at the professional level in the past decade on the hardwood.  Among others, former standout point guard Dennis Springs spent time overseas before playing professionally in the International Basketball League (IBL) with the Holland Blast. In addition, former forward Terrance Shaw ranked among the IBL's top scoring leaders for several seasons while playing with several different teams.

Meanwhile, All-America forward Justin Keenan, who earned Division II National Player of the Year honors in 2010-11, has had the biggest impact in professional hoops to date among the past FSU standouts. He has played in a number of countries over the past five years, including Argentina's top professional league along with teams in Mexico and Puerto Rico. He has consistently ranked among the top scorers and rebounders in each league he's played and was chosen as one of the top five professionals in Mexico a year ago.

Another former Bulldog, guard Kenny Brown, received a tryout with the NBA's Detroit Pistons prior to the 2013 NBA Draft after wrapping up his FSU career and has also played pro hoops overseas following time with the Lake Michigan Admirals of the Premier Basketball League.

Yet another past Bulldog guard, Courtney Blackmore, claimed the Premier Basketball League's Defensive Player of the Year honor for the Lake Michigan Admirals during his pro career while ex-guard Austin Randel scored the first-ever basket for professional basketball's Grand Rapids Cyclones in their first outing prior to the arrival of the Drive. Former standout center Adam Anderson previously played with another Grand Rapids-based team in the Flight of the now-defunct IBL for several years.

Recently, a pair of seniors from the 2014-15 Bulldog squad embarked on their professional careers with standout guard Drew Lehman playing in Iceland this past year and forward Matt Stoll playing for the Grand Rapids Danger of the American Basketball Association. Three seniors from this past season's Bulldog squad, forwards Josh Fleming and James Chappell along with center Jared Stolicker are also currently starting the process and hope to join professional squads overseas for the 2016-17 campaign.