FARGO — It’s official: North Dakota has another NBA player.
the team announced the signing Friday, Feb. 27.
The Nets signed Nelson to a 10-day contract, the team said in a press release.
Nelson played three seasons at NDSU from 2020-2023 before transferring to Alabama for his final two college seasons.
There was speculation in Brooklyn the last several weeks that Nelson could be a candidate to join the Nets.
When asked about being a potential call-up to Brooklyn,
Nelson told The Forum earlier this month his play would determine whether he made it to the NBA.
“That’s the goal, but I don’t really think about it too much,” he said. “If I play well and do the things I need to do, those things will take care of themselves. That’s the way I look at it.”
He joined the Nets last year, played for their summer league team and was sent to their G-League affiliate at Long Island at the start of the NBA season.
Nelson missed the start of the Long Island Nets’ season while rehabilitating a knee injury, but joined the lineup Jan. 9 and has played well since then.
The 7-foot forward played in 23 Tip-Off Tournament and regular season games (17 starts) for Long Island this season, averaging 11 points on 55% percent shooting from the field and 80.9% shooting from the free-throw line. Nelson averaged 6 rebounds (2.6 offensive) and 1.2 assists in 19.3 minutes per game.
The 23-year-old spent part of the preseason with Brooklyn, signing with the Nets on Oct. 15, 2025, before being waived on Oct. 18, 2025, and was also a member of Brooklyn’s 2025 NBA Summer League team.
A 10-day contract is an option available for NBA teams needing to fill roster spots or wanting to give a chance to a young prospect. They often are used as an “emergency call-up,” to add players to their roster quickly. They are considered short-term deals that teams use to fill injury gaps or roster shortages.
NBA teams can sign players to two 10-day contracts, after which they must offer the player a full-year contract to retain them.
The Nets play at Boston on Friday, Feb. 27. It’s expected Nelson will join the team for that game.
Nelson joins a handful of players from North Dakota who made it to the NBA, the most famous being Phil Jackson of Williston who played for the New York Knicks and New Jersey Nets from 1967-1980.
Mike McFeely is a columnist for The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead. He began working for The Forum in the 1980s while he was a student studying journalism at Minnesota State University Moorhead. He’s been with The Forum full time since 1990, minus a six-year hiatus when he hosted a local radio talk-show.