Lamont Butler didn’t hear his name called in the two-day, 59-pick NBA Draft, but he did get called by an NBA team.

The former San Diego State guard announced Thursday night that he has signed a two-way deal with the Atlanta Hawks, a non-guaranteed contract that pays up to half of the rookie minimum salary (about $600,000) and allows the player to bounce between the senior club and its G League affiliate.

Butler first tested NBA Draft waters after his third year at SDSU, when his famed buzzer beater against Florida Atlantic put the Aztecs in the 2023 NCAA championship game. He spent the spring in Las Vegas working out before ultimately returning to SDSU.

Last year, he considered the NBA again before opting to enter the transfer portal and settling on Kentucky for what was believed to be $700,000 in NIL inducements. He averaged 11.4 points and 4.3 assists per game for the Wildcats while shooting 39.1% on 3s (after shooting 32.1% in four seasons at SDSU).

But Butler spent much of the season playing hurt, and his draft prospects dwindled after being invited to the lesser of two Chicago combines, the G League Elite Camp, and not advancing to the main NBA Draft Combine.

The Hawks remained interested and quickly offered him a two-way contract shortly after the draft concluded. Butler made the announcement at a draft party attended by several of his Aztecs teammates.

One of those was Keshad Johnson, who went undrafted last year but quickly signed a two-way deal with the Miami Heat. At midseason, it was converted to a full NBA contract with a team option for the 2025-26 season. On Wednesday, the Heat exercised that option, which reportedly will pay Johnson $2 million next season.

One player with San Diego connections who was drafted Thursday was Chistian High School alum Kobe Sanders, a 6-foot-8 guard who averaged 15.8 points and 4.5 assists per game last season with Nevada after playing four years for Cal Poly.

Sanders was taken with the 50th pick by the New York Knicks, then immediately traded to the Los Angeles Clippers, who had the 51st pick.

“You’d probably call him a late bloomer,” ESPN analyst Jay Bilas said on the draft telecast, “Kobe Sanders has good size, a very good skill level. He’s an excellent passer. He has good feel, really good vision and he’s become a good pull-up shooter. He’s got a step-back move. He just strides to the rim and finishes well. I wouldn’t call him an elite athlete, but he’s one of those guys who knows how to play.”

Butler and Sanders both are expected to play for their new teams at the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas next month. Other players with local ties who could sign summer league deals include former SDSU wing Micah Parrish and UCSD stars Hayden Gray, Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones and Tyler McGhie.

Originally Published: June 26, 2025 at 10:38 PM PDT