Penn State basketball's Ace Baldwin Jr. (1) during the game against Ohio State on January 30, 2025 Taj Falconer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Grizzlies Sign Big Ten Defensive Star After 2025 NBA Draft

Originally posted on Memphis Grizzlies on SI
By Austin Veazey | Last updated Jun 27, 2025 4:30 PM ET

The 2025 NBA Draft is now in the rearview, as all 59 picks came and went on Wednesday and Thursday. The Memphis Grizzlies were active throughout both nights, making multiple trades to move up and down the board.

Memphis will leave the draft, once trades are official, with Washington State's Cedric Coward (11th overall), West Virginia's Javon Small (48th overall), and Tennessee's Jahmai Mashack (59th overall). That gives them a good starting point as they fill out their Summer League roster.

Former Penn State guard Ace Baldwin Jr. signed with the Memphis Grizzlies for the NBA summer league.

He was a two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year with the Nittany Lions and averaged 14.0 PPG, 7.1 APG and 2.4 SPG last season.

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— Will Horstman (@WillHorstman_) June 27, 2025

In addition to those draftees, the Memphis Grizzlies have also signed Penn State's Ace Baldwin Jr. to a summer league deal, per Will Horstman of the Daily Collegian. Baldwin is a two-time Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year and was the Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year at VCU.

Baldwin, a 6'0" guard, started his career at VCU and then followed his coach, Mike Rhoades, to Penn State for his final two seasons. He's averaged over two steals per game in each of his five seasons in college, averaging 2.4 per game for his career. He led the Big 10 in steals both seasons at Penn State.

But Baldwin isn't just a defensive specialist. For his Penn State career, he averaged 14.1 PPG and 6.5 APG. He's not an efficient scorer, shooting under 40% from the floor for his career, and he can be prone to a lot of turnovers. However, he does a good job of getting to the free-throw line and converting once he's there. He led the Big 10 in free-throw percentage at 92.7% last season.

This article first appeared on Memphis Grizzlies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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