Former St. John's forward Anthony Mason Jr. - the star of Norm Roberts' last teams at St. John's and a 2010 graduate of the Red Storm program - has signed a contract with French club Cholet Basket for the upcoming season. Terms were not announced.
Mason, a 6'7" wing originally from Memphis, played two seasons with the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League.
Young Mase averaged 16.7 points per game with just under 6 rebounds and 3 assists per contest. His athletic scoring efforts - far better numbers than he posted in college - weren't enough to draw the attention of NBA scouts, despite those excellent numbers and a NBA D-League Performer of the Week award.
More, below the fold.
He wasn't invited to an NBA summer camp like many of his teammates were, but had played in Bahrain for a short spell this May. Mason was brought in by the club Al Hala to bolster their roster for the Arabian Gulf Championship. (Al Hala lost in the championship game.)
Injuries hampered what looked to be a promising career for Anthony, an athletic wing who couldn't put it together to lead an often-young and sometimes overmatched Red Storm in the Big East. Mason had recurring leg injuries to his ankle and his hamstrings, and struggled to be consistently effective, despite great leaping ability and a sometimes solid shooting touch.
"I believe that if I didn't get injured, if I took care of my body more in college the way I am now, I would've gotten to the [NBA] level by now," Mason told NBA.com last year, while playing with the Skyforce.
Over parts of five seasons (he redshirted after a leg injury in 2008) Mason averaged 10.7 points/ 5 rebounds per game, taking more of a backseat to the 2011 class once he returned from his last injury at St. John's. The son of famed Knick forward Anthony Mason, Mason meant to become a star in the same bright lights where his father made his name, and in the same city where his father grew up, playing with Norm Roberts at Springfield Gardens HS.
The dream was deferred for some years, and may be back on track.
Good luck to Anthony Mason, who will play professional ball in northwest France for Cholet Basket, where Marco Bourgault played youth basketball.
Follow the Rumble on Facebook | Follow on Twitter: Rumble In The Garden | Tim | Quinn | Pico | Follow on Tumblr