DENVER
The Denver Nuggets selected guard Emmanuel Mudiay with the seventh overall pick in the NBA draft on Thursday night.
Mudiay averaged 18 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.9 rebounds in 10 games for the Guangdong Southern Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association in 2014-15.
He originally committed to attend SMU before turning pro.
The 6-foot-5, 200-pound Mudiay was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1996 and moved to Dallas with his two brothers in 2001.
The pick was Denver’s highest since selecting Carmelo Anthony third overall in 2003.
The Nuggets missed the playoffs the last two seasons after reaching the postseason 10 consecutive years. Mudiay said he wants to end Denver’s title drought.
“I’m a winner, I just want to win as many championships as I can,” he said on a conference call. “That’s one thing I want to bring to the city.”
An ankle injury limited Mudiay to a shortened pro season with Guangdong. Before the injury, he scored a season-high 29 points in his second game with the Southern Tigers.
He recorded a triple-double later in the season with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 13 assists.
He returned March 1 and scored 24 points to help Guangdong avoid elimination in Game 3 of the semifinals of the playoffs. The Southern Tigers were eliminated in four games.
Mudiay is happy with his decision to play in China despite his limited action.
“I don’t regret it, not one bit,” he said. “I think the most difficult thing that happened was when I went down with an injury.
“The country was great to me, the fan base, the coaches, the teams, everybody treated me well. The difference was the physicality of the game. It was like playoff basketball.”
Mudiay is the first addition of the Michael Malone era in Denver.
Malone was hired as head coach June 15 to get the team back to the playoffs. Malone is known for his defensive acumen but has vowed to run with the Nuggets while improving the team’s defense.
Mudiay said he’s ready to jump right in after playing professionally in China.
“Yeah, I’m definitely ready,” he said. “It helped me in a great way because I was playing against grown men strength.”
The selection of Mudiay could also signify the end of point guard Ty Lawson’s career in Denver.
Lawson has been the subject of trade rumors since the season ended April 12 with a possible reunion in Sacramento with coach George Karl
Denver won a franchise-best 57 games in 2012-13 but the team fired Karl even after he won coach of the year honors.
Brian Shaw was hired but his half-court style clashed with his roster and he was fired in March.
The Nuggets went 30-52 in 2014-15, their lowest win total since going 17-65 in 2002-03.
