Former Kansas Jayhawk Cliff Alexander to play for Nets in NBA summer league

After going undrafted in the NBA Draft, former Kansas forward Cliff Alexander will play for the Brooklyn Nets in the Orlando Summer League.

The decision to sign with Brooklyn comes two days after an excruciating draft-night fall. Alexander, a former top-five recruit in the class of 2014, slipped out of the draft completely after being projected to go as high as the late first or early-second round.

Alexander, who averaged 7.1 points and 5.3 rebounds in just 17 minutes during his freshman season at Kansas, will have an opportunity to prove himself during the summer session in Orlando, which opens in early July. The Nets’ first game is July 4.

Kansas coach Bill Self has expressed hope that going undrafted will be a blessing in disguise for Alexander, who has had little go right since he arrived at Kansas last year. He suffered injuries, struggled to stay on the floor and had his freshman season derailed by an NCAA investigation into impermissible benefits accepted by his mother, Latillia.

“He gets to pick the 30 teams to go to now, as opposed to being locked in on one team,” Self said on Thursday. “You get drafted (55th), you’re locked in on that one team. And that one team cuts you late, you could potentially be out of work totally.”

This story was originally published June 27, 2015 at 6:00 PM with the headline "Former Kansas Jayhawk Cliff Alexander to play for Nets in NBA summer league."