USA TODAY Sports

Former LA All-Star Graduates College Decades After Achieving NBA Dream

Originally posted on FanNation All Lakers
By Caleb Nguyen | Last updated 8/5/23

Years after his NBA playing career concluded, a former Los Angeles Lakers All-Star point guard returned to hit the books rather than the court for a goal he'd set out for a long time to accomplish.

Let's unpack it.

Guard Nick Van Exel took to Twitter earlier this week to commemorate graduating from the University of Cincinnati with a degree decades prior to departing the school for his own hoop dreams.

The veteran played donned the purple and gold for his first five seasons in the NBA and averaged 15 points and seven assists with one steal in his Laker career.

His final season with the Lakers was a historic one for the team as LA sent the guard and three other teammates to the All-Star Game that season, a very rare feat in league history

Van Exel got to share that achievement during the 1998 season with Kobe Bryant, Eddie Jones and Shaquille O'Neal joining him in that year's February exhibition between East and West.

After departing from Los Angeles, Van Exel took his talents to the Mile High City and played for the Denver Nuggets for parts of four seasons.

During the 2001-2002 season, the Dallas Mavericks traded for Van Exel to pair alongside Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki as a part of their starting lineup.

Averaging departing LA, Van Exel's averages went to 16 points and over seven assists per contest split across his stints in Denver and Dallas for parts of two seasons.

For the final three years of his career, the former Bearcat spent time one season each with the Portland Trail Blazers, Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs before retiring in the after the 2006 season.

Congrats to the man they call Nick the Quick for not just his career on the court but this amazing goal outside of basketball!

This article first appeared on FanNation All Lakers and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: