Former KU All-American Frank Mason III added to 76ers Summer League roster

By Matt Tait     Aug 2, 2021
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Milwaukee Bucks guard Frank Mason III (15) drives past Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) in the second half of an NBA basketball game Monday, March 9, 2020, in Denver.

Former Kansas point guard Frank Mason’s journey through the NBA has landed him an opportunity with the Philadelphia 76ers Summer League squad.

Mason, the former college basketball national player of the year and 2020 G League MVP with the Milwaukee Bucks organization, is getting another crack with Philadelphia.

There remains a long way to go before Mason is elevated into the conversation about joining the Sixers NBA roster on a full-time basis. But even a two-way contract with one of the top teams in the East would qualify as a major step for the fifth-year point guard.

Mason has played for three teams in his first four professional seasons — two with Sacramento, which drafted him No. 34 overall in the 2017 NBA draft, and one each with Milwaukee and Orlando.

Mason earned just over $2.5 million for his first two seasons in Sacramento before signing two-way contracts with the Bucks and Magic in the years since.

With the Bucks, Mason appeared in just nine games while starring in the G League for the Wisconsin Herd.

With the Magic, Mason played in just four games before an injury derailed what appeared to be a path toward more playing time with the NBA club.

So now it’s an opportunity with the Sixers. If successful, Mason could be reunited with 76ers star Joel Embiid, with whom he played one season at Kansas as a freshman.

Even if this latest Summer League opportunity does not lead to a contract with the Sixers, Mason essentially is auditioning for the 29 other teams in the league. His blend of poise, toughness and intelligence make him an interesting option for just about any team looking for point guard depth.

In 90 games with the Kings, Mason averaged 7 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds in 15.8 minutes per game. While those numbers did not lead to a long-term stay in the California capital, Mason often showed that, when healthy, he had what it took to compete at that level.

At age 27, the former Jayhawk great still has a little time to prove that he can stick in the league. Shining with Phily’s Summer League squad in Las Vegas would be a good first step to getting the chance to do just that.

Philadelphia opens Summer League play on Aug. 9 against Dallas.

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.