BROOKLYN (ABC4 Sports) – Neemias Queta became the highest drafted Utah State player when he was selected with the 39th overall pick by the Sacramento Kings in the NBA Draft Thursday night.
Queta is the highest drafted Aggies since Brian Jackson was drafted 26th overall by the Portland Trailblazers in 1981.
Queta finished his career at Utah State as the best rim protector in school history, setting single game, single season and career block records over the course of his stay in Logan.
After going 44 years without a player drafted, Utah State now has back-to-back draft picks with Sam Merrill going to the NBA champion Milwaukee Bucks in the 2020 NBA Draft.
Last season with the Aggies, Queta led the NCAA in blocks with 97, breaking the single-season record at Utah State as Queta passed his own record of 84 set during his freshman year in 2018-19. Overall, Queta recorded 219 blocks over the course of his career, far surpassing the previous Utah State record of 155.
He had the longest wingspan of any player in the draft at 7-feet-4.
Queta balanced his defensive excellence with a solid showing on the offensive side of the ball, finishing as the only player in the Mountain West in 2020-21 to average a double-double with 14.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.
Queta is a two-time Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year award winner along with being a 2021 Associated Press honorable mention All-American.
Queta impressed scouts at the NBA draft combine sporting the biggest wingspan of anyone at the combine.
Originally from Barreiro Portugal, Queta spent three years in Logan at Utah State, finishing with career averages of 13.2 points, 9.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game.
Queta tested
