UCLA Basketball in the NBA Draft: Thomas Welsh, the surprise pick for Denver

With the 58th overall pick (2nd round) in the 2018 NBA Draft, the Denver Nuggets have selected UCLA basketball’s 7-foot center Thomas Welsh.

For the last time, here is your #WELSHBOOM! That is right ladies and gentlemen, “The Immortal Irishman”, UCLA basketball‘s Thomas Welsh is heading to the NBA.

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In a very surprising move, the Denver Nuggets have selected Welsh late in the 2nd round of the 2018 NBA Draft. Why is this a surprise? Because Welsh was not expected to be drafted.

Among the many expert NBA mock drafts, the UCLA center was nowhere to be found amongst various projections, though we here at Go Joe Bruin could see his potential (as we have been covering hm for the last four years) and predicted him as a late 2nd round selection.

Welsh has steadily grown into a solid shooting big man. In his four years at UCLA, he slowly developed his mid-to-long range shots. This past season, Welsh was a solid 3-point shooter, averaging .402 for the year, good for 12th best in the conference.

But as a 7-footer, Welsh was able to make shots from all over the court as he averaged 12.3 points per game. Additionally, he grabbed 10.8 rebounds (2nd in the Pac-12). But that is not all. Though he averaged a double-double through the 2017-18 season, he was able to log 18 total game double-doubles, 11th best in the nation.

Needless to say, Welsh will bring a lot to the Nuggets’ front court. He has the size, the skill and will soon have the professional development to turn him into a solid NBA center.

Next: UCLA Basketball: The 10 best men’s basketball players since 2000

Congratulations, Welsh. We are quite proud of you!