76ERS GAMING CLUB Retains Small Forward Antonio ‘NEWDINI’ Newman and Shooting Guard Rashann ‘ZDS’ Petty For 2019 Season
October 11, 2018
NEWDINI, ZDS TO RETURN TO 2019 ROSTER ALONG WITH ETHAN ‘RADIANT’ AND ALEXANDER ‘STEEZ’ BERNSTEIN
PHILADELPHIA – OCT. 11, 2018 – 76ers Gaming Club (GC) General Manager Michael Lai announced today that 76ers GC retained small forward Antonio “Newdini” and shooting guard Rashann “ZDS” Petty for the 2019 NBA 2K League season. Teams were allowed to trade or retain players during Trade Period 1 from Sept. 27 to Oct. 10.
“Last season Rashann demonstrated elite shooting accuracy and supreme confidence; Antonio brought much-needed versatility and clutch playmaking,” Lai said. “Combined, the pair provided a spark off the perimeter unrivaled across the league. We’re excited to have Antonio and Rashann return as key contributors for another run at an NBA 2K League Championship.”
Selected with No. 21 overall pick in the 2018 NBA 2K league Draft, Newdini averaged 11.4 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 24.0 minutes per game across all competitions. A constant in the 76ers GC lineup, Newdini reached double figures in points in nine of 14 regular-season matchups, capped off with a career-high 31-point performance against Magic Gaming in Week 6. The small forward was one of four 76ers GC players to score 30-plus points in a single game during the 2018 campaign.
ZDS, a sixth-round selection (No. 89 overall) out of Indianapolis, averaged 13.0 points and 2.1 assists in 24.0 minutes per game over the course of regular season, postseason and tournament play. In 27 contests, the shooting guard averaged team highs in three-pointers (2.3) per game and three-point field goal percentage (.517) (minimum 20 attempts from the floor). Converting 62 of his 120 attempts from three-point range, his 62 three-pointers finished as the second-highest total in the league.
Newdini and ZDS push the 2019 76ers GC roster to four players, joining point guard Ethan “Radiant” White and center Alexander “Steez” Bernstein, who were both protected ahead of the NBA 2K League Expansion Draft.