The NBA Summer League is giving a handful of Mountaineers a chance to make their case, and five former West Virginia players are in the mix trying to turn summer minutes into something more permanent.
The early returns have been mixed, but there have been a few encouraging individual showings along the way.
For the Knicks, Treysen Eaglestaff and Toby Okani are back together after spending their senior seasons at West Virginia. Their first outing in New York colors was a tough one, though, as the pair combined for just 11 minutes in a blowout loss to the Nets.
Neither player made a shot, with both going 0-for-3 from the floor. Eaglestaff finished with 2 assists and a steal, while Okani added a rebound and a block.
Erik Stevenson has also gotten his latest NBA look with the Nuggets. The guard who starred for WVU in 2022 started Denver’s first game and logged 25 minutes in a 97-86 loss to the Rockets. Stevenson scored 6 points on 3-for-8 shooting and added 3 rebounds, 3 steals and a block.
Javon Small has been one of the more productive Mountaineers in the summer action so far. In Memphis’ one-point win over the Bulls last night, he put up 15 points on 5-for-14 shooting, along with 2 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Across his previous two games in Salt Lake City, Small averaged 12.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game while shooting 44.4% from the floor.
In Other News...
WVU Fans Finally Get One Recruiting Showcase They Cannot Miss
For West Virginia basketball fans who have been waiting for a real recruiting event worth circling, the Peach Jam should deliver one starting July 14 in North Augusta, S.C. The EYBL finals bring 24 teams into the mix with a path to the final eight, and this years field is loaded with names the Mountaineers have been tracking closely.
Among the most relevant stops is a first-day matchup involving Team Thad and UPLAY Canada, which puts two WVU point guard targets on the same stage right away. Arizona Unity is in the field, too, giving the Mountaineers another look at a group that includes five-star big man Paul Osaruyi along with several other players who already hold West Virginia offers. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Just Learned Its First Big November Test
West Virginia now has a better sense of what its November will look like, with the Players Era Mens Basketball Championships setting up another high-profile test in Las Vegas. The event, backed by Players Era, EverWonder Studio and MGM Resorts International, will bring 24 teams together in November 2026 across Michelob ULTRA Arena and T-Mobile Arena, with recent national champions among the field and separate brackets for the Players Era 8 and Players Era 16.
For the Mountaineers, the first-round assignment in the Players Era 8 adds an early measuring-stick game to a month that already figures to carry plenty of weight. The tournament schedule has been laid out, and the matchup comes with a late-night tip on Tuesday, Nov. 17, in a setting that should feel more like a showcase than a neutral-site afterthought, even before the rest of the bracket fully comes into focus. [Read more 🡒]
WVU Fans Are Not Going To Like This Tip Time
West Virginias trip to the Players Era event in Las Vegas comes with the kind of tip time that will test even the most loyal Mountaineers fans back home. The opener is set for 9 p.m. local time on Nov. 17, which means a midnight start in the Eastern time zone, and the event will keep rolling with additional games on the following days at varying start times.
There is at least some financial upside to the late-night inconvenience, since participants are guaranteed a minimum of $1 million in NIL compensation with more available based on placement. The Big 12 also has locked in future bids for top teams in the event, and West Virginia is set to be back in 2027-28 after last seasons top-eight finish in the league. [Read more 🡒]