Kings sign Wes Iwundu and former Folsom High star Jordan Ford to Exhibit 10 contracts
The Kings brought two new players into training camp Thursday, including one with deep roots in the Sacramento region.
A league source told The Sacramento Bee the Kings signed NBA veteran Wes Iwundu and former Folsom High School star Jordan Ford to Exhibit 10 contracts, providing each player with a pathway to the G League Stockton Kings.
Both players participated in practice Thursday as the Kings prepared to face the Los Angeles Lakers in their final preseason game Friday at Golden 1 Center. The Kings made room for Iwundu and Ford by waiving veterans Kent Bazemore and Quinn Cook.
Iwundu, 27, is a 6-foot-7 small forward who came out of Kansas State as the 33rd overall pick in the 2017 NBA draft. He spent three seasons with the Orlando Magic and had brief stints with the Dallas mavericks, New Orleans Pelicans and Atlanta Hawks over the past two seasons.
Iwundu has appeared in 226 games over five seasons in the NBA, averaging 4.4 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.9 assists and 0.5 steals in 16.9 minutes per game. Shooting has not been his strong suit with career marks of 40.8% from the field and 29.2% from 3-point range, but he is known as a rangy and versatile defender with a 7-1 wingspan.
Ford, 24, is a 6-1 guard who spent the past two seasons with the G League Ontario Clippers, averaging 11.2 points and 3.5 assists. He also spent time with Peristeri B.C. of the Greek League.
Ford was a two-time Bee Player of the Year at Folsom and The Bee’s Player of the Decade for the 2010s. He turned down scholarship offers from Cal, Gonzaga, Oregon and Oregon State to attend Saint Mary’s, where he became a two-time First Team All-West Coast Conference selection in 2019-20.
Ford led the Gaels to an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2019 following an upset victory over Gonzaga in the 2019 WCC tournament. He scored a career-high 42 points in a double-overtime victory over Pepperdine in the 2020 WCC tournament.
An Exhibit 10 contract is a one-year, minimum salary contract that gives the team control of the player’s G League rights along with the flexibility to convert the contract into a two-way deal. The player becomes eligible for a $50,000 bonus if he stays with the team’s G League affiliate for 60 days.
This story was originally published October 13, 2022 at 7:01 PM.
