When the Nuggets drafted Nah’Shon “Bones” Hyland with the No. 26 overall selection in the 2020-21 NBA Draft, the 20-year-old from Wilmington, Delaware was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of being able to play in the NBA.
Hyland, who goes by the nickname “Bizzy Bones,” became the third player from the state of Delaware to be selected in the NBA Draft. Measuring in at 6’3” and just 170 pounds, the skinny scorer will join a veteran group of teammates who are fresh off a playoff run that ended in the second round at the hands of the eventual Western Conference Champion Phoenix Suns.
Hyland had a breakthrough season during his sophomore year at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. While he played primarily as a point guard his freshman season, he moved over one spot his sophomore season, and the shift helped unlock his ability to get the ball in the basket. He demonstrated an ability to hit deep, stepback 3-pointers off the dribble, leading the Atlantic 10 with 69 made 3-pointers last season.
Here’s a few facts about the Nuggets newest player.
Hyland has a love of for the game
Bones wasn’t highly recruited coming out of high school, and has had to put in the work to get to this point of his life. He received offers from smaller schools like Delaware, La Salle, Rhode Island, Temple, Hofstra, and San Diego State before settling on VCU. He only started 9 of the Rams 31 games his freshman year, but put in the work and was able to find a starting spot his sophomore year.
When he’s on the court, you can tell he’s a player that finds joy in his teammates’ successes just as much as his own, if not more. He’s constantly a source of joy out there, cheering on his teammates, encouraging them, and helping electrify the gym with his talents on both ends of the court.
If you check out his Instagram page, it’s nothing but basketball. This is a guy that lives, breathes, and dies hoops, and he should be a great culture fit with the Nuggets.
Hyland suffered a tragic loss of his grandmother during high school
You can tell Bones lives every day with humility after suffering the loss of his grandmother during a house fire in 2018. One evening in March, the house Hyland was in caught fire, and he had to jump out of a second-story window to escape. His grandmother and 11-month-old cousin perished in the fire, while he suffered a torn patellar tendon during the process that required surgery to repair. Hyland was able to recover, both emotionally and physically, and has used that experience to become a more mature, spiritual individual.
He has a talent for music
His talent isn’t the same as one of the Nuggets first round picks from last year, Zeke Nnaji, but Hyland does have a passion for rapping.
“I started rapping because I faced the house tragedy,” Hyland said in an interview. I just found a different passion and love, and it was rapping – releasing my thoughts through the mic, and it would help me. It was very therapeutic for me.”
You can check out some of his videos on his YouTube page.
