Former UCLA Basketball Center Thomas Welsh Signs Two-Way NBA Contract

Former UCLA center Thomas Welsh, who was drafted 58th in this year’s NBA Draft, has signed a two-way contract with the Denver Nuggets, according to NBA.com.

Welsh played in two games for the Nuggets Las Vegas Summer League team where he averaged 31.3 minutes per game and averaged 6.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists.

The two-way contract is a new type of contract that the NBA introduced last year. It will allow Welsh to spend as many 45 days with the Nuggets while he will spend the rest of the season in the NBA G League. He is not guaranteed to any time in the NBA.

While in the G League, he will earn $75,000. He will be paid a pro-rated rookie minimum for any time spent in the NBA.

Assuming he spends the full 45 days with the NBA team, he will make about $210,000 for that time, allowing him to make a total of about $285,000 in total between the NBA and the G League.

There are pluses and minuses to the two-way contracts. For instance, it means that Welsh will not be able to be signed by another NBA franchise while, at the same time, he will earn substantially more than if he simply signed a G League deal.

Overall, for Welsh, this is probably a good deal. It will allow him to develop more in the G League while getting paid more than if he only signed a G League contract and, if there’s one thing we know about him, it’s that he works hard to get better. I fully expect that he will do the same at the next level.


Go Bruins!