AMES, Iowa – Iowa State forward Joshua Jefferson was drafted by the Minnesota Timberwolves with the No. 28 pick in the first round of the 2026 NBA Draft. Jefferson is the 42nd NBA Draft pick in school history and the 11th in the first round. Reports indicate the pick has been traded to the Brooklyn Nets in a trade that will become official on July 6.
Iowa State has had 15 players drafted since the Big 12 was formed in 1996-97, the fourth-best total in the league. The seven first round picks in that span are also the fourth-most in league history.
Jefferson, the fifth consensus All-American in program history, was Mr. Do-It-All for the Cyclones. He was the first player in Big 12 history to turn in multiple triple-doubles in Big 12 play. He averaged 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.6 steals per game. He was the only Power Conference player in the country to average those numbers last season. Only seven players have done so in an entire season in the country going back to 1974-75, with no one in the Big 12 having accomplished it. Jefferson scored in double figures in 34 games last season, the third-most games in double figures in a season in school history. His streak of 40-straight games going back to last season ranked as the second-longest in the nation before going down with an injury in the opening minutes of the NCAA Tournament. His 167 assists last season were tied for the 19th-most in program history, while his 276 over the last two seasons were the 18th-most in program history for a career.
A Naismith Trophy Top 10 Semifinalist and Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Top 5 Finalist, Jefferson earned All-American honors from six different organizations. Notably, he was a first team selection by The Sporting News and was a consensus second team All-American. Jefferson was also a two-time All-Big 12 selection in his two years at Iowa State, earning first team honors as a senior and second team honors as a junior. He was also named to the Big 12 All-Newcomer team his junior season after transferring from Saint Mary’s.
Jefferson is the first player that Iowa State Head Coach T.J. Otzelberger has had drafted in his time as a head coach. Former Cyclones Izaiah Brockington, Curtis Jones and Keshon Gilbert have all logged NBA minutes as players under Otzelberger’s head coaching tenure.
