McCauley finds his way with pro career
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Yough graduate Ben McCauley averaged 12.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per game as a senior at North Carolina State in 2008-09.
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From West Newton, Pa., to Strasbourg, France. For Ben McCauley, it is hard to fathom that he has fashioned a professional basketball career after growing up in, as he put it, "the middle of nowhere in Western Pennsylvania."
After a standout career at Yough High School -- where he was the second basketball player to earn a Division I scholarship -- and North Carolina State, the 6-foot-8 McCauley was signed by Strasbourg IG in the French Pro A League in July after playing with the Los Angeles Lakers summer league team in Las Vegas.
McCauley averaged 10.5 points per game and shot 47 percent from 3-point range in his first season.
"It was a great experience," McCauley said. "I never thought I would be playing professional basketball in France. I got to travel a little bit. We played in the Ukraine, Holland, Cyprus. After the season, I was able to travel in Germany and Switzerland. It's really cool. Being a young guy from the middle of nowhere in Western Pennsylvania to experience what I got to experience was nice."
McCauley is playing in the Pittsburgh Basketball Club Pro-Am for the next two weeks before heading back to Las Vegas for another summer-league season with the NBA champion Lakers. McCauley found out about the Pittsburgh league a few weeks ago when he was playing pickup games with some Pitt players at the Petersen Events Center.
"Some of the guys said they needed a big man for one of the teams, so I jumped at the chance," McCauley said. "It's a good league."
McCauley is one of a handful of pro or former pros competing in the league. Most of the players currently play at Pitt, Duquesne, Robert Morris or other local Division II and III teams. The games are Monday and Wednesday nights through the third week of July at the Greentree Sportsplex in Green Tree.
McCauley does not yet know where he will play next season. The ultimate goal is to be signed by the Lakers, but the Las Vegas summer league provides so much exposure that other teams in the NBA or Europe could offer him a contract.
First Published June 30, 2010 12:00 am
