It’s absolutely fantastic when you can celebrate someone achieving their life goal.
And for Xavier Moon – he reached it yesterday, and has a chance to cement it in the next ten days.
For those of you who remember Xavier Moon as a member of the Albany Patroons during the Pats’ 2018 season, you saw a lightning-fast guard from Morehead State who played well enough for the Gold and Kelly Green to earn league Rookie of the Year honors. Click here to see one of my old slow-motion videos of Xavier Moon with a sweet slam dunk.
Moon then spent two seasons with the London Lightning of the National Basketball League of Canada, and worked his way into being one of the Bolts’ top scorers and stars. In two seasons with the Lightning, Moon ranks 10th all-time in point scored, 9th all-time in field goals made, and 6th all-time in scoring average. He’s also one of only two players in NBL Canada history to achieve the “50-40-90” accomplishment, having achieved 50% on field goals, 40% on 3-pointers, and 90% on free throws.
After a stint with another Canadian basketball league, where he was named the league’s Most Valuable Player three times (and playoff MVP twice), Moon was signed by the NBA Gatorade League’s Agua Caliente Clippers, just one rung below the NBA. And he didn’t stop scoring, achieving 12 points and 7 assists in that time.
And yesterday … Moon was signed to a 10-day contract with the Los Angeles Clippers. As in the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association.
Moon becomes only the second player with a journey from the NBL Canada to the NBA, joining Omari Johnson (who played for the NBL’s Oshawa Power and Summerside Storm before reaching the Memphis Grizzlies in 2018). He also joins the ranks of Albany Patroon players who reached the NBA, a list that includes Mario Elie, Vincent Askew, Rick Carlisle, Tod Murphy, Scott Brooks, Tony Campbell, Snoop Graham, James Thomas, Larry Spriggs, and Jamario Moon. Yeah, as in Xavier’s uncle, Jamario Moon.
Part of the rules of an NBA 10-day contract is that you’re there with a chance to play. You’re filling in a gap for a regular player who has an injury, or in these modern times, a stint with COVID-19. But that doesn’t matter. Xavier Moon worked his way up to the NBA. He’s there. He’s getting his chance.
And come this Tuesday, he could play in his first official NBA game. Of course, he would end up against the Golden State Warriors … I mean, what better way to make yourself known than to play against Steph Curry and Klay Thompson and Draymond Green?
All that matters is that Xavier Moon has made it to the mountaintop. Now all he has to do is lace up the kicks and step onto the court. And the second he touches the ball in a moment of game play … he has achieved the statline. Whether he scores 40 points or plays for only a minute, he has now officially played in an NBA basketball game.
Good on you, my man. Congratulations from everyone in Albany, New York and in London, Ontario and in Edmonton, Alberta and in every other destination you’ve traveled on your journey to the NBA.
We’re all proud of you, X.
UPDATE: On Monday, December 27, 2021, Xavier Moon debuted in an NBA game, and got his first NBA points. Here’s the clip. He played twelve minutes on the floor, scored 1-2 from the floor, had an assist and a steal. Nice debut.
Dream achieved.
Chuck The Writer 
I’m expecting a LOT of 10-day NBA contracts these days. Maybe they’ll call up Chuck Miller to sing the national anthem like he did for the Patroons.
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That would be a pip.
The Clips host Brooklyn tonight, so maybe Xavier debuts then instead.
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