The Denver Nuggets on Monday won the NBA championship, which gave one of their players a rare double.
Christian Braun was the No. 21 overall pick by the Nuggets in last year’s draft out of Kansas. The 22-year-old guard won the NCAA championship in 2022 as a junior with the Jayhawks. Then in his rookie season with the Nuggets, he won the NBA championship, giving him championships in back-to-back seasons.
As Kansas’ Twitter account noted, Braun is just the fifth player ever to win the NCAA championship and NBA championship in consecutive seasons.
𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘.@Ballin25Braun, the fifth player ever to win an NCAA and NBA Title in consecutive seasons 🏆🏆#KUball x @nba pic.twitter.com/gwm2OGYVE3
— Kansas Men’s Basketball (@KUHoops) June 13, 2023
That’s pretty awesome.
The four other players to accomplish the same feat include some big names: Bill Russell, Henry Bibby, Magic Johnson, and Billy Thompson.
Christian Braun becomes just the fifth player in history – and the first since 1987 – to win an NCAA title and an NBA title in back-to-back seasons. He joins Bill Russell, Magic Johnson, Henry Bibby, and Billy Thompson in this exclusive club. pic.twitter.com/ToGaAGcB3A
— Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) June 13, 2023
Though Braun likely won’t ascend to the levels of Russell and Magic, this is one heck of a way for him to start his pro career.
As if that double weren’t already impressive enough, Braun also won three consecutive state titles in high school.
CHRISTIAN BRAUN 👏
3 Straight HS Titles
NCAA Championship
NBA Championship pic.twitter.com/1PhszSSn2s— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) June 13, 2023
Braun is a winner to the highest degree. That is impressive.
