Noah Clowney played in a pro regular-season game for the first time on Friday night at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Across the country at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada, Josh Primo played for the first time since the San Antonio Spurs’ stunning release of the former NBA first-round draft choice on Oct. 28, 2022.

The former Alabama standouts were among the alumni of state colleges on the court for the opening night of the NBA G League’s 2023-24 season on Friday.

The Brooklyn Nets selected Clowney from the Crimson Tide with the 21st choice in the NBA Draft on June 22. But he’s getting seasoning by opening his rookie campaign with Brooklyn’s G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets.

In Long Island’s opener, Clowney had 12 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots as the Nets’ starting center before fouling out of a 123-120 victory over Raptors 905.

Primo signed a two-way contract with the Los Angeles Clippers on Sept. 29, the same day the NBA announced he had been suspended for four games “for conduct detrimental to the league.”

The suspension is for four NBA games, and in the Ontario Clippers’ season-opening 109-102 victory over the G League Ignite, Primo had 10 points, six rebounds and five assists.

Each NBA team can sign up to three players to two-way contracts. A two-way player can be moved between the NBA roster and the team’s NBA G League affiliate without having to pass through waivers and can play up to 50 games for the big team.

Reports on Monday indicated Los Angeles planned to convert Primo from a two-way contract to a standard NBA contract after its trade for Philadelphia 76ers guard James Harden left the team with open spots on its 15-player roster, although the team has not announced it yet.

Former Alabama prep star Xavier Moon from Central-Coosa will fill Primo’s two-way spot, the report said, and Moon and Primo formed Ontario’s starting backcourt on Friday night. Moon had 12 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists in the opener.

Four other Alabama alumni hold two-way contracts – center Charles Bediako with the San Antonio Spurs, guard JD Davison (Calhoun) with the Boston Celtics, guard Keon Ellis with the Sacramento Kings and forward Braxton Key with the Denver Nuggets.

Ellis is on the Stockton Kings’ roster, but he has started the past two games for Sacramento in the NBA.

Davison had a notable season-opener for the Maine Celtics on Friday night with 23 points, nine assists and six rebounds in a 137-127 loss to the Capital City Go-Go.

Among the players with Alabama basketball roots making their pro debuts on Friday night in the G League was one who didn’t have to go far from home to do so. Former Hoover High School and UAB standout Trey Jemison had seven points, nine rebounds and six blocked shots as Birmingham’s starting center in the Squadron’s 130-90 blowout of the Austin Spurs at Legacy Arena.

Other players from Alabama colleges on NBA G League rosters for the season’s opening weekend include:

· Guard Sharife Cooper (Auburn) with the Cleveland Charge

· Forward Javan Johnson (Austin High School, Troy) with the Santa Cruz Warriors

· Guard Trhae Mitchell (South Alabama) with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers

· Guard Isaiah Moore (South Alabama) with the Iowa Wolves

· Guard Justin Powell (Auburn) with the Cleveland Charge

· Guard Jaden Shackelford (Alabama) with the Oklahoma City Blue

· Guard Jordan Walker (UAB) with the Texas Legends

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.