Former Cleveland State men's basketball players J'Nathan Bullock and Cedric Jackson will each get an opportunity to play professionally this winter in the NBA Development League after each had their rights claimed this week.

Jackson will play for the Erie Bayhawks after his rights were assigned to the team, which is affiliated with both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Toronto Raptors, while Bullock was tabbed as a sixth round pick (96th selection) by the Albuquerque Thunderbirds in Thursday's NBA Development League Draft.

Bullock, a 6-5, 240-pound forward from Flint, Mich., earned first team All-Horizon League honors in each of his final two seasons. Bullock, who is one of three players to lead the team in scoring in four straight seasons, finished his Viking basketball career by ranking fourth in CSU history with 1,800 points. He played in a school-record 130 games, also holding records for career starts (124) and consecutive starts (106), and is the only player to score more than 1,500 points and grab more than 750 rebounds in a career.

Jackson, a 6-3, 190-pound guard from Columbus, N.J., was a repeat member on the All-Horizon League secont team last year after averaging 10.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. Named the 2009 Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year, he led the nation with a school and Horizon Leage record 112 steals while also handing out a school-record 199 assists.

The 17-team NBA Development League will begin its season on Nov. 20.