Alec Burks was selected by the Jazz with the No. 12 overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft on Thursday at the Prudential Center. The former Colorado guard grew up near Kansas City in Grandview, Mo. Tough town with tough kids, Burks said: “There’s a lot of things. But it made me a better person. It’s been great but a grind at the same time. It’s been a long month of June it seemed like. But I just worked hard. It’s been a blessing. I’m just glad I finally know who I’m playing for. I'm crazy hyped, I got so much excitement. I finally realized my dream, so it’s a great thing.”
Burks finished his sophomore campaign at Colorado averaging 20.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 2.9 assists. The 6-6, 193-pound guard owns the school’s third all-time highest scoring average with 19.0 points per game. He set the Colorado freshman (512) and sophomore (779) scoring records and shot 50-plus percent from the field in 39 games. In his first season with the Buffaloes, Burks was named 2010 Big 12 Freshman of the Year, the first Colorado recipient ever, after shooting .538 percent from the field.
Prior to joining Colorado, Burks averaged 23.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.6 steals during his senior season at Grandview High School in Grandville, Mo. He was named 2009 Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Missouri after leading the Bulldogs to a 29-2 record during his senior season. He was also selected to participate in the Missouri-Kansas All-Star game.