Release from Georgia State Athletics:

Following an amazing three-year career at Georgia State, R.J. Hunter was selected with the 28th pick in the first round of the NBA Draft on Thursday night by the Boston Celtics.

Hunter becomes the highest draft pick in Georgia State history and first since Joe Brown went to the Cleveland Cavs in the ninth-round of the 1983 NBA Draft.

A two-time AP All-America Honorable Mention honoree and two-time Sun Belt Player of the Year, Hunter finished his career as the all-time leading scorer in Georgia State history with 1,819 points. He also earned three-straight first-team all-conference honors, the only player in program history to accomplish the feat as well.

Hunter capped his career by leading the No. 14-seeded Panthers to a 57-56 win over No. 3-seed Baylor in the second round of the NCAA tournament, just the 20^th 14 over 3-seed in tournament history. Hunter hit a 30-foot 3-pointer with 2.7 seconds remaining to cap an incredible 12-point comeback in the final three minutes of the game. The moment has been watching millions of times online and included in ‘One Shining Moment’ before becoming an ESPYS Award nominee.

“This is truly a blessing and a dream come true,” Hunter said. “I look forward to getting to Boston and starting the next chapter of my career. I want to thank everyone who has been a part of this and look forward to making everyone proud at the next level.”

“I am extremely proud of R.J.,” head coach and father Ron Hunter said. “I have said it all along that he is an even better son than he is a basketball player and he is an incredible basketball player. I look forward to getting to watch him play in Boston for many years to come.”

Hunter led the Panthers to a second-straight 25-win season this year after averaging 19.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. Hunter shot 87.8 percent from the free throw line and made 80 3-pointers.

Along with being the all-time leading scorer in school history, Hunter also is the career leader in free throws made (448), free throw percentage (.853), 3-pointers made (253), 3-point attempts (715) and field goal attempts (1,321). He is also the single-season leader in points scored (688) and 3-pointers made (100).